For proper fermentation, it is better to use mid-season or late-season types of vegetables. If a housewife buys heads of cabbage in a store or in the market, then you need to look closely at the fruit. There should be no rot or other flaws on it.
Attention! Early maturing varieties are not recommended for pickling cabbage. This is due to the fact that they are less sugary and friable, which means they will not give the very crunch that connoisseurs of the product love so much, they will ferment badly.
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What should be a head of cabbage
It is recommended to buy forks that have a slightly flattened shape. They must be light green. Choose medium-sized heads of cabbage as they are easy to chop. And also medium forks indicate that the vegetable was not overfed at one time with saltpeter for quick ripening.
White leaves on top of the cabbage indicate that the forks were frozen. Therefore, it is better to avoid such fruits.
How to choose dishes
Old people say that there is no better wooden dish for pickling cabbage. However, it is now very difficult to get hold of wooden barrels, especially in metropolitan areas. Therefore, enamel pots are used.
Take a whole enamel pot without chips or cracks. There should be no loose enamel in it. Many housewives use earthenware for fermentation.
Fermented in large enameled containers. As only in large pans you get tasty and crispy cabbage. But vegetables are not fermented in metal or plastic dishes. Because the lactic acid that is released will interact with metal or plastic. An unpleasant odor will appear that will ruin the cabbage.
Attention! When fermented in metal dishes or in plastic, substances harmful to human health are released.
The dishes with fermented vegetables are taken to a cool place: to the basement. If there is no basement, then fermented in glass jars and put in the refrigerator.
What ingredients are needed
The following vegetables and spices are used:
- cabbage;
- carrot;
- black peppercorns;
- salt.
Vegetables are cut in the ratio of 1 kilogram of carrots to 10 kilograms of cabbage. But salt is taken in a ratio of no more than twenty-five grams per kilogram. Use non-iodized salt. The taste spoils from iodized.
Sugar can be used in the same proportion as salt. It will improve fermentation and sweeten the dish.
How to cut vegetables properly
Shred the head of cabbage and tonic carrots into strips. In this form, the products ferment faster. Add spices and place in enamel pots.
Place under a press, previously covered with gauze, and wait until the brine is released. It is recommended to remove the foam that forms on the surface every day. You need to pierce the ingredients with a wooden knife to release the gases. Fermented for several days at room temperature.
After the brine brightens, the cabbage is stored in the basement.
Do you cook sauerkraut?
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