Sauerkraut with a Christmas Twist

Sauerkraut is one of the key healing foods in the GAPS die . Eating a wide variety of fermented foods helps build a diverse and thriving microbiome. Sauerkraut is such a versatile, fermented food. Sauerkraut can be made with almost any combination of vegetables, herbs and spices.

 Sauerkraut can be made with almost any combination of vegetables, herbs and spices. Cabbage and apple, combined with cinnamon, clove and allspice creates a delicious and colourful kraut to serve with your Christmas ham, turkey or seafood.

Ingredients:

1 teaspoon whole cloves

650g red cabbage (preferably organic)

1 green apple, cored but skin on

2 Tbsp Celtic sea salt

1 teaspoon ground allspice

2 cinnamon sticks

1 orange, sliced into rounds

1 radish, thinly sliced (optional)

Equipment:

Large Mixing bowl for massaging kraut

2 Litre fermenting jar with airlock

Fermenting weights (optional)

Storage:

Store in a dark cupboard or pantry to ferment for 6 weeks or longer if you prefer.

Once fermented, store kraut in the fridge in airtight jars. It will easily last in the fridge for up to a year.

Method:

• Remove outer leaves and impurities from cabbage. Reserve the outer leaves for later.
• Cut cabbage in half and remove core. Reserve core for later use, then cut the cabbage again so it’s in quarters.
• Slice cabbage. The width can be anywhere from 5mm to 20mm wide. The wider the slices, the crunchier the kraut will be.
• Slice the radish and apple to your chosen width. Slice the orange into rounds.
• Place sliced cabbage and sliced apple into a large bowl a handful at a time, sprinkling a little salt in throughout layers.
• Leave this cabbage mixture to sit for anywhere for 1hour - 5 hours before massaging.
• Massage cabbage and apple with your hands by opening and closing your fist while the cabbage is inside the palm of your hand. This, with the salt, pops the walls of the cells in the cabbage, releasing water. When the cabbage is moist it is ready to be jarred.
• Mix in the spices (cloves, cinnamon sticks & spices).
• In a large glass jar place slices of radish & oranges around the each of the bottle, then place a small handful of the cabbage mix, pushing it down so that it is very firm and compact. You will need to use quite a bit of pressure. Continue in this fashion until the last of your cabbage mix is firmly pressed into the jar with the radishes & oranges decorating the outside of the bottle. There should be around about a 1-2 inch gap between the top of the cabbage and the lid of the jar.
• By this stage salty water should have risen to the top of the cabbage mix. If it has not, use the filtered water and additional salt to create a brine. For every 100mls of water you add, you should add a teaspoon of salt.
• Fold the outer cabbage leaves into the shape of the lid of the jar. Push this down on top of the kraut mix like a plug, ensuring all parts of the leaves are submerged under liquid. This is so the mixture does not come into contact with air.
• If there is still a fair amount of room between the top of your cabbage and the lid of the jar you can use a large piece of the cabbage core, or a large piece of carrot to push down the cabbage mix further and place the lid on. When the beneficial bacteria begin to multiply they give off gas and bubbles and the mixture pushes up with the pressure. You want to ensure the cabbage mixture is fully submerged all of the time, which is why you need to push it down firmly.
• Seal the jar and add water to the airlock