Raw sauerkrout

[Analeah]

Okay I know this probably isn't spelled correctly lol but I am wondering if anyone knows how to tell when it is really raw or not. I bought some sauerkrout from the healthfood store and it said raw on the package and has directions for cooking it so I think it is raw but I am not sure if it could be just the brand name or something? It is packaged in plastic which I would assume is a good thing as I think stuff in jars is sometimes boiled to get the lid sealed? Anyone know anything more about this? Also it seems like it would be pretty easy to make myself, anyone have a recipe? Thanks!

[Alissa]

whats the company name?

[Analeah]

Hmm, I think the company name is Schomi or it could be Schoni (can't tell on the package if it is an 'n' or an 'm'). It says bio (organic) on the package and then Suisse so I think it is made in Switzerland. It doesn't say anything on the package about it being pasteurized as far as I can tell but is that a rule that it has to be mentioned when companies pasteurize anything? Thanks!

[Alissa]

hmmm never heard of it. rejuvinative foods is the only one i buy.
here are two below:

Sauerkraut The Recipe...
By Mabel Mertz
of Southern Alberta

5 lbs shredded cabbage (About 6 quarts, pressed)
2 oz salt (3 tablespoons)
Shred cabbage finely, put it in a large pan. Mix cabbage and salt with your hands. Pack gently with hands or potato masher. Repeat until crock (Al uses a 6 gal plastic bucket) is nearly full. Cover with cloth, plate and clean rock or something heavy. During the curing process, kraut needs daily attention. Remove scum as it forms and wash and scald cloth often to keep it free from scum and mold. At room temperature, fermentation will be complete in 10 to 12 days. Pack into jars adding enough juice to fill jars. Often there is not enough juice. If this happens, make a weak brine by dissolving 2 tablespoons of salt to a quart of water. Screw bottle lids on tight and process in a boiling water bath for 15 minutes. After bottles are cool be sure they have sealed before putting them away.

this one below is from the site of http://www.wildfermentation.com/makingsauerkraut.htm
Timeframe: 1-4 weeks (or more)

Special Equipment:
Ceramic crock or food-grade plastic bucket, one-gallon capacity or greater
Plate that fits inside crock or bucket
One-gallon jug filled with water (or a scrubbed and boiled rock)
Cloth cover (like a pillowcase or towel)

Ingredients (for 1 gallon):
5 pounds cabbage
3 tablespoons sea salt

Process:
1. Chop or grate cabbage, finely or coarsely, with or without hearts, however you like it. I love to mix green and red cabbage to end up with bright pink kraut. Place cabbage in a large bowl as you chop it.

2. Sprinkle salt on the cabbage as you go. The salt pulls water out of the cabbage (through osmosis), and this creates the brine in which the cabbage can ferment and sour without rotting. The salt also has the effect of keeping the cabbage crunchy, by inhibiting organisms and enzymes that soften it. 3 tablespoons of salt is a rough guideline for 5 pounds of cabbage. I never measure the salt; I just shake some on after I chop up each cabbage. I use more salt in summer, less in winter.

3. Add other vegetables. Grate carrots for a coleslaw-like kraut. Other vegetables IÂ’ve added include onions, garlic, seaweed, greens, Brussels sprouts, small whole heads of cabbage, turnips, beets, and burdock roots. You can also add fruits (apples, whole or sliced, are classic), and herbs and spices (caraway seeds, dill seeds, celery seeds, and juniper berries are classic, but anything you like will work). Experiment.

4. Mix ingredients together and pack into crock. Pack just a bit into the crock at a time and tamp it down hard using your fists or any (other) sturdy kitchen implement. The tamping packs the kraut tight in the crock and helps force water out of the cabbage.

5. Cover kraut with a plate or some other lid that fits snugly inside the crock. Place a clean weight (a glass jug filled with water) on the cover. This weight is to force water out of the cabbage and then keep the cabbage submerged under the brine. Cover the whole thing with a cloth to keep dust and flies out.

