Sauerkraut is rich in probiotics and so easy to make with just 2 ingredients. It is one of the easiest and best way to get your daily intake of probiotics for gut health!
Clean your hands well. Place the shredded cabbage in the large glass bowl and sprinkle salt in between. Squeeze the cabbage pieces while you coat the cabbage with salt. This breaks down the cell wall and releases the juice faster so squeeeeze, squeeeeze and squeeeze some more.
Pack the cabbage down into the bowl as hard as you can. Cover lightly with a dish towel, leave in a room temperature for about 2 hours.
After 2 hours, mix the cabbage and the brine mixture well, while squeezing the cabbage pieces again to release more juice.
Place the cabbage inside the glass jar and pack them in well.
Now my secret to making sure all the cabbage pieces are submerged in the brine - without using plates or rocks - cover the top with the large cabbage leaves completely over the shredded pieces. <---VERY IMPORTANT!
Pour the brine into the glass jar. If the cabbage pieces are not completely submerged, add cold filtered water (no chlorine please), just enough to cover them but leave about 2 inches at the top.
Seal the cap, cover it with a towel. Plastic cap allows expansion from the trapped gas and it'll give to allow for the gas to escape. Metal cap might not and you may have to release the gas once in awhile. I never had an exploding sauerkraut when using plastic capped bottles (as pictured above.)
Place the jar inside a cupboard so it will be undisturbed but easily accessible.
Check the jar every 2 or 3 days to make sure the liquid is not overflowing. If you left 2 inches at the top, it shouldn't overflow, but just in case. This is also a good time to check for salinity. If it's not too salty, add more brine. If it's too salty, add more filtered water.
Leave in the cupboard for about 3-4 weeks. You'll see little bubbles at the top, good bacteria doing it's job.
Move the jar to the refrigerator and it should last for months....if you don't finish eating them before then.
You can garnish with chopped scallions or chives with a little bit of juice and eat and drink the whole thing. With little bit of scallion flavor in the juice, it's refreshing and very tasty. Add cold filtered water if the juice is too salty.