Instant sauerkraut: recipes. Instant Crispy Sauerkraut Recipes

13.10.2019

Sauerkraut is a great snack and a rich source of vitamins that are so lacking in winter. You can cook a lot of dishes with sauerkraut, soups are cooked with it, main courses are prepared, and pies are baked.

To prepare a snack the usual way, takes up to several weeks, but recipes are also known fast food and there are a lot of them. Here are six of the most popular fast-paced cabbage starter recipes.

Instant Sauerkraut Recipes - General Technological Principles

For a long time, wooden containers have been used for pickling cabbage, but modern housewives prefer to do this in enamel pots. There is a certain nuance, the enamel should not be damaged, otherwise the snack will acquire an unpleasant taste from the interaction of acids with metal. The most common option for pickling cabbage in a quick way in glass jars.

It is important what kind of cabbage to take for quick sourdough. Ideal for sourdough cabbage fast ways there will be strong dense forks of autumn vegetable varieties. They are white in color and their leaves are usually juicier.

When preparing for salting, the forks are washed well and the top leaves must be removed. Cut in half, remove the stump, then chop or cut into pieces of the desired size. Cabbage can be shredded with a knife or a special shredder, cut with checkers or in large pieces.

If vegetables or apples are added, their amount should not exceed 3% of the prepared cabbage mass. To speed up fermentation, cabbage is poured with hot brine, in which, in addition to salt, sugar is also dissolved. Often vinegar is added to such a dressing, less often vegetable oil.

The optimum temperature for fast fermentation should not be lower than 24 degrees, so containers with cabbage are left warm, and after they are ready, they are placed in the refrigerator.

Instant sauerkraut recipe - two days

Ingredients:

Five kilos of white cabbage;

300 grams of sweet carrots.

To prepare brine, per liter of purified water:

A flat spoon of sugar;

Two spoonfuls of salt.

Cooking method:

1. Having washed the forks, remove the upper dense leaves. We cut the head of cabbage and chop it thinly. It is convenient to use a special shredder or potato peeler for these purposes, although you can do this neatly and simply with a sharp knife.

2. After peeling the carrots, rub the root vegetable into a coarse grater or thinly cut into strips.

3. Combine cabbage and carrots in a wide bowl and mix thoroughly. If the cabbage is harsh, lightly crush it with your hands. Put the vegetables in a pickling container and prepare the pickle.

4. Fill a saucepan with 2 liters of water, add salt and sugar. While stirring, bring to a boil, then pour over the cabbage. If the brine is not enough, and it should completely cover the vegetables, you can slowly prepare an additional portion.

5. Cover the cabbage with a plate of suitable diameter or a wooden circle, press down a little. We place a small load on top and leave it warm for two days.

6. Move the container with salted cabbage to a cool place for storage.

Instant spicy sauerkraut: recipe for sourdough in a jar

Ingredients:

Large forks of white cabbage;

Two leaves of lavrushka;

Three large carrots;

Two small pods of hot pepper;

Six peas of allspice.

Into the brine:

Two teaspoons of evaporated (fine) salt;

A liter of settled drinking water.

Cooking method:

1.Using special device or thinly chop the cabbage with a knife. Grind the carrots on a coarse grater or grate on the one used to make Korean carrots.

2. After pouring the carrots and cabbage into a spacious bowl, mix well. If in the previous recipe the cabbage was required to knead a little, then this time, on the contrary, mix carefully. It is best to do it with your hands, "fluffing up" the vegetables.

3. We spread vegetable mix into a clean three-liter jar, fill it halfway and tamp it lightly. On top we lay a leaf of lavrushka, a hot pod and three peppercorns. We fill the jar a centimeter below the shoulders with the remaining cabbage, tamp it slightly and spread the spices. Unforgettable to put and hot pepper though if you don’t like spicy, don’t put it at all.

4. Cooking pickle for cabbage. Dissolve salt in cool, preferably room temperature water, the brine should be slightly saltier than the cabbage you want to get. Pour the brine into a jar and do it gradually. First, pour in about a third of the brine, gently pierce the cabbage layer with a long stick and slightly push the cabbage apart so that the water fills all the voids. After that, pour out all the brine, fill the jar, without adding 1 cm to the neck.

