KRAUT AT THE DEVIL

Sauerkraut is a polarizing condiment, even more polarizing than mayonnaise. Some love its zesty fizz and sour crunch. Others complain of its potential for causing gas or turn up their noses at its acidity. Personally, I love the stuff, and as a confirmed bachelor, I have no one around to prevent me from relishing it with abandon. I will put it on greens, on homemade sausages, on Reubens (obviously) or just eat the hell out of it with a fork. Do not leave me alone with a jar of Bubbies because there will be trouble.

Having dabbled recently in kimchi, and less recently in sourdough and kombucha, I decided to give straight  up kraut a go. The process is simple – shredded cabbage and salt are thrown in a vessel (ceramic crocks are often suggested but not being able to find a perfect one I went with a food grade plastic bucket from the handy dandy restaurant supply store), the salt extracts the water from the cabbage, creating a brine in which the cabbage ferments. I’m not going to go into all the science so If you want to know more check out Wild Fermentation.

I’ll be checking on the kraut periodically as Vegan MoFo rolls along.

Here it is on Day 0, Sunday Evening, still whole then all salted up. I weighed it down with a big plastic bag full of water (the bag expands to cover the full width of the container):

And Tonight. There’s a definite change in the taste, but it’s still very cabbagey – no zing yet:

It’s always exciting when SCIENCE happens right in your own kitchen. I can’t wait to come back at the end of the week and see how it’s progressed.