Recipe for a Tangy, Effervescent Sauerkraut

The goal here is a favorite recipe of mine: a basic, accessible, tangy sauerkraut that has broad appeal while still having an interesting flavor profile. There are more basic, less complex recipes that have even broader appeal to the average person, but I find this one strikes a good middle ground.

The Variables Being Controlled

As with most of the specific ferments I like to discuss, there are three major variables I control: temperature, salinity, and surface area.

Temperature

For this recipe, I want to encourage Leuconostoc mesenteroides, a lactic acid bacteria that engages in heterofermentation, during the first few days of the process. It produces lactic acid, acetic acid, ethanol, CO₂, and mannitol, which all contribute to this kraut's aromatic complexity.

The acetic acid provides a bright, high-note tang that you smell and “feel” in the nose as a quick, vinegary snap. The lactic acid gives the rounded, yogurt-like sourness that defines the base of the flavor profile common to most sauerkrauts, and the CO₂ provides a bit of effervescence as it displaces the oxygen from the batch, helping us maintain an anaerobic environment.

When fructose is present, L. mesenteroides reduces some of it to mannitol, a sugar alcohol that can lend mild sweetness and a slight cooling finish. Interestingly, Lactobacillus plantarum, a different lactic acid bacteria that's more active during the later stages of the ferment, can use it up, so I'd recommend regular tastings after the first week to monitor the progression of this process if you enjoy mannitol's contribution. I also have some recommendations on increasing mannitol by offering more fructose-rich sources to the ferment.

This organism is happiest in a fermentation between 60–68 °F (15–20 °C), with the sweet spot being closer to 64–65 °F (18 °C). It's important to avoid sustained temps above 72 °F (22 °C) if you want the pronounced Leuconostoc phase that gives this recipe its signature flavor profile.

My final recommendation for the temperature for this recipe: ferment at 64–66 °F (18–19 °C) for the first 3–5 days to favor Leuconostoc’s phase. After that you can let it continue at up to 68 °F (20 °C) to hand off to L. plantarum smoothly.

Salinity

Again, the Leuconostoc mesenteroides bacteria at the beginning of the fermentation is the limiting factor. The organisms active later in the ferment are more tolerant of salt, and if we suppress L. mesenteroides too much we'll miss out on the unique complexity I look for in this recipe.

Given this fact in addition to the ideal temperature around 65 °F (18 °C), we should aim for a salinity of between 2.0–2.25%. That’s the classic kraut range used to select naturally occurring LAB while keeping crisp texture. Going much lower than 2% speeds fermentation but can skew microbes and texture.

Surface Area

I find this subject quite fascinating. There really is a difference between cutting the cabbage into chunks and shredding it into thin ribbons. Finer shreds change both what’s available to early microbes and how fast the whole system moves, so they can subtly boost L. mesenteroides’ early flavor signature, but they also make the hand-off to later LAB happen sooner.

Finer cuts rupture more cells, pulling glucose/fructose into the brine faster. These are exactly the substrates Leuconostoc uses (it even reduces more of the fructose to mannitol, as I mentioned above). Expect a brisker start, more CO₂ fizz, and a touch more of that bright, perfumy early phase.

Thin shreds also pack very densely, which can improve anaerobiosis (good for early heterofermenters like Leuconostoc) and reduce pockets where yeasts/molds might take hold.

Cutting thinner also leads to faster acidification. Because diffusion and sugar access are improved, pH drops sooner, and that can shorten the period where Leuconostoc dominates before L. plantarum takes over. Flavor shifts sooner from sprightly/minty-sweet (mannitol + a little acetic) toward round, lactic sour.

Finally, there's a texture trade-off you should know about. More cell damage means more endogenous pectin-modifying enzymes meet their substrates, so very fine mince trends softer, whereas coarser ribbons retain crunch longer.

To strike the best balance, I tend to shred to about 1/16–1/8 in (1.5–3 mm) in width. This gives reliable brine formation, good early Leuconostoc activity, and maintains enough of a sturdy texture.

To really emphasize Leuconostoc's early character, go closer to the 1/16 inch size, pack the cabbage very firmly, and ferment on the cooler side of the range, no warmer than 64°F (18 °C) at ~2.0–2.25% salt. Expect a brighter, slightly more “sparkly” early aroma and a touch more mannitol sweetness. Just know the hand-off to L. plantarum may happen a bit sooner.

Recipe Details

Ingredients

4 kg	Cabbage (6-8 medium cabbages).
80 g	Salt, not iodized.
Water and additional salt, as needed.