5. Put the container in a deep dish, bowl or saucepan and leave it warm without covering. Every day, during the day and in the evening, slightly push apart the cabbage layers with a stick to give vent to gases. We stand for three days.

6. Store in the refrigerator, under a tightly closed, preferably non-metallic, lid.

Instant sauerkraut: recipe with garlic and vinegar in 5 hours

Ingredients:

A kilogram of late cabbage;

Two large carrots;

Into the fill:

Half a glass of unrefined sugar;

Half a liter of drinking water;

Black pepper - five peas;

A spoonful of coarse "pickled" salt;

Allspice - 4 peas;

Half a glass of refined oil;

Ten tablespoons of edible vinegar.

Cooking method:

2. After mixing vegetables in a large bowl, press four large cloves of garlic into the same press and mix again. It is convenient to do this with your hands.

3. Bringing the water to a boil, dilute the sugar and salt, add oil and vinegar, lower the peppercorns. After stirring, boil the brine for at least a minute.

4. Fill the cabbage with hot pouring, cover with a suitable plate and place the load on top of it. We insist instant cabbage for at least 5 hours with ordinary room temperature... Then we transfer it to a glass jar and put it away for storage, sealing it tightly.

Instant sauerkraut: a recipe with beets and garlic in a sauce with vinegar

Ingredients:

Two kilograms of fresh cabbage;

Large head of garlic;

Two large beets;

Six peppercorns;

0.5 tablespoons of cumin (optional).

Brine, per liter of filtered water:

A spoonful of sugar;

35 ml of food vinegar;

Two level spoons of cage salt.

Cooking method:

1. Cut the head of cabbage into checkers - square slices, up to 4 cm in size.

2. We clean the beets, wash them. We rub one root vegetable using the largest grater, the other we cut into thin strips. Finely chop the peeled garlic cloves.

3. We rinse a three-liter jar in hot water with soda, wipe it dry with a towel. On the bottom of the container, lay out the beets and garlic cut into strips, add peppercorns and spices (cumin).

4. Densely, without tamping, put the cabbage in the jar. There should be some pouring space between the pieces. Put the grated beets on top of the cabbage.

5. Preparing the fill. Bring a liter of water to a boil, pour sugar into it, then salt, stir, completely dissolving the bulk components. Pour in the vinegar and bring it to almost a boil again, but do not boil it.

6. Pour hot filling into a jar of vegetables. Having tied the neck with several layers of gauze, leave it to salt for two days warm. Then we put it in the refrigerator, where we store it under a nylon lid.

Instant sauerkraut: a Georgian recipe in twelve hours

Ingredients:

Large forks white cabbage;

Small carrot;

Dark beetroot is a large root crop;

Onion head;

Hot pepper - 1-2 small pods;

Black or, optionally, allspice - 5 peas.

For a refueling of one liter of water:

A glass of vinegar;

Coarse salt - 2 full spoons;

Half a glass of sugar.

Cooking method:

1. Peel, thinly cutting off the peel layer, carrots, beets and onions. Cut the carrots into thin slices, the beets into strips, and the onions into half rings.

2. Peeled large cloves of garlic, in the amount of 5-6 pieces, press with a special device into a small bowl. Alternatively, chop finely with a knife.

3. Cut the cabbage fork into four parts and completely remove the stalk. Cut the cabbage into large pieces.

4. Put the vegetables in a large bowl, add hot and pea peppers, and put the garlic. Mix everything thoroughly, you do not need to crush the cabbage. Putting it tightly, fill a three-liter jar with a vegetable mass, do not tamp it.

5. We dilute the specified amount of salt and unrefined sugar in a liter of water. Bring the dressing to a boil, if debris has collected at the bottom, filter it and boil it again. After mixing the hot filling with vinegar, pour it into a jar of cabbage.

6. After capping with a clean lid, leave it warm for 12 hours to “ripen”.

Instant sauerkraut: a recipe without adding vinegar with apples

Ingredients per liter jar:

Sweet and sour apples - 200 gr.;

50 gr. carrots;

A spoonful of sugar;

White cabbage without stalk - 700 gr.;

Two carnation umbrellas;

Allspice - two peas;

A spoonful of special salt for fermentation and pickling.

