Garlic Cumin Sauerkraut Recipe, at last!

I have finally committed my recipe to paper/digital ink for your DIY pleasure. This is a first attempt, and I would welcome feedback on process, ingredients, or terminology. When I made this, I took it out of the crock pretty early for a light, sweeter kraut. The garlic at the level in the recipe will pack a serious punch, so adjust for your preference.

Allan’s Garlic-Cumin Sauerkraut

awm52@georgetown.edu

smartkraut.com

Ingredients:

• 3-4 medium heads green cabbage
• Up to 1/4 cup salt
• 2-3 tablespoons cumin seeds
• 12 cloves garlic

Optional ingredients:

• beets
• carrots
• ginger
• red pepper flakes

Steps:

1. Shred cabbage thinly with a sharp kitchen knife or cabbage shredder (some have also had good results with a food processor)
2. Cut additional vegetables and garlic to desired size, adjusting for crunch
3. Place shredded cabbage and vegetables in a large bowl, salting moderately as you go
4. Sprinkle cumin seeds over cabbage and vegetables
5. Press or pound cabbage using any implement at hand, such as a potato masher or wooden spoon. Ideally you want to bruise it; this helps get more liquid out
6. Leave salted, pressed cabbage to sit 1-2 hours
7. Pack cabbage tightly into a fermentation vessel such as a jar or crock, pouring in any leftover liquid from the bowl
8. Place a weight on top of packed cabbage (Options include a plate, another jar, or even a ziplock bag full of water; something you can press down on is ideal)
9. The liquid level should eventually rise until it is above the cabbage. To prevent molding, it is important that the cabbage is submerged. If the liquid level has not risen high enough after 2 days, add some water with a small amount of salt dissolved in it.
10. Let kraut rest 4-6 days (it should be bubbling at this point), then begin tasting regularly
11. Once the kraut tastes the way you like it, refrigerate it to slow the fermentation process (otherwise it will keep getting more and more sour)
12. Enjoy!

Sauerkraut Hard Cider

As will happen in fermenting at home, I seem to have accidentally stumbled on a new way to make hard cider - with leftover sauerkraut juice.

I had just finished eating a batch of sauerkraut - laced with beets in my usual style - and there was leftover juice in the jar. Kraut juice is a precious thing, and not to be wasted. I added some cider, towards the end of making a drink out of the whole thing. The cider would hopefully mellow the somewhat harsh kraut juice. So I poured cider into the crock, then this happened:

Fermentation bubbles in the crock

It bubbled up! Alcohol was being created by the sauerkraut bacteria. I'm not sure why I didn't expect this, but it hadn't crossed my mind at all that the kraut organisms would cross over to winemaking activities. Naturally, I became curious and added more cider - topped it up to about a half gallon. Then let the bacteria do their work. It has since gone into an airlocked jug.

Initial tasters were not excited with the results! A round of trials at Thanksgiving yielded no one clamoring for more kraut cider. Too much saltiness and too much sauerkraut smell. I'm standing by my little kraut bacteria, and I have a feeling it will get better. I racked it once into a clean jug, with lots of dead yeast cells left behind. Those go into my special wine dregs container in the fridge. Meanwhile, the cider continues to mellow and hopefully improve with time. Here's to more happy accidents!

Illicit Tasting

After an ill-fated attempt to go to the Shakespeare Theatre last night, I came home and snuck into the basement. I was there for all the wrong reasons. I wanted a taste of the highly immature, barely week-old beet wine. It's way too early for that, and there's no way the wine is ready, but my curiosity would not be sated. As is often the case, I had to know what was happening inside that beet-red jug (get it?).

I went down with a jug of extra must that I've been storing in the fridge to top up after my tasting. Removing the airlock, I poured a little in a glass. The aroma! And the taste. Yeasty, funky, a little weird, but much different than what I was expecting. The sweetness from the added sugar in the must is mostly gone. That Montrachet yeast has been very active, gobbling up honey, cane sugar, and residual beet sugar to turn into alcohol and carbon dioxide. What remains is somewhat viscous and redolent of fruit flavors and a strong hint of banana. The yeast and shredded beets have mostly settled, but there's a lot of sediment in what I poured, leaving a chalky residue on the glass. The thing it reminded me of most is this beer.There was an immediate connection in my mind to the Weihenstephaner Vitus. The yeasty banana flavor is written all over it. There's also a musty, almost savory taste to it.

I topped up the jug with some more must to feed the yeast a little bit and replace the airlock. Needless to say, can't wait to taste the finished product.