Fermented sauerkraut is one of the easiest and most rewarding recipes you can make at home. Not only is it a simple process that requires just a few ingredients—cabbage, salt, and time—but it also yields a deliciously tangy and crunchy condiment packed with health benefits.
As a naturally fermented food, sauerkraut is rich in probiotics that support gut health, boost digestion, and strengthen the immune system. Whether you’re new to fermenting or a seasoned pro, making sauerkraut at home is a fun and accessible way to add a healthy, probiotic boost to your meals.
Ingredients
- 1 Head of cabbage, cored, approximately 3 pounds
- 2 tsp Canning or sea salt for each pound of cabbage (avoid iodized salt)
Instructions
- Be sure to work on clean surfaces with clean hands.
- Cut cabbage into fine shreds. You can do this manually with a knife or with a shredding attachment on a food processor. Put cabbage in a large bowl or bucket.
- Sprinkle cabbage with salt, making sure the salt covers all shreds of cabbage. Let sit for 15 minutes. The salt will begin to draw the water out of the cabbage.
- Using your hands, begin massaging the cabbage to squeeze moisture out of the cabbage. This can be hard work and will take some time. Alternatively, you can use a wooden sauerkraut pounder to pound the cabbage, which releases moisture from the cabbage. The moisture will accumulate at the bottom of the bowl.
- Once the cabbage has released much of its of water, transfer the cabbage to the mason jars.
- Tamp down the cabbage to push all the air out of it. Pour any extra liquid from the bowl evenly between mason jars.
- The cabbage must be completely submerged into the salty water (brine). If the cabbage hasn’t produced enough brine to cover the cabbage, you will need to make extra brine. To make additional brine, add 1 tsp of canning salt per cup of warm water and stir until the salt dissolves. Add enough brine to cover the cabbage by at least 1/2 inch, pushing down cabbage shreds that float to the surface.
- You can add a large cabbage leaf on top of the kraut to hold it below the surface. Alternatively you can buy glass weights designed for fermentation in mason jars.
- The top of the jar must be covered, but not tightly closed. The fermentation process produces gases that need to escape. You can cover the jars with a mesh cloth held in place with string or a rubber band. You can also buy airlock lids, designed to allow air to escape without letting in contaminants (see image).
- Let the fermenting sauerkraut sit on the counter until it has reached the consistency that you want, typically 14 days, depending on your taste. Less time will produce crunchier, rawer kraut with fewer probiotics. More time will produce a less crunchy slaw with a broader probiotic content.
Notes
- Additional vegetables such as carrots and garlic can be added to the kraut. The kraut can also be made from red cabbage.
- Common seasonings for sauerkraut include adding caraway seeds or juniper berries.
- Fermenting kraut can smell strongly of cabbage. However, if you notice any foul smell or notice mold growing on the top of the cabbage, throw out the batch because it’s been contaminated.
