Red Cabbage Sauerkraut with Ginger
- Prep Time: 30 mins
- Total Time: 30 mins
- Yield: 1 quart 1x
Ingredients
- 1 3/4 lbs / 795 g red cabbage (about 1 medium)
- 1 tbsp / 15 g fine pink Himalayan salt (see notes)
- 2 – 4 tbsp / 22 – 44 g minced fresh ginger, to taste (see notes)
Instructions
- SLICE: Peel off and discard any wrinkly, drier or damaged outer leaves from the cabbage. Reserve one healthy, pliable leaf for later. Cut the cabbage into quarters right through the core. Carefully cut out and discard the tough inner core. Slice the cabbage thinly into ribbons of an even thickness of about 1/4 inch / 0.5 cm or so.
- SQUEEZE: Add the sliced cabbage to a large mixing bowl and sprinkle it with the salt. Use your hands to toss the cabbage so it’s evenly coated with salt. For several minutes, squeeze and massage the cabbage, until it begins to break down, soften and release moisture. When it’s damp to the touch, set it to one side.
- MINCE: While the cabbage is marinating, peel and mince the fresh ginger. The amount of ginger you will want to add is totally up to you. The smaller amount will create a red cabbage kraut with a more subtle gingery note and the larger amount will give you a red cabbage kraut with more of a spicy kick.
- KNEAD: Add the minced ginger to the bowl with the sliced cabbage. Use your hands (I like to wear gloves!) to work the ginger through the cabbage evenly, then to knead the cabbage until it releases plenty of liquid when squeezed in your hands.
- SQUISH: Transfer the cabbage to a wide mouth quart sized Mason jar, packing it down tightly with each handful added to the jar. When the cabbage is tightly packed down, take the cabbage leaf you saved earlier and gently fold it over until it is about the same width and proportions as the jar. Place the leaf into the jar, on top of the packed cabbage and make sure it covers it completely.
- WEIGHT: Press the cabbage leaf down firmly, then pour enough brine from the mixing bowl to cover all of the cabbage and submerge it in the liquid. Use the smaller 4 oz Mason jar or Pickle Pebble to weight down the cabbage and make sure that it stays submerged.
- COVER: Fold over a few layers of cheesecloth or a clean kitchen towel and cover the jar loosely, securing it with a rubber band. Place the jar into a bowl and transfer it to a place out of direct sunlight and away from any heat sources.
- FERMENT: After the first few days, you can replace the cloth with a one piece Mason jar lid, loosely fixed to allow any gases to escape and avoid any pressure building up within the jar. You could also use a special fermenting lid like a Pickle Pipe or an Easy Fermenter, if you like. Leave the red cabbage sauerkraut to ferment for at least 2 weeks and up to 6 months, depending on temperature and taste. Make sure not to let the cabbage rise higher than the brine – it needs to stay submerged to ferment successfully or else it will spoil.
- TOP OFF: If necessary, you can top off the red cabbage sauerkraut with additional brine, using about 1 tsp / 5 g of fine Himalayan salt per 1 cup / 240 ml.
- STORE: Once the kraut has fermented to your liking, seal the jar and transfer it to the refrigerator.
Notes
Salt choice is significant with fermented foods. You want to avoid processed salts like table salt and iodized salt as they contain additives that can inhibit fermentation. Normal fine grained sea salt or pickling & canning salt is ok as long as it is additive free, meaning it doesn’t contain anything other than salt, such as anti caking agents or preservatives. Don’t use Kosher salt or other large grained salts as they don’t dissolve as easily as a fine grained salt and can also contain additives. Your best salt choices are those that are fine grained, dry and mineral rich, such as pink Himalayan, Celtic and Redmond Real Salt.
Adjust the ginger levels to your taste: the lesser amount will have a more subtle ginger flavor, whereas the larger will have more of a spicy kick. Totally up to you!
Find it online: https://meatified.com/red-cabbage-sauerkraut-with-ginger/