Will need
Ingredients needed for fermenting cabbage leaves:
- heads of white cabbage;
- coarse salt;
- vinegar;
- water for marinade;
- red hot pepper pods;
- Bay leaf.
Cabbage fermentation process:
1. Remove the top leaves from the head of cabbage and completely cut out the hard stalk with a sharp knife.
2. Place the prepared cabbage in boiling salted water and boil for about 7-10 minutes until the leaves become soft and easily separate from the head. Tip: pour 1 tablespoon of vinegar into the water for blanching cabbage, then the leaves will lose their sharp, specific smell and will not darken.
3. Place the boiled cabbage leaves in a deep bowl and leave until completely cool.
4. Cut off the dense thickened edge from each leaf. This is a long but necessary process, otherwise the cabbage will break when twisted.
5. Place 3-4 cabbage leaves together (I choose leaves of different sizes) and roll them into a tight roll.
6.Place the cabbage rolls in a clean three-liter jar, compacting them tightly.
7. Place a slice of red pepper and a bay leaf in each jar. Prepare the salted marinade: dissolve the salt in cold water (2-3 tablespoons of salt for every liter of water). Pour the marinade into jars so that it completely covers the cabbage.
8. Place a plastic lid on top, placing it inside the jar. This is necessary so that the marinade does not “run away” and the upper leaves are always covered with liquid, otherwise they may become moldy.
We close the jars with cabbage rolls with plastic lids and place them in a cool place for storage.
Helpful Tips:
- As cabbage is stored, it will absorb the marinade, so check the jars from time to time and add cold, salty brine if necessary;
- In addition to red pepper and laurel, you can add other spices: mustard seeds, allspice and black peppercorns, horseradish root;
- When preparing sauerkraut cabbage rolls, rinse the leaves in cold water.
