Ferments | Fermented pickles

Sauerkraut with pepperberries, juniper, caraway, fennel, nutmeg & ginger

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  • sauerkraut preparation
  • sauerkraut in fermenting pot
  • sauerkraut in jars

My partner Phil gave me a fermenting pot for Xmas. This sauerkraut is my first fermenting experiment, inspired by the pot handmade by Andrew Cope which came with a basic recipe. I was surprised by both how easy and tasty the sauerkraut was. I used pepperberries and other spices to flavour the ferment – giving it a lovely zing. Pepperberries are an Australian native spice – they have a much stronger flavour than black pepper, so I only used 2 whole berries! The process of making the ferment is so enjoyable and really forces you to slow down. It takes around ten minutes to work the water out of the cabbage with your bare hands. I left mine in the pot for 7 days and decanted to glass jars and stored in the fridge. The pot itself makes the most beautiful noise as the ferment is developing – it sounds like water dripping inside a cave – and is the result of the CO2 being released through the water seal at the top of the pot.

 

Sauerkraut with pepperberries, juniper, caraway, fennel, nutmeg & ginger

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Ingredients

  • 1 medium cabbage shredded
  • 2 tablespoons salt
  • 2 pepper berries
  • 1 teaspoon juniper berries
  • 1 teaspoon caraway seeds
  • 1 teaspoon fennel seeds
  • 1 teaspoon fresh grated nutmeg
  • 1 knob of unpeeled ginger finely sliced

Instructions

1

Shred cabbage

2

Chop ginger

3

Add spices and salt

4

Mix all ingredients together and squish the mixture with your bare hands until the water is released from the cabbage – this becomes the brine for the ferment

5

Place inside the fermenting pot

6

Use the wooden fermenting mallet to compress the mixture into the pot

7

Add the weights on top so that the vegetables are all submerged in the brine

8

Add the lid and fill the water seal

9

Leave to ferment for at least 3 days - I left mine for 7 days and then decanted into glass jars to store in the fridge

10

This ferment is delicious with pink pepper and fennel coconut tofu or chicken or in toasties with melted cheese. It’s also amazing with a BBQ of fish and veggies as a condiment with a delicious gingery, peppery zing and clean crunchiness.

Notes

Inspired by the recipe that comes with Andrew Cope’s handmade fermenting pot.

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