Sauerkraut Making Time Again

Yep,  we are just about out of the 6kgs of sauerkraut made previous and the kraut making has begun.  This time, I am reducing my shredded cabbage to about 5kgs as I think I was pushing it to ensure sufficient 'burping' space with 6 kgs packed in the crock.  

The shredding has gone smoothly with only one minor cut finger as I was washing my shredder.  This compliments my shredded knuckle from some major granola bar making two days previous.  Yes, apparently one can injure oneself pounding granola bar mixture into a pan with frenetic enthusiasm!  

Only five weeks until this batch of kraut is ready.  May we last until then.

Traditional Sauerkraut

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After a few days of gazing at my fermenting crock, I purchased my cabbage and readied myself for action.  With a large bowl in hand; some natural, uniodized sea salt; spring water; and my handy dandy spurtle - my Scottish porridge stirrer that I was using as a tamper.  I was ready to go!  Here is my recipe for sauerkraut.

• 3-5 kilograms of finely shredded cabbage (reserve some rinsed outer leaves to pack on the top of the cabbage to act as a seal and prevent the finely shredded cabbage from floating too much)
• 3-5 Tbsps. uniodized sea salt (1 Tbsp of salt per kg of cabbage)
• 2 tsps. whole black peppercorns
• 5 dried bay leaves
• Unchlorinated spring water as needed
• A suitable fermenting vessel(s)
• A weight to hold the cabbage below the brine

Shred the cabbage and toss with salt.  This can be done in one large bowl, or a bit at a time.  I did about a half a kilogram at a time.  I tossed with fine sea salt and then packed it into my fermenting vessel - making sure that I distributed the peppercorns and bay leaves randomly throughout.

I used my spurtle to bruise the cabbage and my hands to pack it into the crock as tight as it would go.  When I had packed in all the cabbage, I waited about an hour to let the cabbage release as much water as possible.  Then, I tightly packed the outer leaves of the cabbage on top of my shredded cabbage and added a couple of weights on top of  the mixture.  You should be aiming for a half inch to an inch of brine to cover the cabbage leaves and/or the small weights within your crock.  If the cabbage has not released enough water then simply add a bit of unchlorinated spring water mixed with a bit more sea salt - maybe about 1 teaspoon per cup.   Pour this on top of your cabbage mixture with the idea that the cabbage is completely submerged in brine.

After all this I popped my lid on, filled the water reservoir and set a date on my calendar to open the

Kraut with weights in crock.

crock up and see how I had done.  Top up reservoir with water as needed to maintain the seal.  After about two weeks sitting on my counter, at temperatures of about 70-72 degrees F, the crock was pretty much done burping kraut gas.  I left my kraut another two weeks beyond this and then opened it up.  In cool weather you might need to leave it longer.

My sauerkraut was perfect after four weeks!  There was no mold in the crock or on the cabbage.  It was crunchy, tangy and with the perfect balance of salt and sour.  From here, I put the

Perfection after four weeks!

kraut in sterilized jars and put in the fridge.  We have been enjoying it ever since.

First batch of kraut all jarred and ready for eating!

 Click here for a recommended book on fermenting.

Memories of Tancook Island Sauerkraut

When I was a kid, one of my summertime favourites was Tancook sauerkraut on my hot dogs.  For non-sauerkraut connoisseurs,  it is hard to describe the sour and tangy goodness topped with sweet ketchup piled on a smoky hot dog aloft a fresh fluffy bun.  I think the hot dog was just an excuse to eat the sauerkraut and once the carton was opened, I loved to eat it strand by strand.

Over the years, I have moved far away from Nova Scotia but my treat box of sauerkraut has never been far from my food thoughts.   I've eaten versions of it here and there and found I never enjoyed it; figuring it must have been a childhood favourite that I had outgrown. When I arrived in Australia, I looked for sauerkraut and found that it wasn't a grocery store staple. I toyed with making it myself but worried it would be too complicated and worried about storage and mold issues.

I'm not sure when I got over my fear to ferment but I recently bought a fermenting book, read a few blogs, and then bought myself a fermenting crock with a cabbage slicer from ebay.  The crock is special because it provides an airlock seal to let the fermenting gasses out but no bad air in.  It is sealed with water that you add to the moat in which the lid sits.  Nothing stopping me now!

My pot arrived a few weeks later - packed in mountains of shredded styrofoam.  Pulling my crock from the box, it was like a snowstorm in August; a styrofoam static nightmare.  I think it took me longer to clean up the styrofoam packing then to wash and placed my fermenting crock in an honorary spot on the counter.  With a vacuum cleaner clogged with artificial 'snow' and the day gone, sauerkraut making had to wait another day. 

Read a bit more about Tancook sauerkraut :

http://thechronicleherald.ca/business/451146-tancook-brand-sauerkraut-finds-new-generation-of-fans