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It’s been a while guys, sorry about that! Summer flew by of course, why does it always do that?! Four weeks ago I started a batch of fermented sauerkraut and it’s finally ready to share with you all. You know I love fermenting and culturing all the foods, so I was itching to get my hands on a fermentation crock for some time now. I’ve teamed up with the awesome folks at Gardeners Supply Co. based in Burlington, VT to bring you this post featuring their exclusive American made fermentation crock and weights. Now head over to Instagram to enter to WIN one for yourself! Then come back to hear more wild bacteria/yeast magic happenings…
There’s a video of the process below, followed by photos and a detailed printable recipe. Don’t forget to enter the GIVEAWAY and check out Gardeners Supply Co. for more great kitchen, home and garden tools.
Wild Fermented Golden Sauerkraut
- Yield: ~10 cups
Description
This sauerkraut gets its lovely golden hue from turmeric, which is highly anti-inflammatory and a powerful antioxidant. The basic ratio for sauerkraut is 5 lbs cabbage/veggies to 3 tablespoons salt. I used 4 lbs cabbage and 1 lb of mixed veggies from the garden: carrots, cucumber and daikon radish. The method is pretty simple… shred up the veggies and mix everything together, then let nature do it’s work. The hard part is waiting. It takes about 4 weeks for the veggies to go through all the stages of fermentation, to develop proper flavor and acidity, and for all the sugars in the cabbage to be consumed. Like all good things, it’s worth the wait.
Ingredients
- 4 lbs cabbage
- 1 lb mixed veggies (carrots, cucumber, radish)
- 3 tablespoons sea salt
- 2 tablespoons turmeric
- 3 garlic cloves
- nub of fresh ginger
- 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- handful of flowering dill or fennel
- 2 teaspoons fresh or teaspoon dried coriander seeds
Instructions
- Shred washed vegetables using a box grater or food processor with a slicer or grater blade. Add shredded veggies to a big bowl.
- Thinly slice garlic. Smash ginger with a mallet or flat edge of a kitchen knife. Add seasonings to bowl and mix everything together using spoons or clean hands.
- Pack mixture into a clean fermenting crock. Cover with tannin-rich leaves such as horseradish/cherry/grape to help retain the crispness of the veggies. Press mixture down with fermenting weights until everything is submerged in it’s liquid.
- Cover crock with lid and let veggies ferment on counter-top at room temperature for 4 weeks. Check periodically to make sure veggies are submerged in liquid, and for spoilage. It should smell like sour pickles/sauerkraut, not off-putting or moldy.
- After 4 weeks of fermentation, remove and discard leaves if used. Pack sauerkraut into sterilized mason jars with lids and keep refrigerated.
Notes
If stored properly fermented sauerkraut will keep for a long time.
Handmade props used in this post: brass/wood spoons by Facture Goods, wooden spoon by Park Wood Shop, salt cellar by Vitrified Studio.
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