Holy Kraut, Batman!

Last year I got Wild Fermentation from the library after reading a review on Cool Tools. Possibly the most dangerous (to my wallet) blog ever. But I digress.

There were some interesting recipes in there and I decided to try my hand at Kimchi. It came out OK, but tasted so gnarly I ate two bowls just to justify the effort and pitched it. It was also gnarly enough that I didn't follow through on my plan to buy the book.

A few months ago, I saw this video on how easy it is to make sauerkraut and had to try it. I'm not going to go through the steps of making it as that video covers it amply and I followed it to the letter (including getting the PickleMeister).

The sweet, pungent smell of success.

After letting it burble for a week, tonight was tasting night. Not without some trepidation, either - after my kimchi experiment I was fully prepared to lose some nose hairs.

Trepidation unwarranted. It is really good! Totally unlike the store stuff. It's crunchy, not vinegar-saturated and just nice and salty. It's supposed to get even better after a week in the fridge. We'll see. I wonder if cooking with it neutralizes all the healthy probiotic factors.

I had a friend once tell me that he and his Mom made reubens completely from scratch. Kraut, corned beef, rye bread, 1000 island - they made the works from scratch. Gets the gears turning...

Now I'm going to go get another bowl. And order that book. Kimchi might just get another shot.

Jeremy Ulstad

Dad, IT Architect, Musician, Sailor

Minneapolis, Minnesota http://jeremyulstad.com