Bavarian Style Wine Sauerkraut is a healthy and delicious side dish. Make your own with 2 basic ingredients and flavorings. Wine is optional.
Bavarian Style Sauerkraut
Some years back I stumbled upon this Bavarian Style Sauerkraut that I really like. It has a little white wine in it which makes it really flavorful and different from other store bought sauerkraut. Since then, I have not been able to find it anywhere except online and it is pricey. I guess the only way to replicate the taste is to make it myself.
Search For Wine Kraut Recipe
Most sauerkraut recipes do not have wine in it. I needed guidance on when and how to infuse the wine into the sauerkraut. Of late, I have been exploring and thinking of incorporating more fermented foods in our diet and I found this Fermented Vegetables recipe book. (Affiliate link) In this book, there is a Wine Kraut recipe where they experimented on when to add the wine. They learned that adding the wine at the end of fermentation gave the sauerkraut the best flavor. This is just the information I needed. Wine is of course optional and you can definitely leave it out.
Growing Cabbages
Many of you already know, I am very much into gardening these days. I grew lots of green and savoy cabbages this past summer and it was great. I am planning to grow just as many in the next growing season because we love cabbages and they keep well. That said, this Bavarian Style Wine Sauerkraut was made using store bought green cabbage as our homegrown cabbage are long gone. Next year, I will definitely use some of the cabbage I plan to grow to make sauerkraut.
Two Basic Ingredients
To make sauerkraut, you only need two basic ingredients – cabbage and salt. It doesn’t get more simple than that! Spices and flavorings are optional. That said, Bavarian Style Sauerkraut usually comes with caraway seeds which have a mild licorice taste. I think it gives a nice flavor to the sauerkraut.
Preparing The Cabbage
I like to cut the cabbage into quarters, remove the core, rinse, and drain thoroughly. Then, I slice it very thinly crosswise with a sharp knife. You can use a shredder but I think it is much faster cutting it with a knife. Transfer the sliced cabbage into a large bowl and sprinkle some salt over it. Keep slicing cabbage, adding it to the bowl, and sprinkling salt in layers until you are out of both.
How Much Salt?
Salt brings out the moisture of the cabbage, creating the brine. Since no water is added, this is considered dry brining. For most vegetables in temperate climate, 1.5% to 2% salt works well. For example, if your cabbage is 900 grams, multiply 900 by 0.015 (= 13.5 grams) to get your salt quantity. In tropical climate it should be 3%. The right amount of salt would inhibit yeast and mold (which are not good for us) but not lactic acid bacteria (the good guys) from doing its work.
Adding Flavoring and Massaging The Cabbage
If you plan to add any spices, do so now. In this case, I sprinkle the caraway seeds over the cabbage. Then, squeeze and massage the shredded cabbage to incorporate the salt and caraway seeds evenly. As you do that, you will see some juices or brine being released. next, use a wooden tamper or pounder to pound and mix the cabbage until the cabbage is wilted and juicy.
Packing Juicy Cabbage Into Jars
Finally, it is now time to pack the wilted and juicy cabbage into quart Mason jars. Use wooden tamper or pounder to pack it down firmly. Do not overfill the jars. Place a cut-out cabbage circle on the surface of shredded cabbage to prevent little bits from floating up and a weight on the top to keep the shredded cabbage submerged in the brine.
Then, place a silicone fermentation lid on the rim, and secure with a Mason jar band. The silicon fermentation lid keeps the oxygen out but allows the CO₂ (carbon dioxide) to escape. If you do not have these lids, then you will have to burp your ferment to prevent an explosion. You may also have to leave your lids slightly loose to let CO₂ escape, which means keeping a closer eye for oxygen contamination and brine loss.
Place jars on a tray just in case the brine overflows the jar. Transfer to a cool, dark place to ferment.
Fermentation
Fermentation should begin within 2 to 3 days. As it proceeds, you will notice these changes:
1. The cabbage swells up so that the brine almost touches the lid.
2. Pockets of gas appear in the cabbage.
3. The color changes from bright green to the color of cooked vegetables.
4. Bubbles appear on the surface of the brine.
5. A sulfurous aroma emitting from the jar.
After 3 days of fermentation, bubbles started to appear in the jar and some liquid and CO₂ started to escape via the silicone fermentation lid. The lid puffed up a little and so I pressed it down and wiped off the liquid and left it to continue to ferment.
Taste Testing The Bavarian Style Wine Sauerkraut
After 6 to 7 days, you should do a taste test. The cabbage should be nearly translucent by now and the cabbage should have a bright and tangy flavor of the lactic acid. If you are satisfied with the taste, you can add the wine and allow it to infuse for one more day.
Store in Refrigerator
Once the Bavarian Style Wine Sauerkraut is fermented to your liking, you can reseal the jar and store in the refrigerator for 4 to 6 months.