Cooking method:

1. Thinly chop the cabbage, transfer to a spacious bowl.

2. Coarsely rub the carrots there and mix.

3. We wash the apples, cut into six slices, remove the core.

4. Put half of the cabbage in a clean liter jar, on top of it, apple slices and cabbage again. We lay tightly, lightly tamping the cabbage layers.

5. Put sugar and salt in a container, put peppercorns and cloves on top of the cabbage. Pour hot water so that it completely covers the top layer of cabbage.

6. Tighten the neck of the jar with gauze and put it closer to the heat for two days. Several times throughout the day we pierce the mass with a wooden torch to release the air that has accumulated inside.

Instant Sauerkraut Recipes - Helpful Hints and Tips

It is strictly forbidden to use aluminum dishes for quick fermentation of cabbage. Such a metal, upon contact with acid, quickly oxidizes and even the most quick cabbage will have time to acquire a grayish tint and an unpleasant metallic taste.

Before shredding the forks, tear off and taste one sheet. If the pulp is juicy, with a slightly sweetish taste, you can ferment. It is better to stew not juicy, tasteless cabbage with fatty pork.

It is best to store sauerkraut prepared according to accelerated recipes in the refrigerator, tightly closing glass jars with nylon lids.

Despite the fact that cabbage does not have a sour taste, it contains a lot of vitamin C. A person especially needs it in the cold season to support immunity and successfully resist flu and colds. Vitamin C is well preserved when pickling cabbage and even when it is frozen once. Sauerkraut at home helps to recover from illness and not get sick at all. Moreover, it is very delicious snack and the basis for many hearty dishes.

Features of pickling cabbage at home

The first experience of pickling cabbage at home may end in failure if you do not know the secrets that are well known to experienced housewives:

Not all cabbage varieties are suitable for pickling. The harvest harvested in summer is not suitable for homemade preparations. It is better to ferment late varieties, giving preference to the most juicy, whose heads of cabbage are almost completely white. One of the most popular varieties for fermentation is "Slava", it is suitable for dry fermentation. It is better to salt "Kolobok" and "Amager" in brine.
Cut the cabbage for fermentation with a sharp knife designed for shredding. But in this case, it is better to make the pieces not quite thin, but about 5 mm. If you ferment thin small pieces, they will become too soft, and sauerkraut much tastier when crisp.
You can ferment cabbage at home in an enamel saucepan, bucket, and also in glass jars. If possible, you can try to ferment the cabbage in an oak tub or barrel - it will acquire a unique taste. However, this method is only suitable for those who have a cold cellar for storing pickles. Aluminum containers are not suitable in any case, since this material reacts with lactic acid, which is formed during the fermentation of vegetables.
Sauerkraut at room temperature or slightly below it. If the room temperature rises above 24 degrees, the cabbage can become slippery. At temperatures below 20 degrees, fermentation will not be intensive enough.
In order for enough juice to stand out, the cabbage must be placed under oppression or tamped very well. This is especially true when pickling cabbage dry.
During fermentation, cabbage needs to be pierced from time to time with a long sharp knife so that gases come out of it. Otherwise, the finished snack will not have the most pleasant smell.
Sauerkraut at room temperature lasts 3 days, then you can eat it, but it will still taste better a little later: classic recipes provide for fermentation for a week.
It is best to store sauerkraut at temperatures between 0 and 2 degrees, so the cellar and refrigerator are ideal places for this. If necessary, the cabbage can be frozen. To do this, it must be decomposed into packages and put in freezer... It is advisable to make not very large portions, since cabbage cannot be re-frozen. For the same reason, the balcony is not the most suitable place to store sauerkraut at home.
Mold can form on cabbage during storage. Mustard and sugar help prevent its appearance, which can be sprinkled on the workpiece at least once a month.

At correct preparation and storage sauerkraut can be eaten within 9 months after preparation. The fresher it is, the tastier it is, which is why it usually does not sit for so long.

Classic sauerkraut recipe: dry method

Composition (for 5 l):

white cabbage - 4 kg;
carrots - 0.4 kg;
salt - 80 g;
sugar - 80 g.

