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Monday, October 12, 2009

Making some Sauerkraut

A friend was kind enough to bring several head of cabbage to me last weekend in exchange for fresh eggs.
I decided to make a batch of kraut.





I washed and cored the cabbage....



Cut the cabbage into shreds and ended up with 10lbs.

I divided the cabbage in half and worked 1/4 cup of pickling salt into 5 lbs of the cabbage.....




Then let the cabbage sit for an hour.

After an hour, the cabbage is slightly wilted and brine forms in the bottom of the bowl...





I fill clean sterilized jars with the kraut (2 inches from the top of the jar) then fill the jars with the brine leaving 1/2 inch of headspace.

If there is not enough brine....add cool water to 1/2 from the top of the jar.

Wipe the rims and place clean lids on top.









The jars will ferment for 6 weeks.

If needed, make a brine from 1 1/2 TBS pickling salt mixed with 1 quart of water. Add this to each jar to keep the cabbage submerged.



The jars will bubble and overflow, so I store them inside of a pan to catch any juice.

They will be ready to can in a few weeks!

16 comments:

JunkerJunk said...

Hi Cowgirl J !
Good article, as usual. Here's an idea that you might want to try sometime, I just canned a bunch like this recently. In a batch of 25 lbs of cabbage, I used one large RED head of cabbage and mixed the shredded cabbage together well. The color is amazing, and it turned out really good.

See a pic of it here:
http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/Pck6U0j4FvUck6p8CebxLw?feat=directlink

The small jar next to it is pickled habaneros, just for contrast.

See ya!
Marty

http://junkerjunk.blogspot.com

Ken said...

Looking forward to see what recipes these jars of goodness will become. You must have a nice underground cellar. Great job, Jeanie.

cowgirl said...

Thanks Marty, I like the looks of your red cabbage mixed in. Makes it a lot prettier!!
Looks like you have been busy too! :)

cowgirl said...

Thank you Ken, I'm thinking up all sorts of recipes to use with this kraut. :)

Hope you are doing well. Still sending thoughts and prayers your way.

Anonymous said...

You always have an outstanding way of making things look amazing! Even something as NASTY as sauerkraut!! lol

MrD

cowgirl said...

lol Mr D! You are too kind! lol

Anonymous said...

hey Jeanie!that will be good on some beer brats...mmmm. anyway just droppin by to say hello. hope all is well in OK! :)

Mike (NYC)

cowgirl said...

Hi Mike! How have you been? :)
I was thinking the same thing... beer brats and kraut. I can't wait. lol


Hope all is well in NY. :)

Chris said...

You are just hell bent on convincing me to start canning next year, aren't you? :)

cowgirl said...

lol Chris, it's my new goal in life! lol

Frugal Canadian Hermit said...

So that's how it is made, thats kinda interesting Jeanie. I had a little of that myself yesterday and today. Mine was store bought though, and not the best I ever had, but it was good for a change I guess.

cowgirl said...

Hi Mark! Hope all is well in Canada. Looks like you are still getting cold damp weather.

Kraut is easy to make, waiting for it to ferment in the hardest part. :)
Maybe when you get settled in you can make your own too!

Inspired by eRecipeCards said...

Can't believe how easy you make this look,,, You have an incredible looking site

cowgirl said...

Thank you so much A Year on the Grill! I like your site too. Great looking apple pie. :)

jeanie

Anonymous said...

Love your site, inspires ideas!!! There is a great, simple, general recipe for live-quick kraut in the book "Wild Fermentation." This recipe will work for many vegetables, kimchi, kraut... It's also posted on the web here:

http://www.wildfermentation.com/resources.php?page=sauerkraut

Maybe this can inspire some ideas for you???
I'm not trying to sell the book or anything, just trying to return the favor of inspiration...

Peace...

cowgirl said...

Anonymous thank you so much! I appreciate you stopping by and appreciate the link! I will check it out.
Hope you have a great week. :)