Red Cabbage Sauerkraut

I love sauerkraut (well I love cabbage in general, but that’s another story), and I know that ‘real sauerkraut’, i.e. homemade sauerkraut, is full of not only all the nutrients and phytochemicals that make cabbage a superfood but it contains probiotics as well. It tastes great and it helps with digestion too, well that’s what I notice anyway. The store-bought variety may in some cases taste good, but it’s not that healthy for you, and it’s expensive. It usually has way too much salt, not necessarily good salt at that. And in most cases it’s pasteurized, which means all the healthy probiotic bacteria that make sauerkraut so much more awesome and easily digestible than just plain cabbage have been killed off. Along with most of the nutrients I imagine. Mind you, you could do far worse as far as food choices go. But why settle for mediocre? Why not choose awesome? You’re worth it.

For a very long time I have wanted to make my own sauerkraut. I talked to people who made their own, I read about how to make sauerkraut and watched some videos. It sounded so complicated. I thought it was difficult to make, that there was some ‘knack’ to doing it, and if I didn’t get it right the result would be a mushy, smelly disaster. Well, I finally got up the courage to try, and found out that making sauerkraut is so easy! It’s got to be one of the easiest things to make. It takes a bit of time, not too much considering what you get in the end though. And I chop all the cabbage by hand, so if you use a mandoline* or food processor it won’t take that long at all.

My sauerkraut came out beautiful the first time, using green cabbage. The second time I put in too much salt, but I made both white and red cabbage sauerkraut, and the red cabbage kraut is such a cool color that’s all I want to make. It’s more nutritious too because of the anthocyanins in the red cabbage. So last time I made it, I wrote down the recipe, and I think I got the salt just right.

Now don’t let the length of this recipe scare you off. The process is really easy, it’s just that it looks like a lot because I’ve tried to explain the process really thoroughly. If you have any questions just ask them in the comments area below. And if you want, skip down to the bottom and watch the video by Sandor Ellix Katz, author of one of my all-time favorite recipe books, Wild Fermentation: The Flavor, Nutrition, and Craft of Live-Culture Foods

Ingredients:

8 cups finely chopped cabbage (red/purple or green)
1 tbsp Himalayan or Celtic sea salt **

** I like to use coarse sea salt, during the process of massaging the cabbage the grains of salt will break down. I usually put on some good music, or listen to an audio book while I’m doing it and I know I don’t have to pay much attention until all the grains of salt have dissolved. It should work just as well with finely ground salt as well.

Here’s a tip if you’re using red/purple cabbage, as you’re massaging the cabbage your hands will get stained purple. An easy and effective way to get the stain off is to rub a cut lemon on your skin where it’s stained and then rinse your hands. So if you don’t want to have slightly purple hands, be sure to have a lemon on hand (no pun intended) if you’re using red/purple cabbage.

Special Equipment:

You’ll need a 1 litre (1 quart) glass jar with a tight fitting lid. I like the jars with a glass lid and rubber seal that clamp down. A canning jar with a tight fitting lid will work fine too.

Instructions:

Wash and drain the cabbage well. Cut off any outer leaves that don’t look so good. Cut off and save one of the nicer looking outer leaves and put it to one side. After you’ve made and packed all the sauerkraut in the jar, you’ll fold up this leaf and put it on top to help press down the cabbage to keep it under the brine.

Finely sliced red cabbage

Slice the cabbage as finely as you can. You can also use a mandoline*  or food processor to slice the cabbage as finely as you can. The reason you want to slice it so finely is to maximize the surface area. This will make it easier to massage and quicker to ferment.

Add the sliced cabbage to a large mixing bowl, along with the salt. Using your hands massage the salt into the cabbage by grabbing handfuls of the cabbage and squeezing it like you would squeeze out a large sponge then let go and drop the cabbage back into the bowl. Grab another handful and do the same. Repeat this until the cabbage starts to get soft.

As the cabbage softens you’ll notice more and more juice in the bottom of the bowl. The juice will dissolve the salt, which will in turn draw more juice out of the cabbage. That’s exactly what we want. Don’t drain the juice off, it’s the brine that will allow the cabbage to ferment without going ‘off’. You’ll also notice that the volume of cabbage gets smaller as you massage it.

Homemade sauerkraut

Keep massaging until the cabbage is quite soft and limp, almost the consistency it is after being stir-fried or steamed. You want to keep massaging until the volume of the cabbage is reduced by about half. If you used coarse sea salt, it should all be dissolved. If you taste a bit at this point, you’ll notice that the cabbage has lost that sharp, pungent taste that raw cabbage has. I love the cabbage like this, even before it’s fermented. I often use this technique for cabbage and kale when I’m making a salad, sometimes adding a bit of olive oil and massaging that in as well.