6. Press down on the weight to add pressure to the cabbage and help force water out of it. Continue doing this periodically (as often as you think of it, every few hours), until the brine rises above the cover. This can take up to about 24 hours, as the salt draws water out of the cabbage slowly. Some cabbage, particularly if it is old, simply contains less water. If the brine does not rise above the plate level by the next day, add enough salt water to bring the brine level above the plate. Add about a teaspoon of salt to a cup of water and stir until itÂ’s completely dissolved.

7. Leave the crock to ferment. I generally store the crock in an unobtrusive corner of the kitchen where I wonÂ’t forget about it, but where it wonÂ’t be in anybodyÂ’s way. You could also store it in a cool basement if you want a slower fermentation that will preserve for longer.

8. Check the kraut every day or two. The volume reduces as the fermentation proceeds. Sometimes mold appears on the surface. Many books refer to this mold as “scum,” but I prefer to think of it as a bloom. Skim what you can off of the surface; it will break up and you will probably not be able to remove all of it. Don’t worry about this. It’s just a surface phenomenon, a result of contact with the air. The kraut itself is under the anaerobic protection of the brine. Rinse off the plate and the weight. Taste the kraut. Generally it starts to be tangy after a few days, and the taste gets stronger as time passes. In the cool temperatures of a cellar in winter, kraut can keep improving for months and months. In the summer or in a heated room, its life cycle is more rapid. Eventually it becomes soft and the flavor turns less pleasant.

9. Enjoy. I generally scoop out a bowl- or jarful at a time and keep it in the fridge. I start when the kraut is young and enjoy its evolving flavor over the course of a few weeks. Try the sauerkraut juice that will be left in the bowl after the kraut is eaten. Sauerkraut juice is a rare delicacy and unparalleled digestive tonic. Each time you scoop some kraut out of the crock, you have to repack it carefully. Make sure the kraut is packed tight in the crock, the surface is level, and the cover and weight are clean. Sometimes brine evaporates, so if the kraut is not submerged below brine just add salted water as necessary. Some people preserve kraut by canning and heat-processing it. This can be done; but so much of the power of sauerkraut is its aliveness that I wonder: Why kill it?

10. Develop a rhythm. I try to start a new batch before the previous batch runs out. I remove the remaining kraut from the crock, repack it with fresh salted cabbage, then pour the old kraut and its juices over the new kraut. This gives the new batch a boost with an active culture starter.

[Analeah]

Wow cool thanks for the recipe Alissa! I am definately going to have to give this a try

[Gosia]

Hi Analeah, this is how I make saurkraut:

* shred one medium cabbage and 2 carrots
http://img72.photobucket.com/albums/...raut/saur3.bmp
http://img72.photobucket.com/albums/...raut/saur5.bmp
* put the vegies in a big stainless steel bowl/pot (wooden will do too)
* sprinkle with no more than 1/2 t celtic salt (OPTIONAL)
* stomp on it with your clean feet until very juicy, for about 10-15 minutes
http://img72.photobucket.com/albums/...raut/saur6.bmp
http://img72.photobucket.com/albums/...raut/saur9.bmp
http://img72.photobucket.com/albums/...aut/saur11.bmp
* put the mixture in a glass jar, press well
http://img72.photobucket.com/albums/...aut/saur13.bmp
*cover with a cabbage leaf, press
http://img72.photobucket.com/albums/...aut/saur14.bmp
* to keep it pressed as it ferments, I use a glass
http://img72.photobucket.com/albums/...aut/saur15.bmp
* cover the jar with a cotton cloth, press with a brick
* put away for about a week
http://img72.photobucket.com/albums/...aut/saur16.bmp

Easy peasy and yummy each time!

Best,
Gosia.

[loveraw]

Thank you Gossia, that looks easy enough. Not sure if I am ready to use my feet though :)
Renata

[Analeah]

Thanks for the wonderful recipe and the photos too! I think this recipe sounds like even something I could do and I love that you get to use your feet lol. What size jar do you usually use? I think that is the only thing I would need to go out and buy. Also, do you worry about mold or insects getting into it or anything like that? Thanks!