Cooking method:

Wash the cabbage, remove the top leaves from it. Chop into strips 3-4 mm.
Peel the carrots, grate on a coarse grater. If desired, you can grate for making Korean salads.
Mix the cabbage and salt thoroughly, crushing it with your hands.
Sprinkle with carrots and sugar, stir.
Fill the container in which you are going to ferment the cabbage. For this purpose, a five-liter saucepan or a clean glass jar the same capacity.
When applying cabbage, tamp it often with your hands or even your fist. Place the container in the basin as a lot of juice will come out soon. Cover the cabbage with clean gauze, if possible, then place the load on top (when fermenting in a jar, you can do without oppression). Leave at room temperature for 3 days. Skim off the foam twice a day, rinse the gauze and pierce the cabbage with a knife.
Move the container to a cooler place (unheated storage room, to the loggia, if there is no frost outside) and wait 4 more days.
Arrange the cabbage in containers that are convenient for it further storage at home (if desired, you can store it in the same as fermented). Put it in the basement or refrigerator. Keep in mind that sauerkraut can also be stored in the freezer.

This recipe produces crispy cabbage with a slight sourness. Before serving, you do not have to rinse or soak it - you just need to pour it over with oil.

A simple recipe for sauerkraut in brine

Composition (for 3 l):

cabbage - 2 kg;
carrots - 0.2 kg;
water - 1.5 l;
salt - 50 g;
sugar - 50 g;
bay leaf - 1 pc .;
black peppercorns - 3 pcs.

Cooking method:

Wash the vegetables. Chop the cabbage, grate the carrots.
Mix cabbage with carrots, put in a jar, tamp it carefully.
Boil water, dissolve salt and sugar in it.
Place bay leaves and peppercorns on top of the cabbage.
Put the jar in a plate, pour the hot brine over the cabbage so that it overflows.
Leave it in the room for 3 days, piercing the cabbage several times a day so that the unpleasant smelling gases formed during fermentation come out.
Transfer the cabbage to smaller jars, fill with the remaining brine and store in a cool place. At home, this is usually the refrigerator, although some store pickles in the basement.

Cabbage in brine is prepared simply and quickly, it is possible even with inexperienced housewives.

Sauerkraut with apples and lingonberries

Composition (for 6 l):

cabbage - 3.5 kg;
sour apples (ideally - Antonovs) - 1 kg;
carrots - 0.3 kg;
lingonberry (can be replaced with cranberries) - 100 g;
rye bread (crackers) - 100 g;
juniper berries - 5-6 pcs.;
caraway seeds (seeds) - 5 g;
sugar - 60 g;
salt - 80 g;
currant leaves - 5-6 pcs.;
vodka - 70 ml.

Cooking method:

Prepare a container for sauerkraut. Two three-liter jars or a large saucepan of 6-7 liters will do. An enamel bucket and oak tub are also suitable containers. The selected container must be well washed and rinsed with boiling water.
Place the cabbage leaves on the bottom of the tub (or other container), after washing them out. Put half of the currant leaves and the crust of bread there.
Chop the cabbage, mix it with salt and wait for the juice to come out.
Add sugar, grated carrots and cumin seeds, stir.
Wash the apples, cut into several pieces, cut the core.
Place a layer of cabbage, filling the container about a third full. Tighten it well.
Add half of the apples, juniper berries, and the remaining currant leaves.
Lay out the rest of the cabbage, tamp it thoroughly.
Put in the remaining apples, pour in the lingonberries. Cover with gauze or a clean cloth. Pour vodka over the cabbage and leave to ferment at a temperature of 18-22 degrees for 5-7 days. Pierce the cabbage regularly with a knife or long-handled wooden spoon.
Place in a cool storage area.

Fermented by this old recipe it is not a shame to serve cabbage even to the festive table.

Spicy sauerkraut with beets, horseradish, garlic

Composition (for 5-6 liters):

cabbage - 4 kg;
beets 0.4 kg;
garlic - 2 heads;
grated horseradish root - 30 g;
sugar - 60 g;
salt - 80 g;
water - 1 l.