Now it’s time to pack the jar that you’ll ferment your sauerkraut in. Grab a few handfuls of cabbage and put them into the jar and add a bit of the brine, just to the top of the cabbage. Reach in with your hand or a wooden spoon and press the cabbage down into the bottom. You want to release any air pockets and pack the cabbage in as tightly as you can. Continue to pack the cabbage into the jar in this way, a few handfuls at a time until you nearly reach the top of the jar.

Add more brine if you need so that all the cabbage is under brine. This prevents bad bacteria from forming during the fermentation process. Take the outer cabbage leaf you saved at the beginning and fold it up so that it will just fit inside the mouth of the jar. You want to use it almost like a lid to keep the sliced cabbage pressed down underneath the brine.

It's easy to make sauerkraut!

Put the lid on the jar, and leave it out at room temperature for about 4 days. Your fermentation time may vary depending on the temperature and how fermented you like your kraut. Keep out of direct sunlight. Take off the lid once a day to release any gasses that may build up from the fermentation process. You’ll notice the color of the cabbage has changed after massaging it, and it will keep changing over the next few days as it ferments. I always do a taste test starting at day 3, and then daily after that. Once the sauerkraut gets to the point that you like it, put it in the fridge to slow down the fermentation process. I’ve had some last for about 2 months before I ate it all, and it just kept maturing and getting better.

Makes 1 litre of sauerkraut

This is a great video by fermentation guru Sandor Ellix Katz that shows you just how easy it is to make sauerkraut. This video was really instrumental in getting me started making my own sauerkraut. It shows just how easy it is and gave me the confidence to try it myself. It does a really good job showing how to massage the cabbage. Some good info on the benefits of fermenting vegetables too.

* What is a Mandoline?

A mandoline is great for slicing fruits and vegetables. They are usually made from plastic, or less commonly from stainless steel, with a very sharp set of interchangeable blades that fit into a ‘ramp’. The best blades are made from surgical steel and will keep their edge for years. They are probably the quickest way of slicing anything. Far faster than a knife, and easier to to set up and clean than a food processor. Those who have and use mandolines swear by them.

The interchangeable blades allow you to slice at different thicknesses, julienne, and shred. Because the blade is so sharp slicing is quick and easy, but it’s also easy to slice your finger. So be sure the use the safety holder. They are not as awkward to use as you might think at first glance. Cleaning is easy, in most cases you just have to rinse.

Swissmar Borner V-Slicer Pro Mandoline V-4000, 7-Piece Set

Apple Cider Vinegar

Apple cider vinegar is said to be a natural remedy for many ailments. In 400 B.C.E Hippocrates (the father of modern medicine) knew about apple cider vinegar’s antibiotic properties and recommended it to his patients for its healing properties. Since then it’s been valued by many cultures right up to modern times.

Apple cider vinegar has anti-bacterial, anti-fungal and anti-viral properties. Among the ailments it’s said to cure are allergies, acne, high cholesterol, joint pain, weight loss, rheumatism, arthritis, gout, dandruff, chronic fatique, candida, sore throat, gum infection, sinus infection, flu, acid reflux, leg cramps and ear infections. It’s also used to help dissolve kidney stones, lower high blood pressure, and it’s also been shown to help with type 2 diabetes by improving insulin sensitivity.

Even though vinegar is acidic, when we take apple cider vinegar it has an alkaline effect in our bodies. The fact that apple cider vinegar causes our pH levels to become more alkaline could play a large part in it’s curative properties. It also reacts to some toxins in our bodies, converting them into less toxic substances. Our bodies need a slightly alkaline pH balance to be healthy. The typical Western diet creates an acidic pH in our bodies, and many health problems are attributed to this. Taking a tonic containing apple cider vinegar can help restore alkalinity, and therefore assist the body in getting rid of some of the health problems listed above.

In researching the health benefits of apple cider vinegar I’ve found a lot of anecdotal evidence – stories from people of the beneficial effects of taking apple cider vinegar. There isn’t scientific evidence to back up all of these claims, but of course unless the studies have been done there won’t be. Lack of scientific evidence doesn’t imply that it doesn’t work.

There was at least one study done on the effects of apple cider vinegar which used acetic acid – the acid component of vinegars. Now, I’d argue that apple cider vinegar is more than just acetic acid. In fact, apple cider vinegar consists of both malic acid and acetic acid. Being made from apples it would also contain pectin, as well as potassium, which promotes cell and tissue growth. Apple cider vinegar also contains almost all the minerals, vitamins and trace elements that our bodies need. Which leads me to suspect that some of the studies that are being done are fairly worthless exercises in determining the value of apple cider vinegar if they aren’t actually using apple cider vinegar in the study.

