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purple sauerkraut

Make Purple Sauerkraut: Easy, Tasty & Probiotic

Shred purple (red)cabbage thinly. Microwave on Hi for 30 seconds and cool to room temperature. Add salt, sugar, caraway seeds and crushed red pepper. Massage well, pack down, cover and set aside to ferment. Stir once a day for 3-4 days until it starts changing color: from purple to red and tastes tart. Transfer to a lidded glass jar and pack down tightly. Keep at room temperature for about a week, then refrigerate. Add to salads, sandwiches, soups/stews... Enjoy!
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Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 1 minute
for Fermentation 5 days
Total Time 5 days 11 minutes
Course Condiment
Cuisine American, European, German
Servings 12 people
Calories 6 kcal

Equipment

  • microwave oven if not available, use a stove-top steamer assembly; see Recipe Notes for details.
  • Microwave safe glass/ceramic bowl plastic bowl not recommended
  • Lidded glass/ceramic Jar to store the sauerkraut; plastic container not recommended

Ingredients
  

  • 200 grams Purple (Red) Cabbage -finely shredded - 2 cups wash before shredding
  • 2 g Salt a bit less than 1/2 tsp - for this low-sodium version; See Recipe Notes for details
  • 1/2 tsp Sugar
  • 1/2 tsp Caraway seeds
  • 1/2 tsp Crushed red pepper omit or add less if you prefer less spicy Sauerkraut
  • 1 tbsp Whey: optional used as a fermentation starter culture (from strained fresh yogurt); see Recipe directions for other options

Instructions
 

  • Cut a large chunk of cabbage. Rinse under running tap water. Drain for a few min to remove excess moisture. Slice the cabbage into thin shreds.
  • Pack shreds into a cereal bowl to measure: about 2 cups, 200 g
  • Microwave the shreds for 30 seconds on Hi. Set aside to cool to room temperature. See Recipe Notes for a non-microwave method for this step.
    blanched red cabbage
  • When the cabbage has cooled to room temp, sprinkle salt and sugar.
  • Add caraway seeds and crushed red pepper. Omit crushed red pepper if you prefer non-spicy Sauerkraut
    caraway and crushed red pepper
  • Mix well and massage the shreds: squeeze small portions at a time in your fist. The cabbage wilts and shrinks in volume as the salt and sugar cause the cabbage juices to get released.
  • Optional: Add a starter culture to jump-start fermentation.
    Note: This step is not essential, but highly recommended
    Fermentation will typically start on its own, even without the addition of a starter culture, in a couple of days, as the wild bacteria/yeast present on the cabbage begin to feed on the sugars in the cabbage.
    Add 2-3 tsp of one of the following:
    A) Clear whey from fresh yogurt : this has live cultures.
    Note: If using store-bought yogurt, be sure to check if it has live cultures
    Pass the whey through a fine mesh strainer, lined with a piece of paper towel or coffee filter, or a clean fine weave handkerchief: this will remove small bits of yogurt solids from the whey:
    B) Brine from another vegetable ferment you may have on hand:
    The picture on the right shows the red Carrot-Beetroot Kanji I added to this batch.: this has live cultures.
    You can also use brine/juices from fermented cucumbers, peppers, carrots, Kimchi, etc, or a previous batch of Sauerkraut,
    Note: Brine from store-bought (or home-made) vinegar-pickled vegetables typically do not have live cultures. and thus cannot be used as a starter culture.
    C) Apple Cider Vinegar: raw, unpasteurized, with 'mother' : this has live cultures.
    Note: Pasteurized apple cider vinegar does not have live cultures and thus cannot be used as a starter culture.
    sauerkraut with kanji
  • Stir well, cover with a lid and set aside, undisturbed, to ferment.
    Stir once a day, for 3-4 days. Pack down tightly each time (after stirring).
    I like to keep it in a medium-large (1 1/2 - 2 qt/L) covered glass bowl for the first 3-4 days: I find it easier to stir the mixture properly in the bowl, rather than in a jar.
    Note: If the room is very cold, place the bowl in a sunny spot for 1-2 hours.
    You should soon start seeing a change in color: the blue-purple cabbage shreds start becoming reddish as the acid starts to build up due to fermentation. The dark red-purple juices that are released also start to color the white part of the cabbage shreds.
  • After 3-4 days, taste-test the juices pooled at the bottom of the bowl, and maybe bite into a piece of cabbage as well. It should taste distinctly tart.
    if it seems tart enough for your palate, you can start digging in!
    Try this: A baguette slice topped with cheese and red cabbage sauerkraut... Yumm!
    purple sauerkraut on baguette
  • Transfer to a lidded glass jar: pack down tightly.
    Set it aside, undisturbed, to continue to ferment. After about a week or so, you can refrigerate it. It will continue to ferment in the fridge, although much more slowly.
    It should last a long time in the fridge without getting spoiled. The acid formed during fermentation protects it from getting moldy.
  • Looking into the jar from the top....
    fermented red cabbage
  • Use this beautiful and tasty condiment to perk up salads, sandwiches, soups, stews, etc.
    purple sauerkraut
  • See how colorful and lovely this wax gourd-red cabbage salad looks. Check out the recipe I posted recently:
    https://theculinaryheart.com/make-colorful-ash-gourd-salad-tangy-and-healthy/
    Ash gourd red cabbage salad
  • Enjoy!

Notes

No microwave available? 
No worries, use a steamer instead and steam the mixture for 1 minute.
If you do not have a steamer, you can simply use a large pot with a rack or trivet to create a steamer assembly:
  • Place a rack or trivet in a large lidded saucepan or stockpot
    • Check if the bowl with the shredded cabbage fits inside the pot and is easy to remove after steaming (it will be HOT!)
  • Add about 2 cups of water to the pot, cover and bring the water to a rolling boil. You should see some steam escaping from the pot.
  • Place the bowl with the shredded cabbage on the rack/trivet. Cover and steam for 1 min. 
  • Immediately remove the hot bowl from the steamer, transfer to a plate and spread it out to cool fast.
    • You just need to briefly blanch the cabbage - definitely don't want to over-cook it!
  • Continue with recipe directions.
 
Other herbs and spices to add to sauerkraut:
I follow my instincts and add whatever I feel like adding to a fresh batch: so each batch has a unique flavor!
Here are some that I have tried and loved
  • Fresh or Dried herbs: basil, rosemary, chives, oregano, marjoram, thyme....
  • Spices: cumin seeds, dill seeds, fennel seeds, coriander seeds, carom seeds, star anise, cloves, cinnamon, bay leaves, peppercorns, dried whole red chillies, etc.
  • Fresh sliced Garlic: I recommend adding garlic on the 3rd or 4th day, after fermentation is well established.
    • Garlic is antimicrobial and can hinder/slow down fermentation if added in the beginning.
 
This Recipe is Low-Sodium
General guidelines for safe fermentation recommend using 2% of salt, based on the total weight of the food being fermented. 
However, if the fermentation is accelerated by using a starter culture, as recommended in this recipe, it is perfectly safe to add less salt, since the acid formed during fermentation also acts to prevent spoilage.
In this recipe, I have used only 1% salt, 2 g for 200g of cabbage. If you are not going to use a starter culture, perhaps you might consider adding more salt: up to 4 g for this recipe (a little less than 1 tsp).
  • Note that the extra salt will likely slow down the start of fermentation, and you might have to wait 7-8 days to start 'seeing' fermentation - the color change from purple to reddish, as well as the development of tart flavor.
 
Tip for the next batch:
Use 2-3 tsp of the brine/juices from this batch of sauerkraut to jump-start your next batch!
You will not need to wait quite as long for your next batch to be ready to dig into!
 
Storing Sauerkraut
Once fermentation is underway and tartness has reached a level you like, I recommend storing the jar in the refrigerator.
It should be fine for 3-4 months, possibly longer. However, since I make small batches, mine is usually used up before then.
Note:
Every time you take some out of the jar, do remember to tightly pack down the rest  before returning the jar to the refrigerator. 

Nutrition

Serving: 16gCalories: 6kcalCarbohydrates: 1gProtein: 0.3gFat: 0.1gSaturated Fat: 0.01gPolyunsaturated Fat: 0.02gMonounsaturated Fat: 0.01gSodium: 70mgPotassium: 43mgFiber: 0.4gSugar: 1gVitamin A: 211IUVitamin C: 10mgCalcium: 8mgIron: 0.2mg
Keyword cabbage, Caraway seeds, crushed red pepper, fermented cabbage, fermented vegetables, German foods, Probiotic, Purple Cabbage, Red Cabbage, Sauerkraut, Sour cabbage
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