Similar Tools Used in This Bavarian Style Wine Sauerkraut
This post contains affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy here.
Masontops Complete Mason Jar Fermentation Kit
Masontops 8 PC Pickle Pebbles Glass Weight & Pickle Pipes Airlock Kits, Regular Mouth
Fermented Vegetables, 10th Anniversary Edition
Ball Regular Mouth Quart 12 Pieces Jars (32oz)
Ball Regular Mouth Mason Jars with Lids and Bands, (Quart, 32 Ounce) (Pack of 4)
Ball Leak-Proof Plastic Lids for Glass Mason Jars, (Regular Mouth, Pack of 6)
Granite Ware 7.5 Qt Strainer Pot with lid.
Bavarian Style Wine Sauerkraut
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 small green cabbage (about 2 lbs /900g each)
- 1½ tbsp pickling & canning salt
- 1 tbsp caraway seeds
- ½ cup Riesling white wine (120ml) (optional)
Instructions
- Wash jars in warm, soapy water. Place the washed jars in a deep pot or canner. Fill the jars up to the top and the canner up to the same level as the jars with water. Cover the canner and bring water to a simmer (with small bubbles).
- Wash metal bands and silicone fermentation lids with warm soapy water. Drop the metal bands (but not the silicone fermentation lids) into the canner together with the jars. When ready to use, take them out from the canner with a pair of tongs. Dry them with a clean towel. If you are using plastic bands, wash them with warm soapy water but do not drop into canner.
- Remove and discard any blemish leaves from each cabbage. Peel off one whole leaf from each cabbage, rinse, and cut two circles (the diameter of 1 quart Mason jar) out of reserved cabbage leaves. Set aside.
- Cut cabbage into quarters and then cut off the cores from each cabbage quarter. Rinse and drain cabbage quarters thoroughly.
- Place one wedge of cabbage on your cutting board with cut side down. Slice crosswise as thinly as you can. Transfer sliced cabbage to a large bowl and sprinkle some of the salt over the sliced cabbage. Keep slicing cabbage, adding it to the bowl, and sprinkling salt in layers until all cabbage quarters are sliced.
- Sprinkle caraway seeds over the cabbage.
- Toss, squeeze, and massage shredded cabbage well to incorporate the salt and caraway seeds evenly. This will take some work, about 4 to 5 minutes, and you should see some juices/brine being released. Use a wooden tamper/pounder to pound and mix the cabbage for another 4 to 5 minutes until cabbage is wilted and juicy.
- Pack cabbage into prepared jars with a couple of handfuls of cabbage at a time. Use wooden tamper/pounder to pack it down firmly. Continue adding and packing down the cabbage until the jar is filled to just below the shoulder. The brine should rise up to the top. Do not overfill jar. 2 pounds of cabbage should fit nicely in a 1 quart Mason jar.
- Place a cut-out cabbage circle on the surface of shredded cabbage to prevent little bits from floating up. Place a weight on the top to keep the shredded cabbage submerged in the brine.
- Wipe the rim of the jar, place a silicone fermentation lid on the rim, and secure with a Mason jar band. Place jars on a tray just in case the brine overflows the jar. Transfer to a cool, dark place to ferment with preferably an ambient temperature between 60⁰F and 70⁰F / 15⁰C and 21⁰C.
- Fermentation should begin within 2 to 3 days. As it proceeds, you will notice these changes:a. The cabbage swells up so that the brine almost touches the lid.b. Pockets of gas appear in the cabbage.c. The color changes from bright green to the color of cooked vegetables.d. Bubbles appear on the surface of the brine.e. A sulfurous aroma emitting from the jar.
Taste Test
- After 6 to 7 days, open the jar, remove the weight and cut-out cabbage circle, and have a taste. The cabbage should be nearly translucent by now. The salty flavor should have diminished and be replaced with a bright and tangy flavor of the lactic acid.
- I left mine to ferment for 7 days which I felt was just right for the conditions in my house. The cabbage was soft but still crunchy and it has a pleasant bright and tangy flavor, but not too tangy.
Adding Wine (Optional)
- If you want to add wine, spoon out some of the liquid and add ¼ cup (60ml) Riesling in each of the jars. Replace the cut-out cabbage circle and weight. Wipe the rim of the jar, place the silicone fermentation lid on the rim, and secure with Mason jar band. Allow the wine to infuse for one day.
- Then, open the jar, remove the weight and cut-out cabbage circle and seal jar with original lid and band. The sauerkraut is now ready to be transferred to the refrigerator for storage between 4 to 6 months.
Nutrition
Serving Suggestion For Bavarian Style Wine Sauerkraut
A delicious way to eat sauerkraut is to add it as a garnish to hotdogs.
Leave a Reply