Nourishing Herbal Kraut
I will admit, before I started my journey into ferments, I was not a fan of cabbage although my appreciation for it has grown in fermented form. For my project, I decided to use less cabbage and incorporate more herbal ingredients to enhance the mineral and vitamin profile as well as some gentle detoxing properties using alternative herbs such as dandelion, burdock, nettle and turmeric.
It turned out delicious with a savory, mildly earthy and moderate sour flavor.
Ingredients:
1 purple cabbage (1075 grams)
1 large carrot (250 grams)
1 medium burdock root (100 grams)
4 large dandelion greens (33 grams)
2-3 green onions (40 grams)
1 medium onion (200 grams)
1 cup loosely packed sea palm strips (12 grams)
1/4 cup dried nettle leaves (8 grams)
Turmeric root, freshly grated (12 grams)
Himalayan pink salt (34 grams)
Date Prepared: August 27, 2017
Date Harvested: September 1, 2017
Length of Ferment: 5 days
Notes:
I shredded all fresh ingredients in a food processor and added all dried ingredients which resulted in a fine cut kraut that has been nice to use as a condiment.
Modifications/Troubleshooting:
I packed the jar a little too full as there was brine solution in my airlock 2 days into the ferment. I removed some of the kraut and brine and packed it into a small ½ pint mason jar which I used as a weight to submerge the kraut. The small jar fermented at a faster rate and developed a small amount of kahm yeast. The kahm yeast disappeared after being in the fridge for a few days. The kraut from the smaller jar was a little sourer than the kraut fermenting in the ½ gallon jar which was expected. The larger jar developed a little yeasty growth which looked like round bubbles. They were easily extracted when I took out the large cabbage leaves covering the ferment.
What Would I Do/Try Differently Next Time:
Although I got raves about the fine consistency from friends, I personally prefer a crunchier and larger cut kraut so next time I would hand cut the cabbage and use the processor or grater for the other fresh ingredients.
1/2 gallon Nourishing Herbal Kraut using cabbage leaves and pickle pebble weights with an airlock.
I over packed the jar and on day 2 the brine started going into the airlock. I removed the pickle pebbles and replaced the weights with a smaller jar of kraut. (see below)
The small jar was a convenient way to save the excess kraut and brine that I had to remove from over packing the jar. The smaller jar fermented faster and turned out a little more sour than the 1/2 gallon jar.
Ready for the fridge….5 day ferment.
On day 5, there was a little yeasty growth on the surface after I removed the jar/weight. It was easily removed when I took out the large cabbage leaves covering the kraut.
This delicious Nourishing Herbal Kraut resulted in a pleasantly earthy, savory and moderately sour ferment.