Easy Sauerkraut in a Jar

My very first ferment was basic sauerkraut, which I think is the best place to start. At some point over a year ago, I decided I’d try to eat fermented foods each day. My wallet was going to feel the impact of buying jars of sauerkraut and kimchi every week… so I decided to learn how to ferment veggies myself.

Cabbage is forgiving. It naturally has a high concentration of lactic acid bacteria on its surface (these are the good bacteria!), it’s fairly cheap, and it’s pretty fun to work with. You need to get a few important things right – I’ll lay them out here for you – but once you have these down, you’re on your way to delicious sauerkraut!

The Salt

Salt is an important component of lactic acid fermentation. The salt helps the good kind of bacteria survive, so the kind of salt you use is important. You should use a good salt that does not contain iodine, dextrose, or other additives commonly found in table salt. Iodine can inhibit the growth of beneficial bacteria, and the anti-caking agents can cloud up your ferment. I personally use Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt.

Water (if you need it)

You shouldn’t need to add a brine solution, but if you do, don’t use tap water. Tap water has chlorine in it, which can kill the lactic acid bacteria! If you don’t have a great filter, you can leave tap water out overnight – the chlorine will evaporate.

The Cabbage

The cabbage itself is also very important! Ideally, you are using fresh, locally-sourced cabbage – if the cabbage has travelled a long distance to arrive in your fermentation lab kitchen, the balance of bacteria on the surface might be upset. You want to pick an un-bruised cabbage, because bruises and cuts are great places for unfriendly bacteria to grow. If you have the option, organic is best, because it will not have been exposed to chemical pesticides (hopefully), which can damage the growth of lactic acid bacteria.

The Jar & its Resting Place

There are a lot of fancy fermenting vessels out there. Personally, I still haven’t used anything other than a normal jar. During the first week of the fermentation process, your jar may become very tight (and even leak!) because one of the byproducts of the first stage is CO2 gas. Ideally, your jar is easily opened, so you can easily release some of this pressure. It’s like “burping” the kraut. You want to air it out for the minimum time to release the air – no longer, because the good bacteria are anaerobic (don’t need oxygen) and the bad bacteria / yeasts are aerobic (like oxygen). If you want to get really into it, you can buy jars with airlocks and large fermenting pots.

*note – I would recommend burping your kraut over a sink, because it can spill!

Pick a good place for your sauerkraut to ferment. A cool environment gives the lactic acid bacteria a better chance of survival. A warm environment will accelerate the fermentation process.

I used a shelf in my kitchen, which I thought was fine – but it was directly above the stove, and the shelf would heat up a anytime someone was cooking. I didn’t think this would affect my ferments, but then I was out of town (was not using the stove) and my roommate ordered takeout for a few weeks (was not using the stove), and I came back to ferments that tasted SO much better. Pick a cooler, darker place in your home.

What You Need

• One large cabbage (one large head is approx. 3lb)
• 2 teaspoons of salt per lb of cabbage
• Two jars, each at least 16oz capacity
• Good chopping knife
• Large mixing bowl

I use two jars for a large head of cabbage, with a lot of squeezing and clamping. I use a sauerkraut jar-packing tool, which I really like – this has really increased my packing efficiency. You may need three jars, but ideally you should pack as tightly as possible.

The Recipe

1. Thoroughly sanitize your equipment (a dishwasher cycle will do the trick, and is probably the easiest option – if using a wooden sauerkraut pounder, you can boil it)
2. Discard the outer leaves of the cabbage. Then take two large leaves and set aside
3. Chop the cabbage, and set aside the middle stem
4. Layer the chopped cabbage with the salt in a large mixing bowl, and mix well
5. Let the chopped cabbage rest with the salt for 10-30 min
6. Squeeze the cabbage with your hands – after a few minutes, the cabbage should release water. When you can easily squeeze liquid out of a handful of cabbage, the cabbage is ready for packing!
7. Pack the cabbage in your jars – pack as tightly as you can, and leave an inch of room at the top
8. If the cabbage is not submerged in its own liquid, add a brine solution (2% salinity is good – that’s 20g salt per 1L water, which is a little more than 3/4 tsp salt per 1 cup water)
9. Cover the chopped cabbage in brine with a cabbage leaf
10. To keep the cabbage submerged, add a firm piece from the center stem from Step 3, to serve as a spacer between the cabbage and the lid
11. Close the jar and place in a cool, dark place to ferment. You may need to “burp” the kraut every 24 hours for the first week – keep these “burps” as short as possible
12. Taste the kraut after 10 days – if it’s to your liking, move to the fridge and enjoy! If you want more tang, leave it on the shelf for another 5-10 days

Happy fermenting 🙂