Cooking method:

Peel raw beets, wash, cut into large pieces and grate them on a regular grater or on a grater for Korean salads.
Pass the garlic through a press.
Rub the horseradish.
Chop the cabbage thinly.
Combine the cabbage with horseradish, beets and garlic.
Boil water by dissolving salt and sugar in it.
Place the cabbage in a fermenting container (can be arranged in jars). Place the container itself on a large plate or in a basin.
Squeeze the cabbage diligently so that it lies as tightly as possible.
Pour hot brine over the cabbage.
If the size of the container allows, place a plate on top of the cabbage and place a weight on it (for example, a jar filled with water).
2-3 times a day for a week, remove the load and pierce the cabbage in several places to release the gas formed during fermentation.
After 7 days, place the cabbage in the jars and refrigerate. If the cabbage is already fermented in jars, you can store it directly in them.

This recipe turns out spicy snack beautiful color, which will appeal to lovers of savory dishes.

Delicate cabbage sauerkraut with honey

Composition (for 6 l):

cabbage - 4.5-5 kg;
salt - 85-90 g;
honey - 70-75 g;
bay leaf - 5-6 pcs.

Cooking method:

Chop the cabbage, mix with salt, remember and wait for the juice to come out.
Melt the honey, dissolve it in the minimum amount of water (a quarter of a glass).
Pour the honey liquid over the cabbage, mix well.
Sterilize one liter or larger jars, spread bay leaves over them.
While tamping each layer, fill the jars with cabbage so that there is enough room on top for the cabbage juice to come out. Put the jars on the plates.
Place for 3 days in a warm enough room (20 to 24 degrees). Pierce the cabbage twice a day.
Drain off excess juice, leaving only a small layer of it covering the cabbage.
Place a wooden circle or cloth in a large saucepan. Place the jars of cabbage in the pot. Fill the pot with water until it is about the same level as the cabbage in the jars.
Put on low heat. Sterilize for 20 to 40 minutes depending on the size of the cans.
Remove the jars of cabbage from the pot, roll them up and turn them over.
Wrap and leave to cool.
When the jars have cooled down, they can be stored in the pantry.

The cabbage prepared according to this recipe will be tender. It keeps well even at room temperature. This favorably distinguishes this method of cooking from others.

Video: Delicious family recipe sauerkraut!

Taste, crunch, beauty!

Sauerkraut is tasty on its own, but traditionally it is served as an appetizer, adding onion chopped into thin half rings and sprinkling with vegetable oil. In addition, homemade sauerkraut can be used for making hodgepodge, bigos, cabbage soup and other dishes.

1) Wash the cabbage, cut into 4 pieces and remove the stalk. Chop with a knife or using a special grater. It will just then fit in one 3-liter can.

2) After that, salt the chopped cabbage and shake it with your hands a little. Add sugar if desired.

3) Now take care of the carrots - peel them, rinse well, and then grate on a coarse grater. If the carrot is dry, then it (peeled) must be soaked in water for several hours.

Add the grated carrots to the cabbage, stir with your hands, from bottom to top. I put a couple more pieces of sweet for taste bell pepper... Then cabbage has excellent taste.

4) Before putting the cabbage in the jars, put spices on top of the jar to taste: allspice and bay leaf. Don't overdo it with lavrushka.

Place a plate under each jar. Since on the second day of fermentation, juice will be released, which will overflow.

5) If you put the cabbage in a basin or pan, it should be well tamped with your hands or a rolling pin so that a lot of juice forms and the juice covers the cabbage. We put a plate on top and put oppression on it (in this case, a simple 3 liter jar filled with water).

We leave the cabbage in this state for three days at room temperature. Do not overexpose, otherwise ready-made cabbage will become sour.

6) During these 3 days, the cabbage must be pierced with a wooden spoon, to the very bottom, in the morning and in the evening, freeing it from the collected carbon dioxide. If you do not do this, the cabbage will turn out with bitterness.

7) After three days of fermentation, the cabbage will noticeably change: the brine will brighten and the foam will completely disappear. Transfer the cabbage from the basin to clean jars, shifting with allspice peas and bay leaves. Fill the jars with cabbage with the resulting brine.

Close up of sauerkraut in jars plastic lids and take it to a cellar or other cool place. There she will slowly "reach" to full readiness.

Now you know how to ferment delicious cabbage for the winter.

