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How To Make Sauerkraut Easily At Home
Learn how to make sauerkraut at home! It's crunchy, tangy, and packed with gut-friendly probiotics. Bonus: it's way easier than you think. With our step-by-step photos and foolproof instructions, you'll have perfectly fermented kraut that beats anything store-bought.
Prep Time
15 mins
Fermentation Time
3 d
Total Time
3 d 15 mins
Servings: 4 cups
Calories: 27 kcal
Course:
Side Dish , Salad , Condiments
Cuisine:
German , American
Ingredients
- 2 lb green cabbage 900 g
- 1½ tsp salt
- 1 tsp caraway seeds optional
Instructions
- Sterilize: Wash your hands well before every time you touch the ingredients. Wash all supplies with hot water.
- Cut: Discard the wilted outer leaves. Rinse the cabbage well, then cut it into 8 wedges, lengthwise. Lay each wedge flat on your cutting board, then cut into thin ribbons.
- Brine: Place shredded cabbage in a large bowl and sprinkle with salt. Work the salt into all the leaves, massaging and squeezing the shredded cabbage for about 5 minutes until it has wilted quite a bit. If adding caraway seeds, mix them in now.
- Pack: Pack the mixture into clean glass jars (2 lbs of cabbage should fit in a 32 oz mason jar once wilted down), pressing down so that it’s submerged by the juices and there are as few air pockets as possible. Top it off with any liquid that may remain in the bowl from when you were massaging it.
- Weigh It Down: Use a fermentation weight (or a narrow glass) to hold the cabbage leaves under - everything needs to be submerged in liquid to prevent mold. To keep any cabbage shreds from floating up, I like to place a whole cabbage leaf on top of the mixture, tucking the edges under. Then, just set your fermentation weight on top of that!
- Cover: Cover with a clean cloth (towel, paper towel, etc) and secure the towel with a rubber band. This allows airflow while keeping out pests.
- Ferment: Place somewhere at room temperature and out of direct sunlight, letting it ferment for 3 to 14 days. Check daily, stamping down the cabbage as needed to keep it submerged. Begin tasting after 3 days. It's done when the taste is slightly sour and cabbage is a bit soft (this depends on your taste – longer fermentation will result in a more sour, less crunchy kimchi). When finished, store in the fridge to stop the fermentation process.
Cup of Yum
Nutrition Information
Serving
1cup
Calories
27kcal
(1%)
Carbohydrates
6.1g
(2%)
Protein
1.3g
(3%)
Fat
0.2g
(0%)
Saturated Fat
0.1g
(1%)
Cholesterol
0mg
(0%)
Sodium
939mg
(39%)
Potassium
241mg
(7%)
Fiber
4.1g
(16%)
Sugar
2.5g
(5%)
Calcium
43mg
(4%)
Iron
2mg
(11%)
Nutrition Facts
Serving: 4cups
Amount Per Serving
Calories 27
% Daily Value*
| Serving | 1cup | |
| Calories | 27kcal | 1% |
| Carbohydrates | 6.1g | 2% |
| Protein | 1.3g | 3% |
| Fat | 0.2g | 0% |
| Saturated Fat | 0.1g | 1% |
| Cholesterol | 0mg | 0% |
| Sodium | 939mg | 39% |
| Potassium | 241mg | 5% |
| Fiber | 4.1g | 16% |
| Sugar | 2.5g | 5% |
| Calcium | 43mg | 4% |
| Iron | 2mg | 11% |
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet.