- Prep
- 30 min
- Cook
- 0 min
- Total
- 30 min
- Serves
- 12
Ingredients
What you’ll need — tap to tick off as you go
- 2 kg
- 40 g
- 1 tbsp
Process
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Weigh the prepared cabbage: you need about 2 kg after removing the core and outer leaves. Cut the cabbage into quarters, slice out the core, then shred finely with a knife or mandoline into 2 to 3 mm strips.
Put the shredded cabbage in a large bowl, sprinkle over the 40 g fine sea salt and massage and squeeze with clean hands for 8 to 10 minutes, until the cabbage is limp and a pool of brine forms at the bottom of the bowl.
Mix in the caraway seeds and juniper berries, if using, then pack the cabbage and its brine tightly into a clean 3 litre jar or food-grade bucket, pressing down hard with your fist or a tamper after each handful so no air pockets remain.
Press the cabbage down until the brine rises 2 to 3 cm above the surface. If there is not enough brine, dissolve 5 g fine sea salt in 250 ml water and top up until the cabbage is submerged.
Weigh the cabbage down with a clean glass weight, a small ziplock bag filled with brine, or a boiled stone, so it stays under the liquid. Cover the jar with a lid or cloth and keep it at 18 to 22 °C, away from direct sunlight.
Check daily for the first week: press the cabbage back under the brine, skim off any white film, and release gas if the lid is tight. Bubbles and a sour smell after 2 to 3 days mean fermentation is working.
Taste after 10 days, then every 2 to 3 days. The sauerkraut is ready when it is pleasantly sour and still crunchy, usually 2 to 4 weeks depending on room temperature. Move it to the fridge to stop fermentation.
Kitchen notes
Kitchen notes
- The most common mistake is too little salt or cabbage not fully submerged: keep the brine 2 to 3 cm above the cabbage at all times or the top layer will spoil.
- Use fine sea salt, not iodised table salt or coarse flakes, and weigh it rather than measuring by volume; 2% of the cabbage weight is the reliable ratio.
- A white film on the surface is kahm yeast and is harmless; skim it off. Fuzzy blue, green or black mould means the batch should be discarded.
- Ferment at 18 to 22 °C. Warmer than 24 °C gives soft, slimy kraut; below 15 °C it may stall or take twice as long.
Substitutions
- green cabbage→red cabbage or a mix of green and red cabbage
- caraway seeds→dill seeds, fennel seeds or 1 tbsp grated fresh horseradish
- juniper berries→1 tsp black peppercorns or 2 bay leaves
Storage & reheating
Keep finished sauerkraut in a clean jar with the brine covering the cabbage, lid on, in the fridge for up to 6 months; flavour deepens over time. Always use a clean fork to take out what you need and press the rest back under the brine. It is eaten cold or added at the end of cooking, so no reheating is needed; if you cook it, simmer gently for 20 to 30 minutes with a splash of water or broth.
FAQ
The questions we get asked most
Why is my sauerkraut soft and mushy instead of crunchy?
Soft kraut usually means it fermented too warm, above 24 °C, or the salt was under 2% of the cabbage weight. Keep the jar at 18 to 22 °C and weigh the salt rather than eyeballing it. Also trim off any bruised or insect-damaged cabbage, as those spots break down faster.
There is white film on top of my sauerkraut - is it ruined?
A thin white or grey film is kahm yeast, which is harmless and common when the cabbage is exposed to air. Skim it off, push the cabbage back under the brine and continue. Fuzzy or coloured mould, or a rotten rather than sour smell, means you should throw the batch away.
How do I know when homemade sauerkraut is ready?
Start tasting after 10 days: it is ready when it tastes tangy and sour but the shreds still snap when you bite them. In a 20 °C kitchen this is usually 2 to 3 weeks; in a cooler spot it can take 4 to 6 weeks. Once it is sour enough, move the jar to the fridge, where fermentation slows almost to a stop.
Can I make sauerkraut without a special fermentation crock or weight?
Yes. A clean glass jar works fine; use a small ziplock bag filled with brine, a clean boiled stone or a piece of cabbage core as a weight to keep the shreds submerged. A loose lid or a cloth secured with a rubber band lets gas escape while keeping dust and insects out.
My cabbage did not release enough brine - what should I do?
Older or drier cabbage releases less water, so top up with a brine of 5 g fine sea salt dissolved in 250 ml water until the cabbage is covered by 2 to 3 cm. Next time, shred a little finer and massage the salt in for a full 10 minutes before packing.
Can I freeze sauerkraut or use it in cooked dishes?
Freezing is not recommended because it destroys the crunch and the live cultures, though the flavour survives. For cooked dishes such as choucroute or braised pork, simmer it gently for 20 to 30 minutes with a splash of water or broth; long boiling turns it mushy and very salty.
Is homemade sauerkraut safe to eat and is it gluten-free?
Yes, when the cabbage stays under the brine, the salt level is 2% and the jar is kept clean, the lactic acid bacteria outcompete spoilage organisms. The recipe contains only cabbage, salt and spices, so it is naturally gluten-free, vegan and dairy-free. Discard any batch with coloured mould, slime or a putrid smell.
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