Protective Diet Class #356
This class is part of Fermentation February, bringing you new tips, tricks, and troubleshooting, based on 15+ years of experience. Once you’ve optimized your microbiome on a Protective Diet, homemade sauerkraut becomes a favorite condiment–the new pickle!
Announcements
- Engage in our official support group, Protective Diet Living (PDL). Join Live Chats & Coaching Hour for personal assistance.
- Shop http://www.protectivediet.com/bulk, the organic farm that delivers near you, for low-cost, high-quality PD staples.
- Comment below our “One Meal a Day” videos on YouTube. Let us know what you want to see us plate up as an example.
Vocabulary
| Lactobacillus | Sulforaphane | Anthocyanins | Autophagy | Antioxidants | Microbiome |
Fermentation Should Be Fun!
| Benefits of Sauerkraut When you massage freshly shredded cabbage, you break down cell walls, which produces sulforaphane, an extremely detoxifying plant chemical that is produced when the plant cells are damaged by predators or humans. It’s purpose is to repair cell damage. When we eat it, it eliminates toxins in our cells and helps in the process of cellular upcycling called autophagy. This phytochemical is incredibly cancer protective. Sauerkraut promotes a healthy microbiome, which improves mental health, supports healthy digestion, helps with weight management, and boosts immune function. Why Make Your Own? Reduce sodium.Save money.Improve food quality with fresher organics.Preserve your summer harvest of peppers, onions and cabbage, and you’ll have ready-to-eat, flavor-packed toppings in your refrigerator all year long.Making sauerkraut requires an hour of undistracted time. | Sauerkraut is a dry-brine ferment, meaning it creates its own brine when the cabbage comes in contact with salt. No water is added during the process. Slow fermentation, starting at room temperature, then transferring to the refrigerator retains crunch. Equipment Large Bowl(s)—your Instant Pot bowl works well, use two if doing in batches Digital Kitchen Scale—you could use the scale at the store when you buy the cabbage Cutting Board & Chef’s Knife or Breville Food Processor (must be able to adjust thickness to ¼”) Glass Jars—wide mouth, clean Plastic Lids (no gasket)—these are not airtight, which prevents pressure build-up from gasses Jar Funnel—wide mouth, clean Glass Fermentation Weights or 4-ounce jars—clean Tamper Ingredients Fresh cabbage (NOT bagged shredded)—Use two green cabbages, or one green and ½ a red cabbage for one small batch. Do NOT use two red cabbages—they have lower water content and make softer mushy kraut. Higher water content makes better brine. Non-Iodized, Additive-Free Salt—Redmond’s Real Salt, Himalayan Pink Salt, Celtic Sea Salt Temperature Home temperature is between 65° and 75° Fahrenheit. A warmer home = faster fermentation. Timing Make it on SundayàTransfer to the fridge anytime between Thursday & Saturday It needs 4 days of fermentation at room temperature to allow the lactobacilli, naturally present on the cabbage, to multiply. Preservation Sauerkraut can last in the refrigerator for up to a year. The lactobacilli that develop in it produce lactic acid, which acts as a natural preservative, similar to vinegar. Nature preserves and protects it. When refrigerated, the brine will be reabsorbed back into the cabbage. Prep Process Remove core from cabbages (optional, if you don’t mind chunks in your sauerkraut).Cut cabbages into thirds. Slice each third into ¼” slices (thinner results in mushy kraut). You may wish to work in batches and use multiple large bowls. Use clean hands or wear gloves.Tare the weight of the bowl on the scale. Add cabbage in batches and note weight in grams.For each batch, add 2% salt: 0.02 x (weight of cabbage in grams) = (grams of salt to add). Tare a bowl or jar on the scale, weigh the calculated amount of salt, and add to cabbage.Gently massage salted cabbage. Let rest for 10 minutes or so while you get your jars ready.Tamp cabbage into jars. More water will release, creating brine. Leave room for weights. |
| Extra Cabbage? Use any extra cabbage to make the BBQ Cabbage Sandwich or Sunset Rice Bowl. Use them in a stir-fry, soup, or Beauty Broth Hot Pot. | Whoa! Knock You Out Sulfur Smell This comes from sulforaphane production. Open sauerkraut in the kitchen, then bring it to the table once the sulfur fumes dissipate. Do not sample your sauerkraut until the brine has been absorbed into the cabbage. This will happen from refrigeration (at least 24 hours). The taste will mellow out as it chills. |
| Host a Sauerkraut Tasting Optional Fun: make various flavors of sauerkraut by adding onion, jalapeno, or caraway seed to individual jars. Serve Kraut Melts on Bread Maker Whole Wheat Berry Bread with additional fermented toppings: Probiotic Onions, Pickled Pepper Rings, and Probiotic Pepper Sauce Before serving, use a clean hand to remove ferment weights or 4oz jars (discard any liquid that has collected in 4oz jars—it does not have lactobacilli in it because those microbes were not in contact with cabbage fibers. | Cross Contamination Our cell phones tend to be covered in bacteria. If you plan to use your phone during this process, either wrap it in plastic or remove your glove before touching it to avoid introducing bacteria into your sauerkraut, cross contaminating it. Avoid spoilage when serving by using clean serving utensils, although it is naturally protected with lactic acid. |
| Troubleshooting Mold: This can happen when air is present. This is an anaerobic fermentation. Do not leave air space at the top. Cover all the cabbage with brine. It must be submerged. One way to ensure this is to save a nice leaf from the cabbage and place it over top of the shredded cabbage in the jar to tuck all the little floaty bits under the brine. Then put TWO fermentation weights or a 4oz jar on top of the leaf. The top weight will be pushed down by the lid of the jar when you close it. The brine will bubble over, which ensures that it fills the air space. This is a bit messy, but it creates the anaerobic environment we need. Place your jars on a tray to catch additional spill-over during the first few days. Be sure to wipe them down before refrigerating them on day seven. Browning: This is from oxygen- cabbage sat too long before jarring or putting jars in sunlight to ferment. Try to keep them away from sunlight, but near the sink. | |
| Jar Size Gallon Jars—large batch (soggy) Half Gallon (2 quart)—medium batch 1-quart Jars—small batch (crunchy) 22-ounce Jars—small batch (crunchy) Which size do you prefer? | “If you’re not into sauerkraut yet, it’s ’cause you haven’t developed microbes that prefer pickley, tangy vinegary, briny condiments. Sauerkraut is a condiment I add to everything like a pickle.” |
| Nature’s Sunscreen Sulforaphane and anthocyanin-rich foods, along with other phytochemicals, protect us from oxidative stress, chemicals, and sun exposure. They shield us from UV rays, allowing us to benefit from vitamin D while preventing cells from becoming irregular due to oxidative stress. Eating purple, blue, and red fruits and vegetables is essential for this protection. Protective Beverages like Flower Water and Blue Chai are loaded with anthocyanins. We don’t need to put chemical sunscreen on our skin. Nature provides her own sunscreen. Put it in a bottle and challenge your kids to drink it: “How tart can you take your tea?” | |
Class Description:
This class is part of Fermentation February, bringing you new tips, tricks, and troubleshooting, based on 15+ years of experience. Once you’ve optimized your microbiome on a Protective Diet, homemade sauerkraut becomes a favorite condiment–the new pickle!
Class URL: https://protectivediet.com/courses/fermentation-and-food-preservation/lessons/lesson-356-sauerkraut-master-class/
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