Making sauerkraut step by step

October is slowly coming to an end and we should all be thinking about the vitamins supply for the winter. Sure, you probably have apples, garlic and onions and other veggies stored in your cellar but that is not enough. Sauerkraut is clearly the king of winter vitamin bombs. We all know that. Pickled cabbage is loaded with vitamins. It contains vitamin C, K and plenty of iron and almost no calories and no fat. If you want to have sauerkraut for the winter, you do not need to pickle cabbage right now. You may start at the end of November and still have plenty of time to have this delicacy ready for the winter. Here is a cabbage pickling recipe step-by-step.

If do not have your own cabbage, buy it

Many markets offer shredded cabbage in plastic bags at bargain prices but it is always better to know where your cabbage came from. Cabbage in markets most often comes from Poland and chances are that it was stored for a long time. If you have old cabbage, pickling is complicated as it may not release enough juice. And of course, you do not know where it has grown.

A high-quality stoneware pot with a water groove is a must

You need to have good equipment. We used a 15 kg stoneware pot. It should have a water groove on top, because cabbage gives off the typical aroma during fermentation and not everyone likes that. You also need proper weights to keep cabbage submerged fully in brine, otherwise it will get mouldy.

Photo: Radek Štěpán

A simple recipe

For 15 kg of shredded white cabbage, you need 225 g of salt, 1 large bag of cumin and 3 large onions cut in half and crosswise.

Press thoroughly and do not pour out the juice

Pour shredded cabbage in a large round plastic basin and sprinkle with salt, cumin and chopped onion. Now, you need to press it thoroughly. The traditional way is to keep stomping on it until the cabbage swims in juice. When it does, you may remove the cabbage, squeeze out the juice and put it in the stoneware pot. Pour the extra juice into a container and seal it with a lid. You will use it later when water evaporates from the stoneware pot.

Photo: Radek Štěpán

Photo: Radek Štěpán

Make sure to press and smooth out the top layer of cabbage. It must be submerged in juice.

Now you place the weight on top of it. Cabbage must be fully submerged.

Photo: Radek Štěpán

Fill the groove with water.

Clean the entire neck and fill the groove with freshwater and wait for the fermentation process to start. The initial fermentation is usually a vigorous process and will push out the juice out. You need to check from time to timebut also throughout the entire fermentation period. If necessary, replenish the juice.

Source: Autor, www.fresh.iprima.cz, vareni.cz

Preview photo: Radek Štěpán

Youtube: Radek Štěpán