Homemade Sauerkraut is a wonderful accompaniment to your pastrami sandwich or bratwurst.
Homemade sauerkraut is extremely easy to make but takes a little time to ferment. If you want sauerkraut with a meal, be prepared, it takes up to two weeks to ferment and develop its distinctive flavour.
My favourite way to eat sauerkraut is with roast pork, it compliments it so well and helps to balance the richness of the meat.
What is Sauerkraut?
Sauerkraut is a fermented raw cabbage, preserved in brine. Sauerkraut is a popular German preserve with a salty and sour taste.
How to make sauerkraut
Let’s start by sterilising the jar. Then clean and cut your white cabbage.
We need to work out how much salt to add, sauerkraut needs 2% salt to ferment. Weigh your sliced cabbage then work out 2% of that weight, this is how much salt to use.
For example; if your cabbage weighs 500g you will add 10g of salt (500g x 0.02 = 10g).
In a bowl, mix the salt and cabbage together and let sit for a few minutes. Now we need to work the cabbage a little to release the water from it. In the bowl, squeeze the cabbage in your hands. We are trying to squeeze as much of the water out of the cabbages as we can, do not throw this liquid away – this will be used to cover the cabbage and ferment it.
Add the caraway seeds and peppercorns.
Put all the cabbage and liquid into your Mason jar and press the cabbage firmly into the bottom, make sure to press hard enough to fully submerge the cabbage under its brine.
Place a loose lid on the jar and leave it in a dry, dark place. Remember to check daily to see if it needs burping. Gas and pressure will build if you tighten the lid and could explode, so regular checking is a must!
leave it fermenting, it usually takes between 1 to 2 weeks. Keep tasting, to see when you think it is at its best.
When ready, enjoy the salty, sour cabbage goodness with sausage or as part of a reuben.
Sauerkraut takes a bit of time to make but it’s well worth the wait.
What can I eat sauerkraut with?
Sauerkraut is traditionally eaten with roast pork knuckle but it works well with lots of other foods too. It’s great in a reuben, on hotdogs, in a grilled cheese sandwich. Why not try it with a barbeque brisket or even with a tuna salad? I love to have sauerkraut and pickled green beans as a side for pork chops, so tasty.
Amazing Homemade Sauerkraut – Ready in 2 weeks
Course: CondimentDifficulty: Easy300
ml30
minutesIngredients
White cabbage. Enough to fill your jar, thinly sliced.
2% Sea Salt
1/2 tsp Carraway Seeds
6 peppercorns
Directions
Clean and slice the white cabbage.
Weigh the sliced cabbage to work out the weight of sea salt needed.
TIP: multiply the cabbage weight by 0.02 (e.g. 500g cabbage x 0.02 = 10g sea salt)
Mix the salt and cabbage and let sit for a few minutes. Then squeeze and kneed the cabbage in a bowl to release the water. Squeeze it really well, the salty juices are needed to cover and ferment the cabbage.
sprinkle and mix the carraway seeds and peppercorns into the cabbage before transferring it all to your mason jar.
Press the cabbage firmly into the jar, making sure that all the cabbage is covered by its juices.
Loosely place a lid on the jar, you don't want to fasten it on tight because there will be pressure building from the fermenting process. Check this each day to make sure it's doing ok. If you do tighten the mason jar lid, be sure to "burp" the jar daily!
You can also use an airlock which allows pressure to release as they build.
