Over the weekend, I found a killer deal on heads of cabbage. Each head was $1, and these were enormous heads. I chose four 5.5 to 6 pound heads, making my price per pound about 18 cents. I had planned on making cole slaw to go with our cook-out but then thought again about that and decided to try making sauerkraut. We were roasting hot dogs,and sauerkraut sounded like an excellent addition.
I have to say, I've never made sauerkraut before and was put off by a long fermentation process. So, I was very pleasantly surprised how easy an unfermented one was. I chose a Martha Stewart recipe, but added my own tweak.
First of all, I only made a small-ish batch, with a finished product of about 3 cups. Here's how I made mine:
about 1 pound of fresh cabbage, cored, then thinly sliced (about 4 1/2 cups sliced)
1/4 cup of white vinegar
1 1/2 teaspoons of kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon of caraway seeds
5/8 cup of water
In a medium, non-reactive (stainless or enameled) saucepan, combine all of the above ingredients. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, cover, and cook for 30 to 35 minutes, checking and stirring occasionally. If the liquids appear to have evaporated at any point, add another 2 tablespoons of water. Remove from heat once the cabbage is tender. Cool and store in a glass jar or crockery in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.
That's it. Easy peasy.
Everyone raved about this, perhaps because it was fresh (not commercially-made) and perhaps because I'd never made it before so it was new to us (we've had commercial sauerkraut before). We all thought it made a tasty addition to our roasted hot dogs.
This time of year, I find cabbage priced very low at produce stands and ethnic markets in our area, and I thought that you may, too. This type of sauerkraut is so easy to make, and keeps for a couple of weeks, that I thought I'd share. We've enjoyed the leftovers, as is, on salads, and in other types of sandwiches (other than hot dogs). With October (and Oktoberfest) just around the corner, I'll be making more quick and easy sauerkraut. I'm envisioning some bratwurst in a bun, topped with sauerkraut and cheese, then popped under the broiler for a minute or two. Yum. I can taste it in my imagination already.
