Knee-Deep in Kim-Chee (so to speak)

If the old saying "you are what you eat" is true, then who would intentionally choose to be sauerkraut?

Me.

Seems that, after all these many years, I have been enjoying one of the most nutritious (and under-appreciated) of foods. Not only do I like how it tastes, but it turns out that it also has some very remarkable health benefits like zero fat, lots of fiber, and natural probiotics which have a tonic effect on the digestion. Who'd have thought? There is one small caveat however. To reap the health benefits, the sauerkraut must be FRESH -- not in a can or jar, which has been processed at high heat. Flanagan's Krisp Kraut is the only commercial sauerkraut I know of that is not heat-processed. It is sold in plastic pouches found in the refrigerated case of your grocery store, not in a can or a jar on some dusty shelf.

At this point, I ought to say that sauerkraut -- German for "sour cabbage" -- is simply garden-variety green English cabbage, sliced or shredded thinly and fermented (pickled) by natural process for about 3 weeks in its own brine. And before you turn up your nose, I strongly recommend TRYING some, especially if you know someone who knows how to prepare it properly. Don't, for heaven's sake, run out and buy a jar of it and expect to be pleased.


Even since childhood, I remember liking sauerkraut. Both my mother and grandmother used to serve it from time to time, usually simmered in with a pot of country-style pork ribs. Back then, the only kind of 'kraut available to the suburban housewife was the canned stuff procured from that remote "dusty shelf" at the grocers. Nevertheless, I loved it. It wasn't until I was about 40 years old that I first tasted fresh sauerkraut, and -- oh, MY -- what a difference. I had spotted the Flanagan's stuff at the store, and decided to give it a try. I haven't purchased a can or jar since then. My conversion was total.

Late last month (October), my husband and I made our annual trip to a popular local produce market to stock up on winter squashes. While there, we grabbed a couple of lovely fresh green cabbages, thinking of cole slaw, Bavarian cabbage (stewed with tomatoes and bacon), and cabbage pan-fried in butter (to die for!). Immediately next to that bin was another bin filled to brimming with cabbages ... but these were without a doubt the BIGGEST I've ever SEEN!! Huge brassican behemoths! The smallest among them weighed in at no less than 17 pounds. A hand-written sign on the bin said "Kraut Cabbages 20 cents per pound", with the added notation that, if you purchased 10 of these monsters, the price dropped to 18 cents per pound. An older couple was hoisting several into their shopping basket. My husband inquired if they were planning to make sauerkraut and they said, indeed, they were. I left the market with 2 cabbages, about 30 pounds of various winter squashes, and the glimmer of an idea in my head....

Together, google.com and my computer are a wonderful thing: within 10 minutes of arriving home, I had googled for "sauerkraut" and found that making sauerkraut at home could not be much easier. All one needs is a 5-gallon food-grade plastic bucket (lid unnecessary), a 12" glass/ceramic dinner plate, a 1-gallon jug of drinking water, non-iodized salt, and -- of course -- cabbage. Oh yeah, and a clean towel, too. My curiosity was piqued. I HAD to try this for myself. A mere $1.50 got me an empty pickle bucket from a feed store, and one final trip to the farmer's market got me TWO of those enormous cabbages, approximately 37 pounds worth. The other items -- jug of water, box of coarse Kosher salt, dinner plate, clean towel -- I already had at home.

Inexperience quickly reared its ugly visage. After about 30 minutes of standing at the cutting board, slicing (and slicing and slicing and slicing...sheesh) one of the monster heads, I realized that ONE cabbage would have been plenty. Yikes. Once cut up, a single head filled that 5-gallon bucket about 3/4 full! No WAY could I ever fit both of them in there.... Well, one head it would have to be then. For now.

I sliced the cabbage one quarter at a time, this being all I could fit on my cutting board. As I added the shreds to the bucket, I salted it (about 3 tablespoons per 5 lb. of cabbage) and stirred it well with a large cypress roux spoon purchased in New Orleans (it is important NOT to use metal implements). Eventually, all of it was salted, stirred, and packed into the bucket. I then scrunched it down as tightly as possible with my hands, and placed the dinner plate on top of the pile. On the plate, I placed the plastic jug of water, which is just a weight to keep the cabbage pressed down. Finally, I draped a clean towel over the top of the bucket to keep out dust and insects.

The very next morning, I got my first inkling of the miracle beginning to take place in that bucket. Where there had been only salted cut cabbage, there was now cut cabbage submerged in its own juice, drawn out overnight by the action of the salt! It was working "as advertised" :-) Now all I had to do was be patient, and let nature (and wild fermentation) do the rest.

Initially, I worried that this would stink up my kitchen for-EVER, but there has been surprisingly little odor even when I remove the towel to check on progress. After the first 4 days in the warm kitchen, I did move the bucket to the garage where it is considerably cooler, as suggested by the information found on the 'net. It has been 16 days now, and this morning I took a sample scoop from the bucket for a taste test. It still has a noticeable natural sweetness from the raw cabbage, but is progressing nicely. I estimate that the fermentation should finish in about another week. According to the information I found, as long as I keep the 'kraut submerged in the brine (an anaerobic environment), it will keep nicely for many weeks.

There is something that appeals to me about this whole process, something very basic about the do-it-yourself deal. I'm enjoying the HECK out of this new experience AND the concept of self-sufficiency. I have promised myself that, next spring, I am going to have a substantial vegetable garden in my back yard, and I am going to freeze, dry and/or preserve everything we don't eat. I think I would have made a good pioneer. I know it was a hard life, but it certainly wasn't a LAZY one, nor was it filled with all of the artificial worries and stresses of "modern" life that take their toll on our health. I long for simpler times. I would much rather sweat at the end of a hoe than sit at a desk to earn a paycheck. I need the more direct connection between the earth, the work I do, and the food on my table.

Maybe I was born a century too late.

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