Real Food Kosher

It's time for kosher to get real.

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • Twitter
  • Home
  • About
  • Recipes
  • Passover
  • Contact

Simple Sauerkraut – A Probiotic Superfood

January 10, 2012 By Lisa Rose 22 Comments

I may receive a commission if you purchase through links in this post.
Facebook0
Twitter0
Google+0
LinkedIn0
Pinterest0

 

Cabbage, carrot, and scallions sauerkraut

Learn how to make homemade sauerkraut in this step by step tutorial and transform the humble cabbage into a probiotic superfood.

This transformation takes place through lacto-fermentation, a process that preserves food, enhances its nutrition, promotes healthy digestion and enhanced immunity. Most store bought sauerkraut is pasteurized and no longer contain all these benefits.

Ingredients and Tools

Ingredients and tools needed for making sauerkraut

1 cabbage
1 tablespoon sea salt (make sure your salt is noniodized)

Cutting board and knife
Large bowl
Wide mouth canning jar with metal lid or ceramic fermenting crock

Step 1

Preparing cabbageRemove outer leaves from cabbage and chop,
or grate with a food processor or box grater.

Step 2

Adding cabbage to bowl with saltAdd shredded cabbage to a large bowl with 1 tablespoon sea salt.
The salt helps pull water out of the cabbage and inhibits any bad
bacteria from forming.

Step 3

Knead cabbageKnead cabbage with your hands until its juices release.

Step 4

Cabbage with natural juices in canning jarUse your fist to pack cabbage with its juices tightly into a wide mouth
canning jar. Press one of the reserved outer leaves into the jar to keep the
cabbage submerged in its brine.

Step 5

Sauerkraut ready for fermentingCover the jar tightly and allow to ferment at room temperature for at
least 3 days – less if your kitchen is warm, more if cold.
Store in the refrigerator.

“Could it be that in abandoning the ancient practice of lacto-fermentation and in our insistence on a diet in which everything has been pasteurized, we have compromised the health of our intestinal flora and made ourselves vulnerable to legions of pathogenic microorganisms?”

Sally Fallon | Nourishing Traditions

 

Homemade Sauerkraut
You can add other vegetables to the mixture like grated carrots and chopped scallions (pictured above) or experiment with your own creation (onions, garlic, fennel, beets, turnips, apples, caraway seeds, or other herbs and spices).

1 cabbage
1 tablespoon sea salt

1. Peel the outer leaves from the cabbage (reserve one for later). Shred the cabbage with a knife, grater, or food processor.
2. Add shredded cabbage and salt to a large bowl.
3. “Knead” the cabbage until its juices are released.
4. Place cabbage and liquid into a wide mouth canning jar. Use your fist to pack in the cabbage tightly into the jar and allow its brine to *cover the cabbage.
5. Use reserved cabbage leaf to cover the cabbage and keep it submerged in its brine.
6. Close the jar and allow to ferment for 3 days or longer- less if your kitchen is warm, more if cold. Store in the refrigerator.

*Some older cabbages may not produce enough brine to keep its contents completely submerged. If that occurs, create your own salt water brine (1 teaspoon salt diluted in 1 cup water) and pour enough to cover the cabbage by one inch.

Additional Resources:

Learn more about the benefits of fermented foods.

Get the classic book: Wild Fermentation: The Flavor, Nutrition, and Craft of Live-Culture Foods.

Watch a video on How to Make Sauerkraut from Feed Me Like You Mean It.

Check out Real Food Forager’s Probiotic Food Challenge Linky with great recipes and articles pertaining to probiotic foods, fermenting, and culturing.

 

Sign up for free email updates:

 

More from my site

  • Celebrating Tu B’Shvat – Fruit and Nut Bars (Gluten-Free)Celebrating Tu B’Shvat – Fruit and Nut Bars (Gluten-Free)
  • Roasted Moroccan Carrot and Orange SaladRoasted Moroccan Carrot and Orange Salad
  • Grain Free HamantaschenGrain Free Hamantaschen
  • Fennel, Dandelion Greens, and Grapefruit SaladFennel, Dandelion Greens, and Grapefruit Salad
  • Homemade Coconut ButterHomemade Coconut Butter
  • Chocolate Pot De Creme Recipe and Mediterranean Paleo Cooking Book ReviewChocolate Pot De Creme Recipe and Mediterranean Paleo Cooking Book Review

Filed Under: Recipes, Side Dish Tagged With: non-dairy, pareve

Thrive MarketThrive Market
"PAID ENDORSEMENT DISCLOSURE: In order for me to support my blogging activities, I may receive monetary compensation or other types of remuneration for my endorsement, recommendation, testimonial and/or link to any products or services from this blog." I only endorse products that align with the ideals of Real Food Kosher and that I believe would be of value to my readers.
Read my Privacy Policy here.

Comments

  1. Genet says

    January 13, 2012 at 5:53 am

    Question: Why is it necessary to use a metal lid ? Can I not use the standard plastic (non-BPA) lid ? How about a Tatter lid ?

    Reply
    • lisa says

      January 16, 2012 at 8:40 am

      Hi Genet,
      There are many options for lids. Some don’t even use lids – you can place a ziploc bag filled with water and place that on top of the sauerkraut to create an airlock, some people place a smaller jar filled with water and place that inside the jar. There is no one proper technique. I’ve never used a plastic lid, nor a Tattler lid and not sure if there are disadvantages to that.

