sauerkraut question

[James127]

When I made my own sauerkraut it tastes okay.. not the same as bubbies though, and its a different consistancy, I mean it is 'soft' not crunchy.. is this normal or okay? What did I do wrong, I did it by the book ( NT)
Thank you
Kellie

[bluets]

Originally Posted by James127

When I made my own sauerkraut it tastes okay.. not the same as bubbies though, and its a different consistancy, I mean it is 'soft' not crunchy.. is this normal or okay? What did I do wrong, I did it by the book ( NT)
Thank you
Kellie

i think that may be part of your problem

my mom uses (hot?) brine, no whey, and tosses in a 1-inch piece of horseradish root (whole).

it's the whey that makes it soggy. i highly recommend "Wild Fermentation" - it seems that the recipes in there are more reliable than in NT.

[James127]

I have ordered the book wild fermentation...
So making it without whey will still do all the good things for our guts?
Does anyone have the recipe handy so I can make it now instead of waiting? ( its on backorder) I want to get it started since all the children ( have 7) love it and its great for when I dont have enough raw food for salad etc with a meal.
Thank you!
Kellie

[artisticat]

All I do is cut up my cabbage, and as I cut it up and put it in the bowl, I take some salt and sprinkle it on. I don't measure, and couldn't even guesstimate for you. I just make sure the cabbage is really salty.

After I cut it up and mix it real good, I pound it then place in crock. Then I sit a big jar full of water on it. The juices from the pounding come up. My jar almost covers the whole top of the crock, except a 1/8 in around it. The juice then just sits around it. I leave it for 3 days maybe 4. It has a sour smell, but is really crunchy. I prefer the 3 to 7 day kraut and eat it with anything and so does my dd. If you ferment longer it starts tasting more like store bought. My dad just opened a jar I left at his house that I made last Octoberish and said it tasted just like the sour vinegar brined store stuff. So when it is done depends on your tastes.

[kdmama33]

:

The Wild Fermentation recipe calls for 3 tbsps. sea salt to about five pounds of cabbage. Like the PP, I usually don't measure, just salt the cabbage as I go. I like it really salty, so if I overdo it a bit, it's no big deal. It's better to have too much than not enough, as your cabbage will rot instead of ferment if you don't have enough salt.

Personally, I ignore most of Sally Fallon's ferment recipes. I much prefer the recipes in Wild Fermentation and also The Body Ecology Diet, those that don't call for any whey. I think whey is less than useless in the fermentation process. Every time I've ever used it, it makes everything soggy and disgusting.

[Sharondio]

What is SF's deal with whey fermenting anyway? Is she that afraid of making alcohol (probably the most common usage of fermenting foods in *all* cultures)?

[Plummeting]

Originally Posted by Sharondio

What is SF's deal with whey fermenting anyway? Is she that afraid of making alcohol (probably the most common usage of fermenting foods in *all* cultures)?

I think she is. I've said before that I find it very, very strange when she goes on and on about how fermented foods and drinks were such huge contributors to the health of human beings in the past and about how we should try to emulate them by adding those products to our own diets..... then she continues right on with, "we've found that by adding whey, we can produce the same drinks without the alcohol" (paraphrasing because I don't have NT right in front of me). Ummmm, if you believe these products were so important to health, then why the heck are you trying to change them? How do you know that the alcohol didn't have some kind of beneficial effect? It's just silly, IMO. This is not to say that I haven't found NT to be incredibly useful - I'm so glad I own the book and I'm so glad she wrote it. I just think she has her little hang ups and they really come through here and there.

[Momtezuma Tuatara]

Has anyone made craut with red cabbage?

[trmpetplaya]

We (dh and I) are going to try our hand at making kraut this week... I was looking at the recipes in "Keeping Food Fresh - Old World Techniques and Recipes" by The Gardeners and Farmers of Terre Vivante because we have all the ingredients for their recipe... has anyone read this book or tried their kraut recipe?

(paraphrased)

To ferment only one cabbage:
Select a tall container of glazed ceramic and a cabbage that barely fits inside. Clean the cabbage and remove the core so that the leaves do not come off with it. Sprinkle sea salt in the hole where the core was and put the cabbage in the container which you then fill with very hot water.

Press the cabbage down with a plate and place a noncalcareous stone or another heavy object on top. Leave the container at room temperature during the fermentation period which takes approximately fifteen days.

That's the simplest recipe and it sounds a lot like what y'all do... It's good to know what little flaws NT has from folks who have btdt

love and peace.

[kdmama33]

Originally Posted by Momtezuma Tuatara

Has anyone made craut with red cabbage?

Yep, I make 'kraut with red cabbage all the time. I often mix red and white cabbage, as it makes for a lovely magenta colored sauerkraut. My 3yo DD LOVES "pink 'kraut" ... mostly because it's pink, I think.