Homemade Sauerkraut

If you have never made sauerkraut before, it is a great experience with results that will astonish you. The overall flavor and health benefits are amazing compared to the 'lifeless' limp cabbage that is sold in the store in can or bag.  Making your own sauerkraut is quite simple in truth. All you need is cabbage, salt, and a crock or bucket to store it in for fermentation. Then you rely on the natural process of lactic acid fermentation to create this crisp and lovely addition. [Will discuss more on this in another post.] I have even seen recipes that make small amounts in a single mason jar. I have never tried those, because one of the hidden treasures we found on our property was a set of ceramic crocks. Unfortunately 2 out of the 3 were broken, but the 10 gallon crock was in excellent shape and it has been a great tool for many a thing! Last year was the first year we made sauerkraut, using all the cabbage from our garden to make two batches of 5 gallons each. One batch we lost due to a learning curve, but the pigs enjoyed it so there was no waste! The second batch came out great and we ended up canning 12 quarts to use through out the year. Yesterday we made our first batch, or shall I say began making the first batch! You may have read previously that we lost 30 head of cabbage to the deer [grrr...], but I headed to the local farmer's market yesterday morning and picked up a few heads. In turn he made me a deal and I ended up with about 20 heads. It wasn't grown on our land, but at least I know it was grown organically and only a few miles away from us. So when we got home I gathered up the supplies, scrubbed the crock and rounded up the kids! The basic recipe rule is quite simple: 5 lbs of cabbage + 3 tbsp of salt. You can use more if you choose, but it is not recommended to use less as this will increase the possibility of spoilage.  Some people use a variety of additions to the recipe as well, from raisins, carrots, apples, hot peppers, to caraway, garlic, and ginger. I still prefer to keep it simple. Perhaps one day I will try altering the recipe in smaller batches, but I prefer to stick with what we like especially in large quantities.  

So here goes:

Step 1. Wash and clean your cabbage thoroughly. You will be relying on the lactobacilli that naturally live on the cabbage to perform the fermentation process. You do not want the addition of any other bacteria or contaminants that can change the flavor or cause issues with the process. 

Step 2. Once you have cleaned the cabbage you can slice it how you desire. There are numerous cabbage shredders available that can assist you in the process, or you can use a kitchen knife. I prefer the knife. Now some folks leave out the hearts, slice it a certain manner, or dice it all the same size. As I said the choice is yours. I make a mix of shreds and chops, using all but the very core. I let the pigs and rabbits enjoy those. 

Step 3. Place the shredded cabbage into the crock and sprinkle the salt on top. Our first year we followed a recipe which left us with an extremely salty kraut. This year I used my own senses to add salt as we went. The salt will begin to cause the cabbage to become 'limp' and expel water. 

Shredded Cabbage and Salt. The 'stick' is my Kraut Masher.

Step 4: Mash the cabbage! Some folks now begin wringing the cabbage with their hands, or just packing it in. I didn't learn that way and actually think that using a kraut masher or pounder makes more sense. I found the perfect masher last year while walking in the woods. A tree had fallen and I loped off one of the branches, peeled it and I had my masher. It worked perfectly. This will be it's second year of use and it still looks great.  You want to mash the cabbage until the brine completely covers the cabbage. This is the most labor intensive part of the procedure. This also makes a great family activity! I had each of the kids switching off with me, which made it go smoother for everyone. I also wanted them to have an actual hand in the process as it brings a greater appreciation to the kraut. It can take a bit of time but if you use a solid up down motion moving in a circle around the crock then working the middle, it seems to go faster.  Do not use a motion like churning butter nor use extreme force as you will crack your crock! You will notice bubbles forming in the brine as well which is a good sign!

Lots of juice forming this layer is about ready.

Step 5: Now is the time to slice up another layer of cabbage, then repeat the process all over again. When you mash the cabbage, be sure that you are mashing it and not just pushing the freshly sliced cabbage underneath the mashed cabbage and brine from the previous layer. Each layer should be salted and mashed on its own. You do not want to fill the crock with say 10 lbs of cabbage at a time and add salt, etc. It is a lot simpler and more thorough [safer] to mash smaller amounts. I normally shred three heads, add salt and mash until I have used up all my cabbage. This year I actually made it all the way to the top and so we have 10 gallons of sauerkraut fermenting. 

Filled to the rim with goodness!

Step 6: Once you are finished mashing and the brine is covering the cabbage, take a clean plate and place it on top of the cabbage. I then take my plate and push it down making sure to submerge all the cabbage under the brine. Push it down to really pack it in place. 

Then you can set a clean rock or bag filled with water on top to hold the plate in place. I prefer to use a mason jar filled with water. Be sure to clean the rim as well from any splashed juice or cabbage bits. The process is anaerobic which means it need to be untouched by oxygen. This also keep you safe from contamination.

Step 7: Now is when you can place your lid on top. To keep the crock sealed from any critters or microbes who will make a home on top of your fermenting cabbage. The first batch I ever made was lost due to the curse of the fruit fly. Little buggers didn't mind it at all, unfortunately I did. Now I completely seal the lid using plastic wrap. Then I set the crock in the kitchen to keep it fairly warm and allow the process to continue. I will check it daily to see that all is going well. I will keep you posted as the process continues.

To Be Continued...