Sauerkraut for potatoes or meat, oh, what a delicious treat! And what kind of dish you can cook with it, look here.

I suggest watching a short video on how to ferment cabbage correctly.

And another small video how to ferment cabbage.

Well, the long-awaited spring has come. But instead of enjoying warm sunny days, people suffer from exhaustion after winter. Many of us, despite the beautiful weather, feel tired and unwell. This is a clear sign . And such an ordinary and available product as sauerkraut can fill the lack of vitamins in the body. It is in cabbage that contains a huge amount of vitamin C, which is responsible for our immunity. And the correct fermentation helps to prevent the loss of vitamin during prolonged injury. To help you prepare this wonderful appetizer, we are happy to share with you our little secrets of how to easily and quickly make delicious and flavorful sauerkraut.

How to quickly ferment cabbage

Before fermenting cabbage, pay special attention to its quality. Choose a good ripe cabbage, free of dark spots or blackheads, and firm to the touch. Our grandmothers fermented cabbage in barrels, and such a dish could be eaten all winter. The cabbage did not spoil at all, but the leavening process was quite lengthy. Modern housewives know how to quickly ferment cabbage in such a way that after 2-3 days you can already serve it healthy dish on the table ready-made, as well as to do with sauerkraut, cabbage casseroles and many other goodies. In modern conditions, instead of barrels, it is most convenient to use enameled pots and other containers, and even better to take a three-liter jar. There are many ways to ferment. But the main secret of how to ferment cabbage in a jar without the appearance of mold and "improper" fermentation is very simple, the cabbage should be pierced at least once a day with a wooden stick to the very bottom of the container. This allows you to release the carbon dioxide generated during the fermentation process and thereby prevent the appearance of fungus.

Canned Sauerkraut Recipe

How to quickly ferment cabbage so that it retains its beneficial features and was it delicious? There are many recipes, but we would like to offer you the simplest recipe for instant sauerkraut. To do this, you need to take the following products:

cabbage - 3.5-4 kg
carrots - 1-2 pcs.
2 tbsp. tablespoons of table salt without a slide
1 tbsp. a spoonful of sugar with a slide

Chop the cabbage into thin strips. Then place it in an enamel container. While the cabbage is awaiting further action, grate the carrots on a coarse grater. We return to our cabbage, add salt to it and carefully wrinkle our hands, as if we are working with dough. Well-washed cabbage releases its juice faster, which means that the fermentation process will occur faster. Now you can add carrots and sugar to the cabbage and mix everything thoroughly again. In the same enamel container, add the cooled boiled water... It is important that the liquid completely covers the cabbage. So you can protect it from damage. Cover the cabbage with cheesecloth and place it under pressure. As a press, a heavy plate, a half-liter bottle filled with water, a jar, or a clean-washed sea stone can be suitable. Previously, barrels were filled with large cans of water and even bricks wrapped in a plastic bag to prevent dirt from getting into the cabbage. For modern housewives, the task is simpler, but it also requires ingenuity. Putting oppression on the cabbage, the pan must be taken out to a cool, dark place and left overnight. The very next day the cabbage begins to ferment. While she wanders, it must be constantly pressed down and compacted, so to speak, "squeezed", getting rid of excess gas. You need to check the cabbage every day, and even better, take a sample from it in order to understand when the cabbage has already fermented enough. If you don’t do this, the cabbage may become over-fermented. As soon as it has reached the condition you need, it must be put into the refrigerator. The cold slows down the fermentation process, and so you can keep the cabbage free from peroxide much longer.

The recipe for sauerkraut in jars is not much different from the main method of its preparation. After the cabbage is well mashed and mixed with the rest of the ingredients, you just need to put it in a jar. But you need to stack it carefully and very tightly, so that there is no air in the container. Remember, the tighter you put the cabbage in the jar, the tastier it will be. The most diligent housewives manage to put up to 5 kg of cabbage in a three-liter jar! Therefore, make the most of your efforts. It's no secret that the most delicious sauerkraut crunches pleasantly in your mouth. And experienced housewives know that the recipe for sauerkraut crispy cabbage lies precisely in the density of the container filling. If there is a lot of air and excess liquid in the jar, the cabbage becomes lethargic and tasteless.