Because science allows us to break things down into their component parts in order to understand how things work, I think too often scientists only see things as their component parts, missing the whole concept of the synergy found in nature. Everything has the potential to be more than the sum of its parts.

The health benefits of apple cider vinegar will vary depending on the ingredients and process used in making it. Commercial production can use wood shavings, and other vinegars as the base (speeding fermentation), changing the makeup of the end product. You’ll get the greatest health benefits from apple cider vinegar that is made from organic apples, fermented using traditional methods, raw (unpasteurised) and unfiltered. If you can’t find good quality apple cider vinegar you could try making your own. This apple cider vinegar recipe has recipes for two methods of production. The one which uses whole apples will be of better quality for medicinal purposes, the one using scraps is quicker to make. You could make both so that you have something to use sooner while you wait for the whole apple batch to ferment.

Be sure to avoid taking apple cider vinegar neat (undiluted) as it eats away at tooth enamel and can cause burns to the sensitive tissues in your mouth and throat. There have also been reports of apple cider vinegar supplements (in capsule form) causing permanent tissue damage of the esophagus. So use apple cider vinegar in liquid form, diluted with water.

A simple tonic can be made from 1-2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar, 1 teaspoon honey in a cup of warm water.

Where to buy the best quality apple cider vinegar
The next best thing to your own homemade cider vinegar is Bragg’s Apple Cider Vinegar Raw, Organic, Unfiltered, with the ‘mother’. You can order it online in 16 fl oz size and 32 fl oz size. If it’s your first order with them use the discount code WEZ300 to get a bit of a discount off their already great prices.

Want to learn more about  the benefits of apple cider vinegar?

Related posts:

1. Apple Cider Vinegar Drink Recipe – Basic Tonic Apple cider vinegar is amazing stuff with a myriad of health benefits. This basic apple cider vinegar tonic recipe can help you lose weight, combat fatigue, prevent leg cramps and...
2. Apple Cider Vinegar Recipe Like apple juice, the best apple cider vinegars are organic, unfiltered and raw (unpasteurized). Depending on where you live it may be hard to find really good apple cider vinegar....

Ingredients:
1-2 teaspoons raw, unpasteurized Apple Cider Vinegar (ACV)
1 glass water

Instructions:

Apple Cider Vinegar Drinks

Mix 1-2 teaspoons of apple cider vinegar in a glass of water. Take 3 times daily, before or during meals.

It’s not hard to make your own apple cider vinegar from either cores and peels or whole apples, check out the homemade cider vinegar recipe to see how easy it is.

If you’re using store-bought ACV be sure to get one that’s organic, unfiltered, and unpasteurized in order to get the most benefit from it. Bragg’s make a really good quality cider vinegar. It’s the next best thing to your own homemade cider vinegar . It’s called Bragg’s Apple Cider Vinegar Raw, Organic, Unfiltered, with the ‘mother’. You can order it online in 16 fl oz size and 32 fl oz size. If it’s your first order with them use the discount code WEZ300 to get a bit of a discount off their already great prices.

Related posts:

1. Apple Cider Vinegar Recipe Like apple juice, the best apple cider vinegars are organic, unfiltered and raw (unpasteurized). Depending on where you live it may be hard to find really good apple cider vinegar....
2. Benefits of Apple Cider Vinegar Apple cider vinegar is said to be a natural remedy for many ailments. In 400 B.C.E Hippocrates (the father of modern medicine) knew about apple cider vinegar’s antibiotic properties and...
3. Hot Mulled Cider When winter sets in, the weather gets cold and the days get short it’s nice to have a hot beverage to warm you up. Curled up in an easy chair...

Soy Fried Tempeh

Tempeh is a traditional Indonesian soy food that’s high in protein and one of the few vegan foods that’s high in vitamin B12. It’s a delicious, low-fat, no cholesterol, gluten-free, high protein alternative to animal products. The soy beans are naturally fermented to aid in their digestion, but nothing about the taste of tempeh says fermented.

Ingredients:
1 block organic tempeh
olive oil
wheat-free tamari or shoyu (soy sauce)

Instructions:
Slice the tempeh as thinly as you can. The thinner, the better, aim for a thickness of 5 mm or less.

Put enough olive oil in a frying pan to just cover the bottom of the pan. Heat up the oil over a medium heat. When the oil is hot, lay the strips of tempeh in the pan.

Heat for 2-3 minutes, then sprinkle in the tamari or shoyu and shake the pan to keep the tempeh from sticking and to distribute the tamari. Continue to cook until the tempeh is golden brown on the bottom and turn. Fry the second side until golden brown and remove from the pan.