      Reply
    • Uri Laio says

      January 16, 2012 at 8:56 am

      Genet,

      A plastic non-BPA lid is fine, and actually better in a certain sense since the tin lids have a tendency to rust eventually. I think what Lisa was referring to in the post is that most canning jars (pint, quart, and half-gallon mason jars) come with a metal lid, so in that sense it is most convenient.
      Uri Laio recently posted..Krautmaking

      Reply
      • lisa says

        January 16, 2012 at 9:15 am

        Thanks for your input Uri!

        Reply
  2. Paul says

    July 14, 2013 at 8:10 pm

    Do you wash the cabbage after shredding?

    Reply
    • Lisa says

      July 22, 2013 at 7:15 pm

      No

      Reply
      • em says

        November 20, 2013 at 4:44 pm

        Hi. How does one keep the sauerkraut over a period of time? Is it OK to just keep it in the jar and store (i.e canning). I would like to make more than one jar at a time. Any advice. I have heard boil the kraut and then can after the sauerkraut has fermented but that kills the probiotics. Who would want to kill the probiotics? lol. How do you keep your kraut after fermentation?

        Reply
        • lisa says

          November 20, 2013 at 7:36 pm

          It lasts a long time in the refrigerator. I wouldn’t can it.

          Reply
  3. joseph says

    October 1, 2014 at 12:14 pm

    Hi
    tablespoon sea salt, i found 2 versions in my local grocery, coarse and fine
    which one should i use?
    and with kosher insect laws, would you have any info on how to handle the cabbage in that regard?
    thanks

    Reply
    • Lisa Rose says

      October 3, 2014 at 8:43 am

      Either should be fine – but I would probably go with the fine sea salt.

      In terms of the kosher insect laws, I would prefer you ask a Rabbi since different communities follow different standards.
      I’ve never had issues with bugs in my cabbage, but you could always chop it up and give it an extra rinse with with white vinegar and water and check it again.

      Reply
  4. joseph says

    November 19, 2014 at 1:17 pm

    Hi
    we made our first batch with a Pikcl-It jar
    how would i have to knead it to see if i get enough of it own juice?
    how do you knead it by hand? it took us a while to get juice out
    and if i add water i need to add salt to the water even though i already salted the cabbage itself ?

    Reply
    • Lisa Rose says

      November 23, 2014 at 6:00 pm

      You just squeeze it with your hands – sprinkle some salt on it before hand and it starts to soften. And when I place it in the jar, I use my fist to pack the cabbage down and it usually has enough of its own juice to cover the cabbage.
      It depends how much water you are adding to the cabbage, if it’s just a bit, it probably doesn’t need more salt, but if you’re using a lot more water than you do need to add salt.

      Reply
  5. joseph says

    November 24, 2014 at 3:04 pm

    the salt is used only to help release the water? or it aids in fermentation?

    Reply
    • Lisa Rose says

      November 24, 2014 at 7:26 pm

      The salt is necessary – don’t leave it out!!
      It prevents bad bacteria from growing.

      Reply
  6. Theresa says

    February 26, 2015 at 12:35 pm

    If i heat up the kraut or bake it with a roast, does all the probiotics die?

    Reply
    • Lisa Rose says

      March 24, 2015 at 3:54 pm

      Yes!

      Reply
  7. joe says

    March 23, 2015 at 4:17 pm

    What is best way to store Kraut? I am making 8 heads worth of cabbage in my 20gallon crock. The kraut has been brewing since St. Patrick’s Day. If canning kills the probiotics then can I freeze it? If packed firmly in quarts- how long will it last? I think I have 1week of brewing left…. thanks for your help…… Joe

    Reply
  8. Robert says

    July 25, 2015 at 6:32 am

    Simple, easy to follow recipe!

    Reply
  9. Richie Idels says

    November 4, 2015 at 7:43 pm

    Just learned about the benefits of Sauerkraut and because I keep kosher – came across your site. although I am a busy professional – I am excited to take the time to make my first batch. Thanks for the info!

    Reply
    • Lisa Rose says

      November 5, 2015 at 7:26 am

      Let me know how it turns out!

      Reply

Trackbacks

  1. As seen on the internet and weekend food plans January 13, 2012 | I Believe In Butter says:
    January 13, 2012 at 3:48 am

    […] at Real Food Digest has posted what is perhaps the easiest sauerkraut recipe ever. If you have never tried traditional sauerkraut, you’re missing out on a treat. That stuff […]

    Reply
  2. A food for beautiful skin | nutrition by nature says:
    April 5, 2012 at 4:07 am

    […] For the benefits of cabbage with the added probiotic boost, see this awesome recipe for simple sauerkraut. […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

CommentLuv badgeShow more posts

Free PDF when you Subscribe!

Passover Recipes eBook
SIGN UP FOR BLOG UPDATES!
I agree to have my personal information transfered to MailChimp ( more information )
Join over 3.000 visitors who are receiving our newsletter and learn how to optimize your blog for search engines, find free traffic, and monetize your website.
We hate spam. Your email address will not be sold or shared with anyone else.
Thrive MarketThrive Market
Lisa Rose
Lisa Rose is a Nutritional Therapy Practitioner passionate about real food and sustainable living.
Click here to learn more.

Support the Blog, Shop on Amazon!

We are a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for us to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites.

Copyright © 2021 · Real Food Kosher