It is time for the ripening of winter varieties of white cabbage. And the best way to preserve it is to ferment.
Now this method is called in a fashionable way "fermentation", it is very popular because of its environmental friendliness and naturalness.
The grandmothers in the villages did not know about this, so they fermented cabbage out of intuition and out of need. In order to cook stewed cabbage soup from sauerkraut in a large Russian oven on harsh winter days or to bake kurniki - large pies with cabbage.
It is not for nothing that in Russia cabbage was called the second bread. She was everywhere: in cabbage soup, pies, for a snack and just like that.
The tools for cutting cabbage were primitive: more often it was a wooden trough and a bayonet shovel, which was used to "chop" cabbage heads. Then they were thoroughly rubbed with salt.
Adding carrots has become relatively recent. According to old village recipes, it was not used in fermentation. Instead, there were apples, currant or horseradish leaves, rye flour or straw.
But one ingredient has remained firmly in the old way of pickling cabbage - and this is caraway seeds or dill seeds. Now they are not favored and in vain! Cabbage with them is incredibly aromatic and tasty!
Ingredients:
3 kg of late varieties of white cabbage (Slava, Kolobok)
150 gr. coarse sea salt
3 large carrots
2 tbsp. l. dill seed
How to cook:
1. Remove the top leaves from the cabbage heads and chop the cabbage into strips. Long, but not very thin. You can also chop with an ordinary knife, the main thing is not to grind.
2. Peel the carrots. She also needs a late and large one. Grate it on a coarse grater. Or use a Korean carrot grater.
You do not need to grate the carrots too finely. She will color the cabbage, and in fermentation it is superfluous.
3. Put chopped cabbage, grated carrots and dill or caraway seeds in an enamel bowl or bucket. The first is sold in the pharmacy, the second in the spice section of any supermarket.
4. Pour salt into the cabbage, but in parts, starting to grind the cabbage with carrots and coarse salt. This is necessary for the juice to flow, which will be the basis for fermentation.
Grinding cabbage is best done on the table or in a large and wide basin, adding coarse salt as needed. It may take more.
Important!
Salt for any pickling, pickling or pickling should be the simplest, stone and coarse grind.
In no case do not take iodized: cabbage will taste bitter and smell unpleasant.
5. Transfer the cabbage to a large and clean enamel or wooden dish, tamp it down hard with your hands or with a wooden pestle.
Important! The tank or bucket must first be washed without soap and scalded with boiling water.
6. Tamp the last layers of cabbage as hard as possible so that the juice flows. There should be a lot of it.
7. Place a saucepan lid on top of the cabbage, a wooden board or a plate that is smaller in diameter. Install oppression - a clean stone or just a 3-liter jar of water.
8. Place the cabbage in the kitchen or another room and cover the entire structure with clean gauze. She will ferment for at least three days.
9. Every day, the contents of the pan should be pierced with a wooden stick or skewer to the bottom to release the gases from fermentation.
Important! If foam appears, be sure to remove it.
10. The fermentation process will end in about 3-5 days. The readiness of the sauerkraut is determined by the taste.
11. Then you need to mix it with your hands and put it in clean jars, close it with plastic lids and put it in the refrigerator or in the basement (cellar, underground).
Everything! The cabbage is ready and ready to eat.
Good luck to you! And a delicious winter!
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