Apple & Juniper Berry Sauerkraut

This is a very popular variation on the basic Sauerkraut and it’s also often called Bavarian Sauerkraut. Juniper berries are a spice more than a berry and may be available fresh when in season or dried at your local health food store.

Ingredients

• 3 or 4 heads of cabbage, shredded;
• 2 or 3 apples, peeled and coarsely chopped;
• 44.3602944 milliliters of caraway seeds;
• 44.3602944 milliliters of Juniper berries, crushed;
• 59.147 milliliters of sea salt;

Preparation

1. Combine the shredded cabbage, chopped apples and spices together.
2. Place the shredded cabbage and apple mixture little by little in your fermentation jar, pounding them vigorously and sprinkling some of the sea salt as you go.
3. Make sure the mixture fills the jar up to 1 inch bellow the top (because of the expansion), adding more if needed, and that the extracted water covers the vegetables entirely. If not, create a brine of 2 tablespoons sea salt to 4 cups water and add it to  the cabbage.
4. Press the mixture and keep it under the brine by placing a plate or a lid on top weighted down by a rock or a jug of water. Cover with a clean towel if needed to keep out fruit flies.
5. Place the fermentation jar in a warm spot in your kitchen and allow the Sauerkraut to ferment for 7 to 10 days.
6. Check on it from time to time to be sure that the brine covers the mixture and to remove any mold that may form on the surface.
7. A good way to know when it’s ready is to taste it during the fermentation process and move it to the refrigerator when you’re satisfied with the taste.

Fermentation is the process that produces alcoholic beverages or acidic dairy products. For a cell, fermentation is a way of getting energy without using oxygen. In general, fermentation involves the breaking down of complex organic substances into simpler ones. The microbial or animal cell obtains energy through glycolysis, splitting a sugar molecule and removing electrons from the molecule. The electrons are then passed to an organic molecule such as pyruvic acid. This results in the formation of a waste product that is excreted from the cell. Waste products formed in this way include ethyl alcohol, butyl alcohol, lactic acid, and acetone--the substances vital to our utilization of fermentation.

Lactic Acid Fermentation

During lactic acid fermentation, the electrons released during glycolysis are passed to pyruvic acid to form two molecules of lactic acid. Lactic acid fermentation is carried out by many bacteria, most notably by the lactic acid bacteria used in the production of yogurt, cheese, sauerkraut, and pickles. Some animal cells such as muscle cells can also use fermentation for a quick burst of energy.

Alcohol Fermentation

Alcohol fermentation also begins with glycolysis to produce two molecules of pyruvic acid, two molecules of ATP, and four electrons. Each pyruvic acid is modified to acetaldehyde and CO2. Two molecules of ethyl alcohol are formed when each acetaldehyde molecule accepts two electrons. Alcohol fermentation is carried out by many bacteria and yeasts .

(http://www.accessexcellence.org/LC/SS/ferm_background.php