Equipment

• Fermentation Vessel: 1 gallon capacity.
• Kitchen Scale, 1g resolution.
• Sharp knife.
• Wooden pounder.
• Mixing bowl.

Directions

1. Prepare the Vessel

Prepare your 1 gallon vessel. Make sure it's clean, free of debris and residue. There's no need to completely sterilize, though. You should also make sure your mixing bowl is large enough to hold at least one chopped cabbage, preferably larger than that. Any smaller and the following tasks start to become tedious.

2. Prepare the Scale & Mixing Bowl

Put the mixing bowl on the scale, turn the scale on, set the display unit to grams, and tare the scale such that it reads "0 g" when the bowl is on it.

3. Start Cutting Cabbage

Start chopping cabbage and start to fill the mixing bowl with it. Do not overfill the bowl. You want enough room to be able to easily toss it enough to evenly distribute the salt we're about to add.

Cut the cabbage into shreds about 1/16–1/8 in (1.5–3 mm) wide. As we mentioned in the surface area section above, cut them closer to 1/16 in (1.5 mm) shreds or even slightly smaller to really accentuate the first stage of the fermentation that gives this kraut its complex aroma and effervescence, and to expose even more fructose for the Leuconostoc to turn into mannitol so we get more of its cooling sweetness. Just remember that as you slice thinner the pieces tend to soften faster.

4. Calculate & Measure Salt

Observe the weight on the scale. This is the weight of the cabbage in grams (as long as we properly prepared the scale as in step 2). Choose a salinity between about 2-2.25% as described in the salinity section.

I usually go for 2% if I can make sure the room will stay at 64-65 °F (18 °C), which is usually pretty easy in the cooler months. It's important to keep the temperate below 72 °F (22 °C), and if you're near the top end of that range you can opt for a salinity closer to 2.25% to help mitigate the effects of the extra warmth.

Calculate the amount of salt to add, in grams, by using our salinity formula. The formula, adapted to our current use-case, is:

Cabbage (grams) × Salinity (0 < n < 1) = Salt (grams)

So if we chose 2% salinity (expressed as a number between 0 and 1 this is 0.02) and we see our scale reads 1455 grams, we get:

1455 g × 0.02 = 29.1 (~29 g) salt.

It's perfectly fine if 1 gram is your scale's lowest resolution. In this case, you'd measure 29 grams. At this scale, a batch of one gallon, these tiny errors will not have time to compound enough to compromise the result.

Another example, if we wanted to use 2.25% salinity, that would be:

1455 g × 0.0225 = 32.7375 (~33 g) salt.

Once you've calculated the amount of salt to add, measure it by weight. I recommend taking the mixing bowl of cabbage off the scale and using a different, smaller bowl for measuring the salt. Just remember to tare it properly so it reads "0" before you start adding the salt.

5. Add Salt & Massage Cabbage

Add the salt to the cabbage in the mixing bowl. At this point you need to mechanically massage the salt into the cabbage, and you have a few options for how to do this. I like to use my hands when I'm using a rather wide mixing bowl. Otherwise you'll be chasing the cabbage around the bowl with the wooden pounder all day. You may want to wear food-safe gloves if you do this, especially if you have small cuts or scrapes on your hands. The salt isn't exactly friendly to your skin. Aside from using your hands or the wooden pounder, some people also like to use wooden utensils. You can toss the mass of cabbage more easily this way, and use the utensils to press and smash the cabbage against the side of the bowl.

The purpose of the massage is to get the salt evenly distributed and to start drawing out the moisture in the cabbage. Eventually, we want this moisture to completely submerge the cabbage in the storage vessel.

6. Add to Storage Vessel and Press

Once you see some juices start to collect at the bottom of the bowl you can add the whole contents of the bowl, juices and all, into the storage vessel. This is where you'll want the wooden pounder: it's effective at pressing the kraut into a very compact form. In fact, once the juices really start forming a brine you'll naturally transition from pounding into pressing to get everything as compact as possible.

7. Repeat Until Full

If there's still room in the storage vessel, that is if you still have more than about 10% headspace by volume, repeat steps 2–6 until you've filled the vessel. I usually like to leave about 5% headspace in cooler temperatures, below about 65 °F (18 °C), but 10% is fine if you're unsure how much expansion you'll see, or if you're concerned the brine may overflow. Too much headspace makes it difficult to maintain an anaerobic environment.

8. Evaluate and Adjust

Now that the 1-gallon vessel is full with about 5-10% headspace, check to see if you can pack the cabbage such that it stays an inch (25 mm) below the surface of the brine.