Alternatively, you can fill the jar partially with cabbage, leaving room for the apples. And then, apart from sauerkraut, you will also get delicious pickled apples - an additional tasty source of vitamins. After the jar is full, add cooled boiled water and cover the jar with a nylon lid. When cabbage ferments, carbon dioxide is released, which pushes the juice out. Therefore, it is best to take a lid with holes, and place the jar itself in a bowl or other container, where excess juice will run.

Chopped into rings can be added to sauerkraut before serving onion and vegetable oil. You can get a particularly piquant taste of the salad if you also add sauerkraut, pepper, pickled mushrooms, olives or herbs to it. Cabbage can be added to vinaigrette, as well as used to prepare various dishes - from fried pies to. We hope our little tips will help you quickly and efficiently cook healthy and delicious sauerkraut.

What characteristics should be used to select cabbage heads for harvesting and how to ferment cabbage so that it is crispy? What spices will add special piquancy to it and what is the secret correct storage this most valuable pickle? These are not idle questions, given the huge and well-deserved popularity among the people of crispy vitamin preparation from white cabbage. There are few secrets of correct fermentation, but if you show carelessness towards them, then the delicacy may not live up to expectations: instead of appetizing crispy cabbage, a sluggish, soft, or even moldy product will appear on the table. In order for all efforts in the kitchen to be crowned with success, you need to know the rules of fermentation and strictly adhere to them.

Prerequisites for pickling cabbage

Correctly fermented cabbage is fragrant, firm, with moderate acidity. Its brine is transparent, not viscous, without foreign odors, the taste is fresh and invigorating. To get this result, you need:

choose the right sourdough cabbage;
adhere to the desired temperature and conditions;
ferment in a suitable container.

The white-headed variety is considered the most suitable for fermentation. He is a storehouse of vitamins in a poor winter for fresh fruits and vegetables. Cabbage also contains many other useful substances: vitamins P, group B, PP, K, D, pantothenic acid, carotene, biotin, tocopherol, minerals potassium, sodium, calcium, magnesium, iron, manganese, phosphorus and many others. And cabbage heads can also boast of the content of various organic acids. An important feature of this vegetable, doctors call the predominance of potassium salts over sodium salts - this prevents fluid retention in the body, improves digestion.

The key to successful fermentation of healthy cabbage is a sufficient amount of sugar in it. Therefore, you need to choose mature cabbage, not early, but late varieties, thoroughly clean the head of cabbage from green unripe leaves (they add bitterness) and damaged or rotten areas.

The fermentation process involves the conversion of sugar into lactic acid by the action of lactic acid bacteria. To create favorable conditions for this, the air temperature in the room where the cabbage is fermented should be 15-22 ° C. At temperatures below 15 ° C, lactic acid bacteria develop slowly, and the fermentation process is delayed. And if it is warmer than 22 ° C, then harmful bacteria develop quickly and the product acquires an unpleasant taste.

Another key ingredient in a successful starter culture is the container. Everyone knows that it is best to ferment cabbage in wooden barrels or tubs. But if our grandmothers had tubs, perhaps, in the cellars, now you can't put a wooden barrel in an apartment. Therefore, most often the chopped vegetable is fermented in an enamel bucket, basin or in a glass jar. The main requirement is that oppression can be placed on top. However, recently, special wooden barrels for fermentation have appeared on sale: both large 10-50-liter and very compact 3-5-liter. If you want to pamper your family pickled vegetables regularly, it makes sense to spend money on the purchase of a wooden tub: firstly, it will last more than one year, and secondly, wood (most often oak or aspen) will add nuances to taste.

Remember! Aluminum crockery darkens from the action of acids, therefore it is categorically unsuitable for sourdough.

When pickling, salt is added to the cabbage in the exact proportion: 200-250 g per 10 kg of raw material. Salt isn't just for taste. It also weakens the action of butyric acid microbes, enhances the preserving effect of lactic acid, facilitates its penetration into cells, which accelerates fermentation.

During the fermentation process, it is necessary to periodically pierce the cabbage layer to the very bottom with a stick so that the gas escapes.

Advice: in Russia, a small aspen log was placed in a barrel of cabbage - it was believed that it would not allow the product to oxyderate.

