Notes to Self re: sauerkraut

[lwood]

• Call Whole Foods in the morning about that order for five pounds of shredded cabbage.


• Hrafnar is delighted to eat and enjoy sauerkraut as long as the cabbage is shredded finely enough AND not red. Red cabbage makes pink sauerkraut, from which people back away slowly, white cabbage makes beige sauerkraut which attracts a throng. Know the difference!


• Call that German restaurant in Eureka Springs, AR, the one where you had that awesome Cream of Sauerkraut Soup during the weekend of dr_beowulf's wedding to evilwenchesinc. Shake them down for the recipe, because you misplaced it the last time they gave it to you. If you start now, the kraut should be soup-able in plenty of time for Hrafnar Yule, even if you'll miss Winternights.


• Taunt trogula about how a certain town in Ohio holds a sauerkraut festival every year.

Comments

[lwood.livejournal.com]

She may have been under the impression that you had to add water to the cabbage--that's not actually so. All the water you need is in the cabbage, the salt only teases it out. Still, if it wasn't enough water to drop the salt below the magic number needed to keep out the undesirable bacteria, it wouldn't've hurt anything.

Oh, in Alton's recipe, you'll see "pickling salt". If what you happen to have is kosher, a spin through the coffee grinder will turn it into pickling salt in no time. The real criteria are that the salt crystals are fine and you have no anti-caking agents in play--so no "table salt" or "iodized salt", as both of these have cellulose flakes added.

You're welcome!

[hljod-huskona.livejournal.com]

Yeah, it wasn't much...more like a paste of sorts, because she had some other stuff in there too. I know she used juniper berries...who knows what else! LOL.
Table salt...hmmm, what's that? LOL!

We've been using sea salt for years now...and recently found a supplier for sea salt blocks. Literally...blocks of sea salt, anywhere from 2 to 5 inches in size. My boys have been so thrilled with this, that even after using this for a few months now, the novelty of grating their own salt still has not worn off. =P

When I read "pickling salt" I was a little unsure (thought of my salt-based pickling spices initially, hehe). Fine-grated salt. Got it! Excellent.
Thanks for the tips and help again!

[lwood.livejournal.com]

Sea salt should be fine, just make sure to grind it teensy tiny, until it makes you think of flour and powdered sugar instead of sand. 8-)

Yes, one may buy "pickling spices", but better to compile your own on a per-case basis, IMO.

You're welcome!

-- Lorrie