Why fermentation is one of my

favourite things to do

What is fermentation
Fermentation is used to preserve different sort of fruits and vegetables…but mainly vegetables

It does not require any acid liquid, can be done with just salt and water – or with the released
brine (salted concentration) right from the vegetable itself. 

During this preservation process the carbs and sugars are converted into lactic acid, which
along with the salt, preserves the food. The best of all, that it is done by naturally occurring
bacteria in fruits and vegetables in the absent of air.

So in this preservation method an anaerobic environment is necessary for success. In case

there isn’t enough brine produced by your chosen veggies, you can use a so called ‘salt-stock’.
This is a high concentrated salt brine (up to 10%) to make sure all the good stuff is covered.

While it is made with all the good bacteria, it is important to keep your pots clean during the
preparation (and of course later as well), but don’t worry, a good though dish wash should do
the trick.

Personally I can eat sauerkraut as dessert and the best is that fermented goods it has soo
many benefits!

As much as a love cabbage kimchi, I often found it kind of time consuming, so my technique is
pretty simple with little effort.
What will you need (ingredients)
Here is how I do it
Grab your favourite kind of cabbage. For this recipe I used a type of green cabbage called with
small pointy heads and good wrapper leaves. I like this one because it is easy to handle due to
its shape, the inner leaves are tender but crunchy, and it produces just enough brine to cover
itself. Of course, I have been using before with traditional white or red cabbage too. Watch out
for the pink fingers with the latter )

Make sure you clean it from dirt, you never know what kind of nasty hands have been touching
your veg (actually, you should do this with every kind of veggies and fruits…unless you grow
them. Well, actually, even than  )

If the cabbage is too big to handle on it’s own, cut in half or quarters, and get rid of the middle
coarse part, so you’ll have only the leafy part left.

Once your cabbage is prepared, shred or cut in thin slices. (Sometimes I want a bit chunkier
result so I just cut it as thinly as I can and yet, it’s still thicker than a shredder, but yuummm!)

Every now and then I salt between the layered as a shred (or cut) so the salt gets to every part.

Additionally I add garlic (sometimes sliced, sometimes grated), ginger and either radish (sliced)
or carrots (grated). All of these then go in to a nice big Tupperware what has a lid, salting it
generously so all these deliciousness can make it own brine (and now we know it is the
important part for the fermenting process). Also, in this case, do not be shy with the salt, you
will be surprised how much you will need. For our fermentation’s sake, salt is the preservative
along with the lactic acid.

Once it’s all mixed and covered, you can pretty much forget about it for a couple of hours or so,
I normally do this in the evening, so by the morning I am ready for the next step.

If you have the time, check on your sitting cabbage every now and then, and mix it, maybe even
push it down by gently tapping into it’s brine.

After some time (overnight, or half a day) you have a couple of choices. The first is, that You
can leave it in the original bowl, but you will need to keep pushing down the cabbage to be
covered by the brine (probably a couple of times a day) or create a weight what keeps it there.
My preferred way doing is, to transfer into big jars. I squeeze out the liquid and fill in the glass
jar, sometimes here I add some extra spices  like chili or cumin, or even black pepper. Once
the jar is about ¾ full, I cover up with the it’s own brine.

It is very important that all your stuff is covered, as for the fermentation you need anaerobic
environment what will prevent it from spoilage!

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Now, with the jars I don’t usually use the weighting method, just simply place the lid back on
(without closing it, just place it on the top so it can release produced gas) and will just push it
down a couple of times a day. When I know I have busy days ahead, I have a dedicated plastic
bag for this purpose, what I fill with some water and place it on the top.

Check on your finished product daily just to make sure, all is in order. Yes, it will expand, and
will see some bubbling going on! This means you did well . The bubbles from the gas will
create space between the leaves, pushing and expanding the cabbage upwards (hence, don’t
overfill your jars!).

Keep it out of direct sun, perhaps even in a cool place (but not fridge just yet). In warmer
environment it will be ready much faster, but watch out! Do not try to speed up with keeping it
out, you can spoil the whole thing. Test the sourness after 2-3 days, and when you are happy
with the result, place it in the fridge. Colder temperature will stop the development of it’s own
(and also other) bacteria and will preserve it on your favorable taste. For me it never keeps for
long…because I usually eat it on it’s own (yummm!!!!) but it can be safely kept for several
month in a closed container under right (cold) temperature. Enjoy!

What it something gone wrong?

I am lucky to say, it has never happened to me (probably because I just love it) but just in case,
watch out for:

- Colour: it will get dark if exposed to air, hence keep it under salt water. If this happened,
you can just remove the dark bits and still be able to consume the rest safely.

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 - Texture: it should be nice and crispy (not like fresh crispy but still!), so if it seems weird,
probably the best is to dispose.
- Smell: after a couple of days you will get the typical smell, what then should remain
pretty much the same until you finish your bunch. However if you observe rancid smell,
you should get rid of it.
- Taste: it can change over longer period of time (yet again, not in my case :D ) can get
soft or change the flavor. It’s not necessarily gone bad, unless you see mold over.
Unfortunately in this case also, you should chuck it out.

Why to eat fermented cabbage (or other

fermented stuff)
Here are just a few of the many benefits you might gain by incorporating sauerkraut or other
fermented goodness into your diet:

- Fermentation promotes the growth of beneficial probiotics (similarly found in

products like kefir and yoghurts). Probiotics promote gut health, making the food
more digestible…
- And therefore consuming sauerkraut can also boost your immune system and including
probiotic foods can reduce the risk of developing infections or recover faster
- Sauerkraut is rich in vitamins (C, K1, iron, just to name a few), minerals (copper, folate)
and fiber. Just to add here if you are watching your salt intake, sauerkraut has a fairly
high sodium content due to the fermentation method.
- Have I mentioned, it is great for dessert! By swapping your naughty sweets for this
goodness can help you regulate your weight (if you are into weight loss). There is no
secret here why, it is a vegetable with low calories and rich fiber and zero fat.