DIY sauerkraut 2020

2020-08-18 through 2020-09-22

After a gap of 5 years, I decided to give it another try, without any added spices.
I did this by myself this time without Marielos' help, which means I was in more of a hurry and made several mistakes.

I bought the cabbages at Wal-Mart. They seemed to be lesser-quality than the ones from Peppers, not as dense.
I forgot to cut away the cores
I didn't cut the cabbage small enough.
The plastic bag on top developed a leak and emptied, TWICE. I removed the edges of the top layer that might have come in contact with air, seemingly without complications.

They didn't seem to have devastating results though. The sauerkraut came out quite well.

When I stopped fermentation after about 5 weeks, the top layer seemed a bit on the soft side, probably because I had used the softer outer leaves. A few inches down, the cabbage was still crisp.

While I was transferring the sauerkraut to smaller containers, Marielos came out of her room, asking "What is that stink?" AGAIN. She did that the two times before too, so I wasn't worried. It smelled sour of fermentation and tasted just fine. Unlike Marielos I do not find that smell unpleasant.

While I was at it and had way too many zucchinis from the garden anyway, I tried fermenting zucchinis. That did not end well. I tossed them after 2 weeks because the water turned cloudy and smelled quite unpleasant. I blame it on the different fermentation system I tried out.

INGREDIENTS

This is what you need for 6-8 quarts servings:

12 lbs. very dense white cabbage
7.2 tbsp. salt.
several food-grade plastic bags
2% salted water = 2 grams salt per liter water

Pic1: DIY sauerkraut 2020

Directions

2020-08-19 — Day 0

Pic2-4: day 0

A bit overfilled perhaps, but still feasible.
The bag on top holds 2% salted water that serves as a weight to keep the cabbage down and as a seal to keep oxygen out. I find this the most efficient way, at least as long as the bag doesn't spring a leak.

2020-08-21 — 2020-09-08

Pic5: 2020-08-21 = day 2 for the cabbage
Pic6: 2020-08-26 = day 7 for the cabbage, day 5 for the zucchinis
Pic7: 2020-09-08 = day 20

I tried to ferment zucchinis.
I tossed them after 2 weeks. Unlike the cabbage, the zucchinis did not look or smell good at all.

2020-09-22

Pic8-10: 2020-09-22 = day 34

Day 34: Only the top layer is darker and softer. Those were the outer green leaves.
The rest remained white and crisp.
I divided the big pot into 5 portions and refrigerated them.
One will be used for a sauerkraut meal within the next week.
The remainder will be frozen as soon as I have enough room in the freezer.

b. sauerkraut in wine, sausages, sweet potatoes

2020-09-26

After several days in the refrigerator, I thought I should try it out.

Even though this had been sitting for 4 weeks, = similar to the 2014 and 2015 batches, this one was extremely sour. I added 1 cup white wine and 2 tbsp. sugar while cooking.

INGREDIENTS

This is what you need for 2-4 servings:

1 1/2 qt. DIY sauerkraut
1 lb. smoked sausages of your choice
here: andouille, Cajun-style, kielbasa
sweet potatoes
S&P, seasoning

optional:

1 cup white cooking wine
sugar to taste

Pic11: sauerkraut in wine, sausages, sweet potatoes

Directions

2020-09-26

Pic12-14: smoked sausages

Cut 1 lb. smokes sausages in 1/4" thick slices.
Stir-fry in oil until dark-brown. I overdid it a bit here, but it still came out quite well.

Pic15-17: sauerkraut

Add 1 1/2 qt. sauerkraut, 1 cup white cooking wine and optional sugar to taste. I added 2 tbsp.
Bring to a boil.
Reduce heat, cover and simmer over low heat for 5-10 minutes, depending how done you want the cabbage to be.

Pic18-20: served

Drain the excess liquid or use a slotted spoon to serve.
I served this with boiled sweet potatoes.
Enjoy.

See also: Deming, NM gardens, animals and more and avemariasongs.org

See also: Deming, NM gardens, animals and more
and avemariasongs.org