Pickled Cabbage Recipes ( Russian and Ukrainian)

One portion of pickled cabbage (150 g) delivers required daily value of the Vitamin C, just like one orange

Not only that, this truly anti-ageing food protects you from cancer, reduces cholesterol and helps to lose weight. Read more about benefits of fermented foods here

Pickled cabbage is rich with Vitamin B6, vitally important for the breakdown of the protein, received from food, in the body. If you eat meat, it's good for your digestion to consume it with pickled cabbage. It has gone through fermentation process and has achieved the "Best digestive aid" certificate as a result :). Not only that - Russian beauties use pickled cabbage juice for the beauty masks, and Russian men use it to reduce the consequences of hangover.
No other food can compare with cabbage in the amount of the Vitamin K. One tablespoon of pickled cabbage is enough to meet RDA for this vitamin, important for the proper blood clotting and bone health.

Warning: Consult with your doctor if you are on the anticoagulant medications (warfarin, coumadin). If you decide to eat pickled cabbage regularly, you might need to increase the dose since Vitamin K has this blood clotting effect. The key is to eat the same amount every day.

Many people confuse pickled cabbage with german sour kraut. Crispy, sour-sweet and made with no or little vinegar, pickled cabbage is a completely different animal.
Staple of the Eastern European cousine, traditionally made in huge amounts after the harvest, pickled cabbage was used as a base for soups, stews, and salads during the winter when vitamins in food were scarse.

Watch step-by-step video instructions how to make pickled cabbage:

Pickling cabbage head is easy - yet there are variables in this process that affect the final result:

• Quality of cabbage selected for pickling
• "Saltiness" of the coarse salt
• The way you cut the cabbage and massage salt into it
• Temperature in the room.

Pickled cabbage troubleshooting guide

Think shredding cabbage was the hardest part? There are still plenty of opportunities for your fermentation process to go wrong. After all, you cannot control all the variables I just listed.

There are major "vital signs" to watch for that your shredded and pressed cabbage readily exhibits. You need to check the looks and taste of your pickled cabbage on the second day of fermentation in order to correct the way the final product tastes:

• Do you see a lot of juice on the surface? If not, use heavier weight
• Does it taste like it lacks salt and has little bubbles? It won't ferment, add some more salt and go to the next step:
• Does it have bubbles? Are colours bright or bleak? If there are no bubbles, temperature in the room may be too cold. Move your cabbage closer to the source of heat
• Does it feel soft and there are too many bubbles? May be it is too hot in the room. Move it further away from the source of heat

Don't be discouraged - pickled cabbage is so worth your effort! This 'troubleshooting guide' is only here to help you if something goes wrong in unusual circimstances. Pickle your cabbage and enjoy!

Cabbage recipes (vegan)

Basic pickled cabbage

Basic traditional Russian/Ukrainian way of pickling cabbage. It ferments with additing of salt only

When selecting cabbage head for making pickled cabbage, look for mature white or white'ish one. New fresh cabbage is good for the slaw and salads. For the pickled cabbage to be crunchy and chewable, the cabbage head has to be white, juicy and mature. Pickled cabbage is prepared in bulk and it stores well in the cold premises. The quickest way to make this pickled cabbage is to use Borner mandoline slicer for shredding and prepare cabbage in portions of 4-5 cups. Cutting with a knife is much more labour intensive.

Ingredients:

• 1,5 kg (3,5 lbs) of cabbage, shredded
• 2 tablespoons of coarse salt
• 1-3 carrots (optional)

Directions:

1. Shred cabbage in manageable portions (about 4 -5 cups)
   optionally, shred carrots and mix with cabbage
2. work the salt into the cabbage by mixing it in and squeezing the cabbage with your hands until the juice starts showing. The proportion of salt is calculated based on the volume of cabbage
3. Place the cabbage into enamel, stainless steel or ceramic pot. Make sure not to use aluminum pots because aluminum leaks into the cabbage during the fermentation process.
4. Cover with the plate or lid that is smaller in the diameter than the pot. Lid has to lay on top of the cabbage. Put weight on top of the lid, cover the cabbage with a towel and put in the warm place for 5 days.
5. At first, cabbage may taste very salty, but on the day 3 it has to be much less so. At the day number five, place the cabbage into the cold place. It should be crunchy, sweet-and sour.

Pickled cabbage with cranberries

This cabbage comes out sweet and sour, and occasional cranberry "explodes" when you bite it and adds a delicious finishing touch to the taste of cabbage. Add sunflower or flax oil, and serve. Ready in 2 days

The quickest way to make this pickled cabbage is to use Borner mandoline slicer for shredding and prepare cabbage in portions of 4-5 cups. Cutting with a knife is much more labour intensive.

Ingredients:

• 2 kg (4,4 lbs) of cabbage, shredded
• 1 lbs of carrots, thinly shredded
• 0.5-0.8 lbs of cranberries

  Marinade:

• 1 liter (quart) of water
• 50 g of coarse salt (may be replaced with fine table salt)
• 100 g Apple cider vinegar
• 100 g of honey

Directions:

1. Shred the cabbage
2. Shred the carrots and add them to the cabbage (again, Borner mandoline slicer provides the most painless and enjoyable way to do this).
   
   
   
3. Add cranberries and mix well.
4. Place the cabbage into enamel, stainless steel or ceramic pot. Glass jar works too.
   
   
   
   
5. Prepare marinade. Mix water, apple cider vinegar, salt and honey in the pot, and bring them to boil. Let marinage cool until warm and add it to the cabbage mix. If you pickle your cabbage in the glass jar, put a portion of cabbage in the jar, press it with your hands, and add some marinage. Add another portion, press and add marinade again.
6. Cover with the plate or lid that is smaller in the diameter than the pot. Lid has to lay on top of the cabbage. Put weight on top of the lid, cover the cabbage with a towel and put in the warm place for 2 days.

Ukrainian pickled cabbage

If you dislike cabbage, may be you never tried it cooked right. Try this Ukrainian pickled cabbage recipe, the jewel of my collection, shared by the old family friend and loved by generations. Sweet and sour, crunchy and colorful, it wins hearts of those who did not think they will ever try cabbage. I guard the jar once I finish pouring marinade, because the cabbage tastes great right away and sneaky attempts to get it out of the jar happen all the time. Try to reason with people that in two days it will be even better!

Ingredients:

• 3 kg (6.6 pounds) cabbage
• 2-3 carrots

  Marinade:

• 0.5 liter (2 cups) boiling water
• 6 tbsp sugar
• 2 tbsp salt
• ½ cup vinegar
• 1 cup vegetable oil ( I use ½ cup)

Directions:

1. Shred the cabbage and carrots (use Borner slicer to make this process enjoyable and fast)
2. Mix well
3. Prepare the marinade: dissolve sugar and salt in the boiling water, add vinegar. Do not add oil. Keep oil in a cup and pour it along with marinade.
4. Put cabbage in the 3 liter ( 3 gallon) glass jar in layers: first fill out ¼ of the jar, push cabbage tight and pour ¼ of the marinade and ¼ oil. Add another ¼ of cabbage and carrot mix, push it down and add ¼ of the marinade and ¼ of oil again. Repeat 2 more times until the jar is full.
5. Leave on the counter in the room temperature for two days.

Ready to eat right away, this marinated sweet and sour cabbage is even tastier in two days. Keep refrigerated – and enjoy!

Delicious pickled red cabbage

Spicy pickled cabbage

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