I have heard that fermented food can be beneficial to my health and I would like to make my own organic homemade sauerkraut. Do you have a recipe?

Fermented foods are traditional foods that are believed to support digestion, encourage healthy flora in our digestive tract, and assist our bodies in absorbing vitamins and minerals from the foods we eat. They have been used for many years in a variety of different cuisines including Korean, Chinese, Japanese, and German.

Making your own sauerkraut is not only a wonderful introduction to making your own fermented foods, but it is also simple and cost effective. I find the following recipe to be easy and delicious.

You will need 5 pounds of either green or red shredded organic cabbage—including the core is fine—sliced as thin as you can (I recommend a sharp chef’s knife for the job) and 3 tablespoons sea salt. Mix the shredded cabbage with salt and place the entire mixture in a 1-gallon size bowl, jar, or crock that is not made out of metal. Glass and ceramic are good choices. Cover the cabbage mixture with a clean, lint-free, white cloth and weigh down with a clean plate. Place a heavy weight such as a gallon jug filled with water or a couple of bricks placed inside a Ziploc® bag on top of the plate to weigh the cabbage mixture down. At this point, the cabbage and salt will have produced brine and you may see the brine creeping up the sides of the plate. Visible gas bubbles on the top of the brine are an indication that fermentation has begun. A room temperature of 68 to 72 degrees is best for fermenting cabbage. You can start to enjoy your homemade sauerkraut after four days or so, and the complete fermentation is usually completed within four weeks.