For those who have never made their own sauerkraut I encourage you to try - it is Sooo much better than store bought mass produced stuff.
This family recipe, along with the 7.5L Harsch Gärtopf crock, was given to me by a Swiss grad student when I was in college at Texas A&M. We were both in the Texas Aggie Brew Club (TABC) together:
Sauerkraut
18-20 lb cabbage, shredded. It will be less than 20 lbs after discarding the outer leaves and coring it. My crock holds about 12-14 lbs, any extra can be fermented in mason jars. Save a couple of good clean whole leaves to put over the top.
2.5 oz salt
2 tsp. crushed juniper berries
2 tsp. caraway seeds
OPTIONAL: 8 oz cultured buttermilk (it will ferment without this but it was part of my friend's recipe so I included it here)
Mix all ingredients and pack into the crock, it will make its own juice as you pack the cabbage into the crock (leave room to put in the weight stones). Add buttermilk and place whole leaves over the shredded cabbage. Place the weight stones over the whole leaves. Put the lid on and add water to the air lock channel. Place in a warm place and ferment for 4-5 weeks, the warmer the more sour it will be.
Here is a good recipe my friend gave to me using the sauerkraut:
Szegediner Gulasch
1 Tbsp. oil
2-3 onions, chopped
1/2 lb. pork stew meat
1 tsp. paprika
1 cup meat bouillon
1 Tbsp. salt
1 Tbsp. tomato paste
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 to 1 1/2 lb. sauerkraut
1 cup sour cream
Saute onions in oil. Add pork and cook 10 minutes covered, stir periodically. Add paprika and salt, cook 10 more minutes. Add tomato paste, garlic, and bouillon. Cook 1 1/2 hours. Add sauerkraut, cook 20 minutes. Add sour cream just before serving.
EDIT: When making the sauerkraut, it is much easier to divide the batch into 5 lb. increments. 15-20 lbs. would take a very large vessel to blend everything at once.
This family recipe, along with the 7.5L Harsch Gärtopf crock, was given to me by a Swiss grad student when I was in college at Texas A&M. We were both in the Texas Aggie Brew Club (TABC) together:
Sauerkraut
18-20 lb cabbage, shredded. It will be less than 20 lbs after discarding the outer leaves and coring it. My crock holds about 12-14 lbs, any extra can be fermented in mason jars. Save a couple of good clean whole leaves to put over the top.
2.5 oz salt
2 tsp. crushed juniper berries
2 tsp. caraway seeds
OPTIONAL: 8 oz cultured buttermilk (it will ferment without this but it was part of my friend's recipe so I included it here)
Mix all ingredients and pack into the crock, it will make its own juice as you pack the cabbage into the crock (leave room to put in the weight stones). Add buttermilk and place whole leaves over the shredded cabbage. Place the weight stones over the whole leaves. Put the lid on and add water to the air lock channel. Place in a warm place and ferment for 4-5 weeks, the warmer the more sour it will be.
Here is a good recipe my friend gave to me using the sauerkraut:
Szegediner Gulasch
1 Tbsp. oil
2-3 onions, chopped
1/2 lb. pork stew meat
1 tsp. paprika
1 cup meat bouillon
1 Tbsp. salt
1 Tbsp. tomato paste
2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 to 1 1/2 lb. sauerkraut
1 cup sour cream
Saute onions in oil. Add pork and cook 10 minutes covered, stir periodically. Add paprika and salt, cook 10 more minutes. Add tomato paste, garlic, and bouillon. Cook 1 1/2 hours. Add sauerkraut, cook 20 minutes. Add sour cream just before serving.
EDIT: When making the sauerkraut, it is much easier to divide the batch into 5 lb. increments. 15-20 lbs. would take a very large vessel to blend everything at once.
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