Homemade SaurKraut

Ingredients:

1 green cabbage (medium but any size can work with some adjustments)

2 tbsp salt

Materials needed:

Bowl

1 quart jar and 1 pint jar depending on how much cabbage you get (wide mouth ones)

Pickling weights

Instructions:

Finely slice the cabbage to the desired width. Thin strips really work here. Layer the cabbage into a bowl with the salt. You may want less salt or a little more salt depending on preferences and the amount of cabbage that you end up with. Allow the salt and cabbage to sit for 5-10 minutes to begin releasing juices.

After your cabbage has sat for a little while, begin to squeeze and press the cabbage. You want to squeeze out as much of the cabbage juice as you can, although it will look like there is not enough juice even when there isn’t any more coming out. You are looking for about a cup of liquid (give or take some). This will take a lot of work and power to squeeze the cabbage out.

Once you have all the juice wrung out of the cabbage then begin to tightly pack the cabbage into the jars. You want to press this down as much as possible and pack this as tightly as you possibly can. Once you have your jars packed, pour the remaining liquid over the cabbage, making sure the cabbage is completely submerged. Use a pickling weight if you need to, though you can also use a bit of the cabbage core to weigh this down as well.

Lightly cover the jar with a canning lid (no ring) or with a cloth and band, check daily. You will begin to see bubbles after day 2 or 3, this is normal. Allow to sit on your counter in a cool location away from the sun for 7-9 days. Taste test this beginning after day 2 to see which level of fermentation you want.

If something looks off, smells wrong, or you just have a feeling toss it. Better to be safe than sorry. I store mine in the fridge and I do not can this (it will ruin all the good stuff) and I have noticed that the cabbage does soak the liquid up. However, this did not affect taste or texture for me and so far this seems fine. It should keep in the fridge for a few weeks.