CITY FARMER

I have been doing research into cover crops. They appear to be very beneficial to the land and in turn to the homestead as well. We have also been wanting to grow our own wheat so that we may process it into flour for our baking needs. So, I had a bit of free time after work and decided to stop at the local feed store and see if they carried a variety of such seed. Now, I will be the first to admit that I am not a 'farmer'. I do not have an educational background in agriculture, didn't grow up on a farm, etc. [Though, I have worked for farmers as a youth.] I am a well educated and pretty intelligent man though. I learn quickly and know how to do research. But, even with doing research and reading, there is always something more that comes from talking with those who have the knowledge firsthand - so I like to ask questions when the opportunity presents itself. So I go into the store and there are two gentlemen working. One is a small dairy farmer, the other I am not positive about. I have talked with the one farmer quite a few times about various topics. So I begin asking questions about growing winter wheat. Find they have it available, that in our area you plant September 15th till late October. Nice! So then I ask a few questions about cover crops such as barley, oats, rye, etc. They give me bits and pieces of info. I then told them how nice it was to ask questions and get some first hand knowledge from them. They told me no problem, anytime I had a question to stop by. Now the farmer knows about our homestead and what I have been trying to do. So I explain that to the other gentlemen. He asks why I want to grow wheat, and I tell him to make out own flour. He tells me that it is way too much work. I told him that I am making hay by hand, and we like a bit of work. At which point he says he can just sell me the wheat berries and then I can go from there. Grr...missing my point. But I thank him anyway and tell him we might try that to experiment. Then he tells me "Oh I see, you are what I like to call a CITY FARMER." WTF? Really? Now I know in all honesty [ I keep telling myself anyway] that he didn't mean anything by it. But it started to piss me off. I continued the conversation a bit longer, asked a few more questions, bought some corn and off I went. The whole way home though, it kept irritating me that he called me a CITY FARMER. I kept asking myself why he said that. Does it make a me such because my family and I want a better life, a more sustainable, in sync with the land, wholesome real life? Was it because I didn't want to follow his advice and buy things instead of grow them on my own? Was it because I didn't want to use chemically treated seeds? Because I pasture my hogs? Cause I don't use chemical fertilizer or Round up? Because we keep so many different animals? Cause I am not planting hundreds of acres of row crops? Because I am not doing what he does? Guess in the long run it really doesn't matter but for some reason that name just irritates the shit out of me - but I think that is a good thing!

Breast Milk for Chicks?

Well not exactly, but yolk is what the chicks eat inside the egg as they are developing embryos. So I was thinking wouldn't cooked egg yolk fed to chicks now help give a natural boost to their immune system as well as be a completely organic unaltered nutritious snack for them? Infant mammals thrive on breast milk and it is essential to developing babies health and immune systems. After doing a little research, it seems that I am not the only person to think along these lines. So after cleaning up some eggs for the fridge, I decided to boil up a treat for the chicks. I hard boiled a dozen eggs and took out all the yolks [the pigs and chickens enjoyed the shells and whites]. I then crumbled up about half a yolk on a plate and set it into the brooders. The blue laced red wyandottes, welsummer, silver laced wyandottes, and speckled sussex went crazy! They immediately devoured it all, chasing each other around in a game of 'chicken football' as I like to call it. The blue silkies and guineas were a bit slower to respond, but seem to be enjoying them as well! Once the plates were empty, I removed them and watched the little ones chirping away happily. I will take notes to see if there are any issues with it, but I think I just found a great snack that will help out the wee ones.

Blue Laced Red Wyandottes and Blue Silkies Day 5 on the Homestead

Just a few pics of the the chicks on their 5th day here. They have been doing extremely well! We did lose one of the Silkies, not sure what happened. My wife found it one morning when we woke up. They all seem healthy and happy though. Here are the pics:

Keets and Chicks! Order 2

Our keets and chicks arrived on Friday mornings. This order came from Cackle Hatchery. My wife had to go retrieve them from the post office in the morning. The keets were a running bustle of tiny bodies! This is our first time with Guineas so we are very excited to enter into their little world. The hatchery was running a special on straight run hatcheries choice keets so we signed up and are quite impressed with the variety that has arrived. There are several of each including White Africans, Pearl Grays, Lavenders, and Royal Purples. I believe they will be quite a beautiful flock! [And my wife loves the color purple!] They are definitely a joy to watch, though they seem so delicate compared to the chicks. We did lose two so far for no explainable reason, but there was two extra. From what I have read this is not abnormal, due to their size and excitability. Here are some pics:

Our other chicks also arrived. They are Welsummer, Speckled Sussex, and Silver Laced Wyandottes. Unfortunately they were unable to add our Black Australorpes with this order so they will be arrived at a later time. They all are very healthy and active as well. I believe they are a bit older than 'day-old' because they seem larger and are showing feathers just like our chicks that arrived earlier in the week. Most likely they had to wait to be shipped to join the keets is what I am thinking. They are very beautiful chicks though, with very impressive colorings. Here they are:

An End of Summer?

I know that in our area, it has been one strange Spring/Summer. Compared to last year, it was an almost complete reversal. Instead of bludgeoning heat and drought conditions that greeted us this year, we have been pounded with humidity, cool weather, and rain. The weather channel is even calling for temperatures in the 40s tomorrow night??? The crops have suffered in spurts, still no red tomatoes, no hot peppers, slow growing squash, corn, and cukes. The greens seem to be enjoying and performing well, but that's about it. Lost the beans and cabbage to the deer. Another thing that I have been noticing is what seems to be an amazing number of late births in the surrounding wildlife. Most of the fawns that I have been seeing are tiny, hen turkeys wandering the woods with a single poult, robins laying eggs now or making new nests to start a clutch. My friend who is a botanist has been noticing the same things in the woodlands surrounding his home, so I know it is not my mind playing tricks on me. Then driving home on Friday, I noticed a couple tree that were changing colors already. On today's ride home the number was astonishing and their is an unmistakable chill in the air. Is fall fast approaching with winter right behind? Will we have a more intense winter this year? How will an early fall effect the livestock and wildlife? Lots of questions, that only time will answer. Not much time to stop and ponder, remember...