Sauerkraut (sour fermented cabbage) just isn’t very tasty or appealing to me. This sour flavor is an acquired taste and, unless you have grown up eating fermented foods, it is likely that you don’t love the taste of sauerkraut either. I had a deprived childhood … I didn’t grow up eating fermented foods (or come to that liver, lamb or any organ meats). I didn’t see the need to add sauerkraut or any of these other foods to my diet until I started the autoimmune protocol. Now that I know how nutritious sauerkraut is, how do I make “kraut” taste less sour, milder and easier to tolerate? How do I create a mellow sauerkraut?
Not eating these foods as a child made it more difficult as an adult to acquire a taste for these things . When I was little I couldn’t understand why my Mom would order a “Reuben” (a Reuben sandwich is corned beef on rye with sauerkraut). It seemed to me that it would be torture if forced to eat this. So, as an adult trying to incorporate more fermented foods into my diet, I wanted to come up with a mellow sauerkraut or at least gradually get used to the taste.
This morning I was up bright and early hiking with my dog, Ari. The sun had just come up over the eastern hills and was highlighting the rusty bark of the ponderosa pines. Amidst this beauty I was keeping an eye out for deer, coyotes and bear scat but what was I thinking about? I was figuring out which cooking or cleaning tip I would include in my subscribers’ “mellow sauerkraut email” … seriously???? This is how much I care about all of you!
So …. how do I create a mellow sauerkraut? How to accomplish this? Adding an apple or two to the shredded green cabbage gives the “kraut” a milder flavor and letting it ferment for 16 days instead of 30 results in a more mellow kraut. More mellow means less fermentation though so the aim is to get to the point where you allow your sauerkraut to ferment for 4 weeks. If you start with a 16 day fermentation and then gradually ferment for longer periods of time your tastes should change over time and allow you to tolerate a stronger, more sour tasting sauerkraut.
Please refer to my post for easy sauerkraut using carrots, red and green cabbage and also to this post by Eileen Laird of Phoenix Helix for a fool proof way to make sauerkraut.
Food to Heal Ourselves
Yields 12 cups
Mild sauerkraut made with apples and green cabbage.
Save RecipeIngredients
you will need a 3 Liter or 3 quart snap top lid jar: you can use a Le Parfait from amazon.com or a Fido jar amazon.com
about 6-7 pounds green cabbage shredded
2 large green apples
3 level tablespoons sea salt.
Method
Wash your hands well and then wash all the bowls, jars and implements that you will be using.
Slice the cabbage thinly with a knife or shred the cabbage with a box grater or a food processor which you can buy through amazon.ca or amazon.com
Core, peel and finely dice the apples or shred them in a food processor.
Put the cabbage and apples in a large bowl.
Sprinkle with salt.
Mix thoroughly.
Cover with a cloth.
Let stand for an hour or so.
Mix and add to the jar, tamping the cabbage down so that the salty brine rises to cover the cabbage.
Leave head space of at least 1 1/2 to 2 inches depending on the size of the jar.
Store in a cool, dark place for 16-30 days.
Do not open the jar at all until ready to use.
Store in smaller jars in the fridge for 3-4 months.
Notes
Start off with a 16 day fermentation and then ferment for longer periods of time with each batch of sauerkraut. The aim is to ferment a batch for 4 weeks and LOVE the sour taste.
As seen on Phoenix Helix Recipe Roundtable #139
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