How my cabbage ferment turned out

Although I have always hated sauerkraut I thought I would try making my own and seeing if it's any better fresh. I held off writing about how I made it until I could tell you how it turned out.

It's really good
There is no #2

Or, there is too much of #2 to restrict to a sentence.

Unlike the sauerkraut my mother used to force me to eat, it is not tepid, stringy, mushy and slimy. It is the best part of cole slaw and the best part of pickles. It's crunchy, spicy, not overwhelmingly pickle-tart or vinegary, and not too raw cabbage flavored. I hesitatingly tasted a forkful last night and immediately got down a bowl to have some more. I ended up putting some on my dinner salad and I'm thinking about having some for breakfast.

I would make some changes for the next batch (which I had better start today), like maybe soaking the cabbage in warm water, after slicing and before adding salt. It started out a little dry and ended up a little dry. I spiced it with celery seed, ground mustard, fresh ground black and cayenne peppers, but did not use onion. I think I might this time. In fact I am thinking about using some of my fermented salsa for a starter, and for flavor and color. I just had that bowl you see above for breakfast, and it's a little too much black pepper to eat straight like that with nothing else.

Of course, this is the part where I am supposed to tell you how much of what to use. Dang, I almost never measure.

I did use three quarters of a cabbage for my 36oz jar. It came out just about right. If I had put onion in I might have ended up with too much (but fried cabbage is really good!).

I started off with half or two quarters.

ProTip : Cutting things into quarters makes them so much easier to core. I've watched a dozen videos on making sauerkraut and they all show people struggling to cut the core out of the cabbage half by cutting into it with the point of the knife. Don't be that guy. Cut it into quarters first.

As you can see that looks like a lot until you start crunching it down with the tool of your choice.

I used one of my souvenir Louisville Sluggers after a good wash, I asked the guys who made this what they used for a finish and it's all linseed and real lacquer. I had to really bang away at it for a long time. Finally I asked around and found out that some cabbages are just dryer than others. See, the thing is, you want the salt and the mashing to express the natural cabbage juice in which the kraut eventually ferments. So I massaged and crushed and pounded until I was just too tired to keep on, then I added a little (1/4 cup) second ferment kefir water and more salt. That was what it needed. I was ready to put it in the jar a minute later.

I guess I need a funnel to put stuff in a 4 inch wide mouthed jar. Which is why I learned to do all my work in the sink. I hate cleaning up spills

I put it into the jar in layers, using the chopstick to poke through it and the bat to press it down. The result you want is for the fluid level to come above the cabbage pieces to keep them from being attacked by mold or other nasties. I made cabbage capping leaves by cutting some of the outer leaves into circles the size of the lid. They fit in under the fluid level and held the bits of cabbage down in the fluid very well.

It started bubbling the first day and I let it ferment on my counter for 5 days. Then I put it in the fridge for a couple of days and forgot about it until last night. Judging by the taste, it converted all the sugars into lactic acid (pickle taste) which is part of what I wanted, and from the amount of bubbling I saw, the probiotic content is quite high. The individual cabbage slices are about 75% translucent, with a crunchy center, the small amount of fluid is vinegar-like but not strong. This was well worth doing and I will certainly do it again. Fermented cabbage and salsa are now staples in my house.