For an acid balance and an optimal pickling process, it is recommended to add carrots (300 g per 10 kg of cabbage) and sour apples (500 g per 10 kg) to cabbage.

If the product is great, you should try to keep it that way. To prevent the cabbage from darkening and softening, you need to keep it in the cold, at a temperature of about 0 ° C, avoiding freezing.

Step-by-step instructions for fermenting cabbage

Prepare dishes for fermentation: wash and dry, put currant twigs with leaves and dill on the bottom.
Chop cabbage, grate carrots on a coarse grater, cut apples into thin slices.
Mix the cabbage with salt, carrots, grind until juice appears, put in a bowl, layering with apples in the above proportions. Instead of apples, you can put layers of currant leaves and dill.
Ram, cover with whole cabbage leaves on top, put a cotton napkin and press down with oppression (weight of oppression - 15% of the weight of the product).
Leave the container for 2-3 days at a temperature of 15-20 ° C for fermentation... In the process, juice, foam, gases will be released. To release the gas, you need to pierce the vegetable layer with a stick, and the excess liquid must be drained into a separate dish, and then added back again.
After 2-3 days, when fermentation is over, the oppression can be weakened and put the product in the cold... During storage, care should be taken to ensure that the brine covers the vegetables all the time.

There are quite a few options for vegetable and spicy additives that affect the taste and appearance of cabbage pickle. So, many people like to sprinkle the layers of cabbage with beets, others - to use instead of carrots raw pumpkin, others are delighted with how delicious it comes out if you put halves or quarters of a head of cabbage in a cabbage. Often bay leaves, caraway seeds, black and allspice are added to the pickle.

Sometimes from the sourdough of the cabbage, the brine remains in excess. In no case should you pour it out, because it is saturated with vitamins and minerals, it is a wonderful refreshing drink. It should be preserved and left for future use: strain, heat in a saucepan to 85 ° C, pour into heated containers, pasteurize for 20 minutes. Store in a cool place after refrigeration.

Delicious sauerkraut recipes

Appetizing cabbage with peppers and tomatoes

Cabbage - 5 heads of cabbage;
Bell pepper and tomatoes - 500 g each;
zucchini - 1 pc.;
large carrots - 5-6 pcs.;
garlic - 2 heads;
parsley, cilantro, dill, a small piece of hot pepper.

Chopped cabbage, sliced zucchini (with peel), tomatoes, bell peppers lay in a bowl in layers, sprinkle abundantly with chopped garlic and herbs. Pour cold brine (for 1 liter of water 60 g of salt), keep under pressure at room temperature for 3 days, then put in the cold.

Spicy cabbage in Georgian

Traditional recipe, on which I ferment spicy cabbage.

Cabbage - 8 kg;
water - 4 l;
sugar and salt - 200 g each;
beets - 300 g;
horseradish - 100 g;
garlic - 200 g;
hot pepper - to taste.

Cut the cabbage into 4 parts or in large pieces, layering with beetroot slices, grated horseradish and chopped garlic, pour warm (40 ° C) brine. Usually I sour in a bucket, put oppression on top and set it to ferment for 4-5 days. Then it is better to put the product in jars and put it in the refrigerator. After 10-12 days, the snack is ready.

What else to pay attention to

Previously, important household chores (and harvesting cabbage for the winter for the family was always considered the most important task of the hostess) was usually tied to church dates. So, it was customary to ferment cabbage on Pokrova, after the first frost. Today, the influence of the energy and magnetic fields of the moon is a generally accepted fact. It is noticed: in order for the cabbage to be crispy, it must be fermented on the growing moon, that is, on the new moon or immediately after it. If, on the contrary, cabbage is needed soft (for hodgepodge or pies), then it is harvested much later than the new moon. So, favorable days for getting crispy pickles in October 2017 are from 1 to 4 and from 20 to 31, in November - from 1 to 3 and from 19 to 30 November.

It is no secret that a properly fermented vegetable is the record holder for beneficial effects on the body. According to doctors, eating sauerkraut strengthens the immune system, prevents aging, heals, and has a beneficial effect on the gastrointestinal tract and the entire body. So delicious crispy cabbage is also an effective doctor for the whole family!