Sauerkraut

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Magic Dust

Despite knowing how the story ends when making this recipe, I never cease to be amazed when the cabbage transitions rather abruptly from smelling fresh and briny to smelling like...sauerkraut. It's as if magic dust starts swirling around the jar -- like Cinderella's pumpkin turning into a carriage. Microbes possess a seemingly magical ability to transform humble ingredients into spectacular food so the analogy isn't too far off.

A handful of the cookbooks I consulted when beginning my preservation journey include The Art of Fermentation, Wildcrafted Fermentation, Fermented Vegetables, The Preservation Kitchen, and On Vegetables. Nary a batch of sauerkraut has failed me thanks to their collective wisdom. This post captures the lacto-fermentation knowledge I've synthesized including notes about salt quantity (plus a comparison chart), handling, general thoughts on types of salt (plus a comparison chart), and some recipe ideas. The process isn't overly complicated but there are ratios and steps to keep in mind for a productive and safe ferment.

If you have a clean jar, quality produce, and some salt you can make outstanding sauerkraut. Bibbidi-bobbidi-boo, as they say.