If you need more brine, for example maybe your cabbages were a bit dry, you can construct a brine of equal salinity to add to the vessel. You'll do this to water the same way you did it to cabbage: measure the water by weight in a separate. Pour however much water you think you need to cover the cabbage (plus an inch) into the bowl and check the scale's reading (still using grams).

Use the same formula as above. If you measured, for example, 853 g of water and you're using 2% salinity, that's:

853 g × 0.02 = 17.06 (17 g) salt.

Stir the salt into the water while it's still in the mixing bowl. That way you'll be able to discard some of the salted water if you find you've prepared too much of it.

9. Should You Use A Weight?

Personally, I don't use a weight for this particular recipe. I can usually pack it densely enough that the almost all of it stays below the surface. It's fine to have a few floaters, I think you'll find it's pretty inevitable. What you really want to avoid more than anything is having a large portion of vegetable matter above the surface.

I do use weights in other recipes. With this sauerkraut, though, the cabbage is already well-submerged, and the weights don't prevent the small floaters from rising to the surface anyway, so I don't stand to gain anything by using them here. Save them for your floatier vegetables.

10. Select a Lid and Store the Ferment

Since we've been talking about fermentation temperature, you probably already have a location in mind. It should maintain a relatively consistent temperature and be protected from excessive light, especially if you're using a clear glass jar as your storage vessel.

As for the lid, you have a number of options. At this scale you can get away with some pretty low-tech solutions. For example, my wide-mouth 1-gallon glass jar came with a plastic screw-on lid, and I find that keeping the lid on it without screwing it on allows the carbon dioxide to escape without risking pressurization.

There are also airlock devices and attachments that you can use, especially if you're using a jar with a standardized mouth. The ensure the carbon dioxide can get out without letting any air in.

Some ceramic crocks have water seals, where the lid fits into a groove that you then fill with water to prevent air from getting past the lid. I've used these in the past and I have to admit they work pretty well, as long as you pay attention to the water level in the groove and keep it topped off with clean water as it evaporates. The water ends up with a high surface area relative to its volume, so it tends to evaporate quickly. I'd recommend checking every day, maybe more if you're in a dry environment.

11. Wait, Observe, Taste, and Enjoy

In the first week, Leuconostoc species take the lead and produce lactic acid, acetic acid, CO₂, mannitol, and ethanol. You'll probably notice a lot of tiny bubbles, and the brine may start to look a bit cloudy. The cabbage will still be pale and crisp.

During the second week, Lactobacillus plantarum takes over once the acidity rises enough and easy sugars thin out. It’s a homofermenter, and, unlike the microbes from the first week, it produces mostly lactic acid and little to no gas. It also consumes the mannitol produced by those earlier bacteria, usually depleting it entirely by the end of week 2.

For that reason I like to start eating the sauerkraut after about 8 to 10 days, right when the brine gets acidic enough but before the complexity from the early stage wanes.

Generally, the brine should reach a pH less than 4.0 by days 5–7. The absolute safety cutoff is a pH of 4.6. Above that and you risk encouraging spoilage organisms, including botulism.

I usually don't check for ferments like this one, but if you're curious about the acidity of your brine, you can use a pH meter to get an accurate reading. Pull a forkful of kraut with brine and mince it into a quick slurry. Use a pH meter, not strips, and calibrate (pH 7 + pH 4) before you check.

If you prefer to keep the ferment going for longer than two weeks, you should notice the bubbles continuing to slow into the third week. The pH should bottom out around 3.3–3.5. The lactic acid starts to drown out the sharper notes from the acetic acid, and the other early notes also fade. The flavor becomes decisively tart, clean, and cohesive. This is a great time to move to cold storage if you like bright acidity with good crunch.

Troubleshoot: Is This Mold or Kahm Yeast?

During the first week or two, you may spot a thin, matte film on the surface of the brine. This is usually harmless kahm yeast.

It's white to off-white, sometimes wrinkly or with fine islands. It lies flat and tears like wet tissue when you lift it. It smells neutral/yeasty or slightly fruity/bready, but not sharp, musty, or rotten.

It's common before the acidity fully drops, especially if some bits float or there’s extra headspace.

Mold, on the other hand, is usually fuzzy/hairy, often colored (blue/green/black/pink), raised, and smells musty.

If you see kahm yeast, just skim the film and a thin layer of brine beneath it with a clean spoon. Repeat until the surface looks clear. Press the kraut fully under brine and top up with our ~2% brine (20 g salt per 1,000 g water) if needed.