Easy Red Cabbage Kraut
My easy cabbage sauerkraut recipe is easy to make and adds an amazing crunch, acidity and nutritional kick to any meal.
I love to add sauerkraut to the following recipes:
- My 6 minute Jammy eggs (here) – such a good protein snack
- My whole bowl recipe (here) over on my Substack Newsletter (to subscribe)
- Another great whole-bowl recipe (here)
Cabbage IS a true SUPERFOOD
Cabbage is incredibly good for you, especially in its raw fermented state. We should probably love it more! Red cabbage contains more dark pigments than green cabbage and therefore higher antioxidants. Antioxidants helps to heal damaged cells, these damaged cells can lead to diseases like cancer. Therefore, it makes so much more sense to try to source organic ingredients when eating anything raw to reduce any pesticides used.
This is a good recipe to make if you are new to fermentation. It takes a few weeks, but it’s easy, delicious and makes a versatile topping. You don’t have to have a pottery crock to make this recipe. Makes 1 litre
Easy Red Cabbage Kraut
Ingredients
- 1 organic red cabbage about 6 cups
- 1 tablespoon good salt
- 1 organic apple
- 1/2 teaspoon chilli flakes
- 1 tablespoon caraway seeds, toasted
Instructions
- Remove the tough outer leaves of the cabbage, cut the cabbage in half and then shred the cabbage finely - I find a big bread knife works well and you can also mandolin the cabbage which takes no time at all. You should aim to fill a large 1litre jar, if you have more or less cabbage, you might need to adjust the amount of spices or salt used .
- Put the cabbage in a glass bowl (not metal) and toss with the salt, start to massage the salt into the cabbage, really vigorously, which softens the cabbage and releases the liquid from the cabbage. This might take 5 minutes of hard work, keep add it! Leave for 1 hour, pressing every now and then to get more liquid out every now and then.
- Add the grated apple and stir through the chilli flakes (opt) and toasted caraway seeds. There should be a good layer of liquid above the cabbage at this stage. Have a taste, you do need to be able to taste the salt in the cabbage.Troubleshooting: Dry Cabbage Mixture after 1 hour: IF there is not enough liquid and you feel you have massaged the cabbage quite a bit you can do the following, depending on the amount of liquid you feel you need in order to top the cabbage 'up' - add 1 teaspoon salt to 1 cup water, making a brine, stir the brine till dissolved before adding to the cabbage. Only use as much brine as you need to fill the jar.
- In a sterilised glass jar, push down and compress the cabbage until the liquid starts to surface and is covering the cabbage. I find a rolling pin works well for this.
- Over the next hour or two, keep on compressing the cabbage so you get as much liquid covering the cabbage, about 5/10cm.
- With a spatula scrape the inside of the jar to clean the jar of any cabbage bits.
- Cover your jar with a clean tea towel, or a kitchen paper secured over the rim with string and leave in a warm, dark place for a few days (a week if outside temperature is cold) until the liquid starts to bubble and fizz a bit. (you can actually hear this if you listen closely).
- Once you have the desired tangy taste, keep refrigerated and enjoy!
