Reader recipe: Make your own sauerkraut
Commenter Bill Schmeer had a very strong reaction to my post mentioning vinegar in sauerkraut.
He writes, “Vinegar? In sauerkraut? Huh uh! Here’s the way my father made it and we sold it in our corner grocery store some sixty years ago. This is not his recipe, but it’s the same.”
He then sent, from a website called Wild Fermentation, a description of how to make sauerkraut.
The man who wrote it, Sandor Ellix Katz, is even nicknamed “Sandorkraut” for his love of sauerkraut!
It’s a pretty amazing process; you should definitely go read about it. But here’s what I don’t like: This takes one to four weeks or longer! Of course, that’s the time it takes to ferment and produce the lactic acid that gives it the distinctive flavor… and smell! Vinegar is kind of the store-bought substitute, in part because you can make it quickly, but even I will admit – it’s not the same.
Anyone else have a sauerkraut recipe? Maybe one that does use vinegar, so Bill doesn’t think I’m the only heretic?
