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It is possible the pickles you are talking about are fermented. They are indeed very different than what you would buy in the store. Other cultures have ferme
by nas 8y ago
It is possible the pickles you are talking about are fermented. They are indeed very different than what you would buy in the store. Other cultures have fermented pickles as well.
Regarding fermented cabbage, the sauerkraut you buy in the grocery store is very far from real fermented sauerkraut as well. It annoys me (maybe my eastern European ancestry surfacing) that they can even label it as such. If you have never had real sauerkraut, you are missing out. The grocery stuff is basically salty and sour cabbage. Tastes horrible.
My grandparents and great-grandparents homesteaded in Saskatchewan. I got to wondering how people in those times and living there did not get scurvy during the winter. I guess part of it was access to fresh meat. However, I know they also ate a lot of sauerkraut and "barrel pickles". The fermentation increases the vitamin C content of the food. I think even when they did not understand scurvy, they knew that eating that kind of food was healthy.
I've been meaning to make my own sauerkraut. It is really not difficult. I need some way to chop the cabbage. My parents have a special slicing machine. I suppose even a knife would do. Then you need some kind of fermentation container. Nothing complicated. The recipe is very simple. My grandmother used X tablespoons of salt per head. I've been using 2.5% salt by weight, which seems to work okay too. I like it to be less salty but still ferment and be safe. If I don't make it, I only get a taste when I visit my parents.
- nielsbot 8y agoFor pickling containers, check out these handmade ones by California Pizza Stones (not a typo) http://www.californiapizzastones.com/pizza/files/stoneware-pickling-crocks.php http://www.californiapizzastones.com/pizza/files/stoneware-p... You're right: you can just use a knife to chop the cabbage. I've made kimchi at home and all we used was a knife.
- spodek 8y agoFor a container, these lids https://www.amazon.com/Maintenance-silicone-waterless-fermentation-dishwasher/dp/B072N42T61 https://www.amazon.com/Maintenance-silicone-waterless-fermen... on mason jars make me glad to be alive just after their invention, given that people have fermented food for millennia. Dead simple, no mold, no burping necessary. Chop vegetables, add salt, mix and mash, put in jar with one of these lids on top. The next morning you'll see it bulging, letting the CO2 out but no O2 in.
- thx11389793 8y agoWhen I was a kid making yeast-based sugar hooch I just stretched a balloon with a pinprick in it over the mouth of a jar or jug.
- flukus 8y ago> I think even when they did not understand scurvy, they knew that eating that kind of food was healthy. It was actually well known by your great-grandparents time that sauerkraut prevented scurvy, the most notable example was Captain Cook (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vitamin_C#History https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vitamin_C#History) but it was known to German sailors earlier. Earlier than that it's hard to work out how much they "knew" versus what was simple survivor-ship bias.
- rdtsc 8y agoIf you want to buy it in the stores I recommend https://bubbies.com/ https://bubbies.com/ you can find them in organic food stores or smaller chains. Or in general just read the label, if it has vinegar and sugar probably there was no fermentation. Just like you said it is rather annoying they are even called "pickles" or "sauerkraut". > My grandmother used X tablespoons of salt per head. We used to make our own growing up in a clay pot. One thing I remembered was to not use iodized salt or if it has any additives (anti-caking compounds) those can mess up the fermentation.
- ahartmetz 8y agoAFAIK the sauerkraut available in German supermarkets is fermented. My parents used to make their own, and it really was not that much work. I don't remember it tasting very different from the stuff you can buy here (Germany). This reminds me that I've never bought sauerkraut myself. I kinda like it but I don't cook the things that go with it at home.