Frying Tempeh

Serve and eat!

Cook’s Tips:
This tempeh is great as a starter, either on it’s own or with a peanut satay sauce or sweet chilli sauce. It’s also great broken into pieces and thrown into a salad or stir fry. Put any leftovers in the fridge and use in a sandwich the next day.

Related posts:

1. Quick Fried Cabbage with Olive Oil & Garlic Cabbage is one of the most under-rated and beautiful tasting vegetables if cooked correctly. It’s also full of vitamins C & A. If your childhood memories of cabbage are of...

Making Apple Cider Vinegar From Scraps

Like apple juice, the best apple cider vinegars are organic, unfiltered and raw (unpasteurized). Depending on where you live it may be hard to find really good apple cider vinegar.

Fortunately, it’s easy and very inexpensive to make. It just takes some time, naturally, to ferment. This varies depending on which of the two methods below you choose to use. This article will show you how to make apple cider vinegar using two different methods.

Method One – Make Apple Cider Vinegar From Scraps

This method uses scraps, like the peels and cores. I like this method because I get to eat my apples and make vinegar too. It’s also faster, taking around two months to complete the process.

You’ll need:
a large bowl or wide-mouth jar
apple scraps, preferably from organic apples
a piece of cheesecloth for covering the jar to keep out flies and debris

Leave the scraps to air. They’ll turn brown, which is exactly what you want. Add the apple scraps to the jar and top it up with water.

You can continue to add scraps for a few more days if you want. If you’re going to do this though, be sure don’t top the jar right up, leave some room for the new scraps.

Cover with the cheesecloth and put it in a warm, dark place. A water cylinder cupboard is perfect.

You’ll notice the contents of the jar starts to thicken after a few days and a grayish scum forms on top. When this happens, stop adding scraps and leave the jar for a month or so to ferment.

After about a month you can start taste-testing it. When it’s just strong enough for you, strain out the apple scraps and bottle the vinegar.

It’s ok if your vinegar is cloudy, there will be some sediment from the apples and what’s known as “the mother”. It’s all good. If you don’t like the cloudiness though, straining it through a paper coffee filter will remove most of the sediment.

Method Two – Make Apple Cider Vinegar From Whole Apples

This method uses whole, organic apples and takes about 7 months to ferment into vinegar.

You’ll need:
10 Whole organically-grown apples
a glass bowl, and later a larger glass bowl
a piece of cheesecloth to cover the bowls

Wash the apples and cut into quarters. You can optionally core and peel them. If you do the scraps can be used to make apple cider vinegar by method one, above.

Let the apples air and turn brown. Then put them into the smaller bowl and cover with water.

Cover the bowl with the cheesecloth and leave in a warm, dark place for 6 months. Again, a hot water cupboard is ideal.

After the 6 months is up, you’ll notice a grayish scum on the surface of the liquid. This is normal. Strain the liquid through a coffee filter into the larger bowl, and leave it for another 4-6 weeks, covered with the cheesecloth.

And there you have it, your own homemade apple cider vinegar

How to use Apple Cider Vinegar

Homemade Apple Cider Vinegar

There are lots of ways to use apple cider vinegar. It can be used diluted with water as a hair rinse (don’t worry – the smell disappears quickly), you can also mix with water or fruit juice and drink it. Find out more about the benefits of using apple cider vinegar, and here’s a recipe for an apple cider vinegar tonic that works especially well if you have nocturnal leg cramps:

A simple tonic can be made from 1-2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar, 1 teaspoon honey in a cup of warm water.

What’s the best apple cider vinegar to buy?

The next best thing to your own homemade cider vinegar is Bragg’s Apple Cider Vinegar Raw, Organic, Unfiltered, with the ‘mother’. You can order it online in 16 fl oz size and 32 fl oz size. If it’s your first order with them use the discount code WEZ300 to get a bit of a discount off their already great prices.

Want to learn more about  the benefits of apple cider vinegar?

Related posts:

1. Apple Cider Vinegar Drink Recipe – Basic Tonic Apple cider vinegar is amazing stuff with a myriad of health benefits. This basic apple cider vinegar tonic recipe can help you lose weight, combat fatigue, prevent leg cramps and...
2. Benefits of Apple Cider Vinegar Apple cider vinegar is said to be a natural remedy for many ailments. In 400 B.C.E Hippocrates (the father of modern medicine) knew about apple cider vinegar’s antibiotic properties and...
3. Apple Crumble Crock Pot Recipe When I first saw this recipe I couldn’t imagine it making a nice apple crumble. I thought the crockpot would turn it all into a apple porridge type mush. But...