If you love the tang of vinaigrette-dressed greens, fresh squeezed lemonade, or a sip of kombucha, then you want to try my favorite new appetizer and snack: a chèvre-smeared cracker topped with a forkful of fresh-fermented cabbage. I know. I was skeptical my first time, too.
The kraut was served at our last Montana Cooks meeting. Janice’s friend, Karie, joining us for the first time, brought it and served it with Amaltheia’s smoked chèvre, and Mary’s crackers. While we talked about lentils, cooking, and our adventures in the world of food, I took the smallest bit of Karie’s kraut and placed it atop my heavily cheesed cracker. I wasn’t expecting to like it and am generally a bit nervous trying other people’s kitchen “experiments”. But after the creamy, delicately smokey, crunchy, tangy first bite, I had to have more! The flavors made my tastebuds zingy with pleasure, and by the close of our meeting, I was planning my first batch of kraut. Many thanks to Karie, Jody, and especially Janice, for her detailed Curtido instructions that started me off fermenting with confidence.
In case you’re wondering, “naturally fermented” means that the kraut has gone through lacto-fermentation and contains a thriving culture of probiotics – this is why kraut is so good for your gut! (For more information, see Jody’s post, “Why Raw Sauerkraut is Better for You Than Probiotic Pills“.) When lacto-fermented, the starches and sugars in the veggies are converted into lactic acid by the lactic-acid-producing bacteria naturally present on the veggies and in the whey I use as an inoculant. This is nothing new. People have been using fermentation to preserve food for thousands of years! Come on. You’ve got to try it!
[amd-zlrecipe-recipe:129]
