[I’ve tried fermenting my own sauerkraut with no success. Brands like Bubbies and Olive My Pickle offer kraut, pickles, and olives that are wonderfully, naturally fermented, bu t the cost is prohibitive.]
Remove a lb of leaves from a head and rinse them clean of grit or other impurities. Slice them into matchsticks with a sharp knife, a salad shooter or a food processor. The salt needed for 1 lb of cabbage is 16 oz/40, or 0.4 oz, which is about 1-1/2 standard teaspoons (the measuring spoons you get in a set at the grocery store).
Place the sliced cabbage in a large mixing bowl. Sprinkle the salt on the cabbage. Set a timer for 2 minutes. Work the salt into the cabbage for the full 2 minutes either with your hands or baking spoons. The idea is to get the salt evenly mixed in. Set aside for 10 minutes. (Osmosis causes the salt to enter the leaves while sweating brine).
Use a potato masher on the cabbage to get it to sweat out enough brine to cover the cabbage. Spoon it into a repurposed glass jam jar. Use a spoon to push the cabbage below the brine. Line the top of the jar with tripled over Saran wrap (so the eventual vinegar fumes don’t rust out the steel cover), and cover. Set aside for three weeks, after which it is ready to eat. Refrigerate to keep it crunchy.
Thanks very much for your encouragement and recipe.
I have tried a few times, exactly as described. Each batch has just gone rotten with unsavory growths. Another attempt is always on the table :)
My sourdough starter is coming up on 2 years old and it’s wonderful, so I know fermenting IS possible in my kitchen :)