… or in Polish kapusta kiszona. I put the first 10 liter crock up in mid-August and the 2nd a week later. When I'm down in the basement, I can hear a blurp occasionally from the crocks *they have a water seal air lock around the lids* and that means they are fermenting. I can't wait for burning season and the kraut should be ready around the same time. Watching the fire and eating some sauerkraut with some good kielbasa. Any other kraut makers out there with some recipes?
I would love to make kraut. One of my favorite meals is kraut, brats, potatoes, and carrots. Someday I will have to try it.
We made kraut when I grew my own cabbage and had basketball size heads. We have an old crock that has been in the family for years. We now are able to get fresh kraut from a place called Morses, http://www.morsessauerkraut.com/index.html It's a German place with a tiny place to eat, but it has a specialty store with many specialty meats, imported European foods, and of course fresh kraut. While canned kraut is good, it isn't anywhere near as good or good for you has fresh kraut is. Just full of probiotics.
I made my first crock last year as an experiment. It is night and day over the store bought bagged "cr*p". The only decent stuff in our area is the canned/bottled German kraut which can be found once in a while in the supermarket. Decent but not homemade! You are so right about the probiotics; it's the real deal. My mom would occasionally make some in her younger days and I brought her a couple of quarts from my crock. She tasted it, then looked at me and smiled. I knew it was good! She cooked some up for dinner. It is quite good raw and healthiest straight from the crock. "Full of probiotics".
Thanks, I hope it works now. I think you can mail order from them. Best kraut I've had since we made our own.
never tried to make kraut. i did read somewhere it comes from the mongols. Their fermentation of mare's milk, yogurt, etc.
Not sure how she snuk it in but......Gma got in trouble at nursing home. She snuck cabbage and jars into her room. Worked fine until the aroma of fermentation filled the hallways. That was when my mom got the call.
Well I just finished off my first attempt at making kraut. I bought 6 HUGE heads of cabbage from an Amish farm over the hill in mid October for less than 8 bucks, bought some canning salt and dusted off my old Berkel slicer. Ended up with two half-full 6 gallon wine buckets of sliced, tamped and packed down product. I mixed the kraut in a 2.5lbs cabbage to 1.5 tablespoons canning salt, left it sit for almost 5 weeks at room temp and I made some local kielbasa and hot dogs in it the other evening......wow it is excellent! I've had homemade kraut many MANY times but for some reason it tastes even better when you have the satisfaction of making it yourself.... pics or it didn't happen..... Finished bagging and freezing it last night and ended up with 28 full quart bags. I'll be giving some to family and friends over the holidays and we'll STILL have plenty to last us all year.......
Scott, now you're just making me hungry...and jealous. I think that mustache is going to need some wax on it soon. Nice beard, too!
You know that will keep in the refrigerator for a long time. That way it keeps the probiotics. Homemade is so good.
After seeing Scotty's kraut & kielbasa meal, I decided to tap out one of my fermenting crocks and make a meal as well. Our 2nd 10 liter crock is empty with a full gallon of raw kraut in the fridge. We have been handing out quarts of raw kraut to my Mom, nephew, and niece as well as letting noobs try some. My wife and I have been eating the kraut raw/uncooked as a side to our meals as well as sandwich toppers. I am thoroughly shocked that my wife is eating it raw but it seems to keep one regular as well as having all of the good probiotics. My Mom told me a couple weeks back, "You know, I no believe. I no need eat prune or take pills. I eat kapusta *kraut in Polish*, little bit, and next day I go. I never believe like this." 89 years old and still going good except for some arthritis. So tonights menu: Rosemary Mashed Red Potatoes Fresh, not smoked, Kielbasa *authentic Polish from Phila* Homemade Sauerkraut Thank you Scotty Overkill for the inspiration, and a pic or it didn't happen! BTW: Still have a 15 liter crock and a 10 liter crock - 6 weeks old. I'll let it go another 4 weeks.
Oh yes, you have it right. I'll also mention that a pork chop or pork roast with kraut baked in the oven is also just fantastic. We also serve lumpy mashed potatoes with it and a side of homemade applesauce. The center cut pork chop is lower in fat than the kielbasa and it takes on a nice flavor from the brine of the kraut. My mother was from German decent and my wife's mother was 100% german decent. They really liked hardy foods with lots of flavor. When I get to have kielbasa, I like to slice it a half inch thick and brown it up until it is just getting black on the edges. This really brings the natural flavors to the max. Now our grandchildren are into eating kraut.
I agree with the chops/pork roasts lower in fat - love 'em both. We had some fresh kielbasa in the freezer and it was a natural for the menu today. My favorite way to eat lightly smoked kielbasa is to bring it to a boil, simmer for 15 minutes, and then let it rest for 5 - 10 minutes. Slice it and add some good sinus snorting horseradish or good mustard and rye bread. Yum. Once in a while, I'll slice it, fry it to a light brown, and then crack some eggs right on top. Add some rye bread and voila - breakfast is served.
