Homemade Sauerkraut: A Step-By-Step Guide for Beginners

Welcome to the exciting, tasty, and slightly weird world of homemade sauerkraut! You might be wondering, “Why on earth would I ferment cabbage in my own kitchen?” The answer is simple: because it’s fun, surprisingly easy, and the result is a delicious, gut-friendly superfood. Plus, it’s an excellent conversation starter at parties – “Hey, I make my own sauerkraut. How about you?”

homemade sauerkraut is easy to make and in its most basic form, just needs cabbage and salt

The Ingredients for Homemade Sauerkraut

The ingredients required for homemade sauerkraut are remarkably simple, which is part of the appeal of this fermented veggie dish! For a basic sauerkraut, you will need:

Cabbage: One medium head (about 2 pounds). You can use green or red cabbage; each will give a slightly different flavor and color to your final product.
Salt: 1-2 tablespoons, depending on taste. The salt pulls water out of the cabbage to create the brine in which the cabbage will ferment and sour. Choose a high-quality sea salt or pickling salt. Avoid iodised salt as iodine can inhibit fermentation.

Optional additions can add flavour and nutritional value to your sauerkraut:

Caraway Seeds: 1 teaspoon (optional). Caraway seeds are a common addition to sauerkraut, giving it an earthy flavour that pairs well with the tanginess of the fermented cabbage.
Other Vegetables: Shredded carrots, beetroot, or onions can be added for a different flavour profile. Just keep in mind that the cabbage should still make up the majority of the vegetables to ensure proper fermentation.
Spices and Herbs: Feel free to experiment with other spices and herbs to create your own custom sauerkraut blends.

In the next steps, we’ll get into how to prepare and combine these ingredients to create your homemade sauerkraut!

Part 1: Why Make Homemade Sauerkraut?

If you’re a fan of tangy flavours, healthy probiotics for gut health, and the satisfying crunch of perfectly fermented cabbage, homemade sauerkraut is definitely for you. And if you’re not a fan yet, trust me, you soon will be. If you haven’t noticed yet, I’m a little obsessed with the stuff – and soon, you will be too. I’m going to provide a very simple step by step guid for homemade sauerkraut. If you are a little more experienced, you may want to consider “10 easy to make recipes” including a kimchi fuzion version.

homemade sauerkraut involves chopping (or shredding) cabbage

Part 2: Prep Your Cabbage (and Yourself)

Alright, let’s get down to business. The first step in making homemade sauerkraut is choosing and prepping your cabbage. Choose a fresh, firm head of cabbage, preferably one that looks like it’s full of dreams of one day becoming delicious sauerkraut.

Part 3: The Fine Art of Cabbage Shredding

Next, you’ll need to shred your cabbage. Yes, I said shred. This isn’t a time for delicate chopping or elegant slicing – we’re making sauerkraut here, not a side salad.

homemade sauerkraut needs a lot of shredded cabbage

Part 4: The Magic of Salt

After the cathartic cabbage shredding, you’ll need to sprinkle your shredded dreams, err, cabbage with salt. The salt draws out the water from the cabbage, creating the brine where all the fermentation magic happens. You do need to be very mindful of which salt to use for this step. I have gone into detailed review of the types here, but my favourite has to be organic sea salt.

Part 5: Time to Get Your Hands Dirty

Now comes the fun part: squeezing and kneading your salted cabbage. Think of it as a stress relief exercise that also leads to a delicious snack. It’s a win-win, really. You probably need to follow this process for about five minutes, until when you pick up a handful you can squeeze a good amount of “juice” out of it.

Part 6: Pack it in, Pack it in

Once your cabbage is nicely wilted and salty, it’s time to pack it into your chosen jar – my favourite is either a kilner or mason jar. And when I say ‘pack’, I mean pack. The goal here is to eliminate air pockets, creating a safe, anaerobic environment for your cabbage to transform into sauerkraut.

Part 7: The Waiting Game

After packing your cabbage into the jar, all that’s left to do is wait. This is the perfect time to practice patience, take up meditation, or binge-watch that show you’ve been meaning to catch up on (The Night Agent on Netflix is amazing).

Part 8: Voila! Your Homemade Sauerkraut!

After waiting (and maybe meditating), your cabbage has transformed into sauerkraut. Now comes the best part – tasting your homemade fermented treat. Congratulations, you’re officially a vegetable fermenter!

Precautions

When it comes to fermenting your own homemade sauerkraut, food safety and hygiene are paramount. Here are some crucial safety precautions to keep in mind:

Properly Clean Your Equipment: Before you begin, make sure all your tools and containers are clean and sanitised. This includes the fermentation jar, your chopping board, knife, and your hands. Harmful bacteria can easily grow in unsanitary conditions and ruin your sauerkraut or even cause health issues.
Use High-Quality, Fresh Ingredients: Always use fresh, organic cabbage and high-quality salt for your sauerkraut. Avoid using any cabbage that looks wilted, brown, or spotted. The fresher your cabbage, the better the end result will be.
Ensure the Cabbage is Fully Submerged: In the process of making sauerkraut, keeping the cabbage fully submerged in its brine is crucial to avoid mould and unwanted bacteria growth. If the cabbage is exposed to air, it can lead to spoilage. A fermentation weight or a smaller jar filled with water can help keep everything below the brine.
Store at the Correct Temperature: The ideal temperature for fermenting sauerkraut is between 65°F (18°C) and 72°F (22°C). Temperatures above this can lead to unwanted mould growth, while temperatures below this can slow down fermentation significantly.
Monitor for Signs of Spoilage: Keep an eye on your sauerkraut throughout the fermentation process. Signs of spoilage can include an off smell, mould growth, or a strange colour. If you notice any of these signs, it’s better to err on the side of caution and discard the batch.
Proper Storage After Fermentation: Once the fermentation process is complete, it’s vital to store your sauerkraut correctly. Transfer it to the fridge to slow down the fermentation process and help it last longer.
Disappearing brine and kahm yeast: These are two issues that may arise, however in both instances they are pretty much harmless, but can be worrying when making your first ferment.

Remember, when in doubt, throw it out. It’s better to start a new batch than to risk food poisoning.