[Gosia]

OK, I use a 2.5 litre (10 cups) jar, but you could use a smaller jar (and less ingredients).

By the way, my stainless steel bowl is not big enough for the task, so I have to do it twice to fill the jar (and it takes me about 1/2 hour).

Note that I cover saurkraut with a cloth, and so this prevents insects from getting in (just make sure that it is covered well).

As far as mould, I never had problems with it. I suppose using common sense as a guide is a good rule, so if something smells/tastes bad, do not eat it!

Best,
Gosia

PS I love the look of your food !

[CherimoyaMel]

Here's my recipe.

Ingredients:

2 heads of cabbage
Herbs and spices of your choice (example, garlic, onion, cayenne ...)

Directions:

Reserve the outer leaves of one head of cabbage
Juice 1 head of cabbage (You can also juice the cloves of garlic if you're using garlic.)
Shred 1 head of cabbage in a food processor or chop finely with a knife.
Put chopped cabbage in a crock pot or ceramic bowl and massage herbs and spices into it.
Add juiced cabbage, and stir the mixture.
Place reserved cabbage leaves over the mixture.
Place a plate upside down over the cabbage leaves.
Place a towel over the plate.
Place a heavy weight (such as gallon bottle of water) over the towel.
Let this sit for aproximately 3-4 days at room temperature. Remove coverings and scrape scum off top of mixture and stir daily. Replace coverings. (Sauerkraut can ferment more quickly in warmer temperature. If temperatures are high, taste the sauerkraut after 2 days.)
After 3-4 days, taste sauerkraut. If it's fermented enough, place in the refrigerator. It will keep in the refrigerator for aproximately 3 weeks.

[Analeah]

These are such great recipes, I can't wait to try them out! Gosia thanks again for your recipe and info and also for your compliment CherimoyaMel, Welcome to the forum and thank you so much for sharing your recipe! I love the idea of adding the shredded cabbage with the juiced cabbage. I'll definately post when I make my sauerkraut and let you all know how it turns out. Thanks again!

[Analeah]

Okay I just decided to make some a few hours ago. This is what I did: Shredded 1 purple cabbage and 1 carrot in food processor
Put in metal bowl and stomped on it
Added some apple juice from a few apples (I didnt have anything else to juice lol)
Covered with cabbage leaves, then a plate, then some paper towels (I have no cloth) and then set a glass bottle on top filled with water.

I realize now that I forgot to add any spices or salt. Will adding some tomorrow disturb the fermentation process? Also, do you only stir after the 3-4 days or do you start to stir it from day one? Would setting the bowl next to the dehydrator be a bad idea because of the heat? Or would it just speed up the fermentation process a bit and still be okay? Thanks for your help everyone and sorry to ask so many questions!

[Gosia]

Quick answers to your questions:

*You can still add the spices, if you wish. Simply uncover the leaves, put the spices in, and cover and press again.
*The jar is just fine where you put it.
*Yes, higher temperature will speed up the process.
* I never stir the saurkraut, there is no need for that. All you need is to make sure that, you stomp well and long enough, so that the cabbage becomes nice and soft AND there is a lot of juice (check out the photo of my feet immersed in juice from the cabbage, and I did not add any water/juice to it!). Also, the saurkraut needs to be covered with a cabbage leaf and pressed well so that all the cabbage is well covered with the juice. This is really important!
* When ready, keep it refridgerated.

[smasty]

Ok....next question...what do you guys do with the sauerkraut? I bought a jar of Rejuvenative raw kraut...what should I do w/ it? Just eat it like it is? Anything creative to do w/ it?

[CherimoyaMel]

I don't know anything creative to do with the sauerkraut itself, but you can use the sauerkraut juice as a salad dressing on its own or add some ingredients to it.