On the clock: Sour Dills

With the crock free from kraut, it was begging for some pickling cukes just coming into season. Spicy Garlic Sour Dills came to mind, and the plan was set to action. A friend and co-worker hooked me up with a bag of green and yellow cucumbers, culled at the end of his farmer's market shift (thank you). Later I finally found some more green cukes to fill the crock.

The problem was, I couldn't find fresh dill flowers or grape leaves to save my life. At the last moment I happened upon some dill heads at the store. But the grape leaves, a necessary ingredient to keep the pickles crisp, were still the last pieces to get. My old neighbor has a giant grape vine taking over his property line, including a four-story poplar tree in his back yard. Days ago I asked him if I could grab a few leaves for pickles, but that was days ago. His memory and eyesight ain't what they used to be, so yeah, getting shot in the ass with rock salt came to mind. Eventually, I talked myself over there.

Finally on Wednesday, I assembled the following:

12 washed, unsprayed grape leaves (lining the crock bottom)

10 heads- fresh OG dill flowers

2 heads- OG garlic- peeled, cloves cut in half

1/2 bulb - fresh OG onion, cut into coarse, long pieces

1/2 cup- black peppercorns

1/4 cup- allspice berries

1/4 cup- mustard seed

1/2 cup- whole clove

1/4 cup- coriander seed

1- cinnamon stick

10 bay leaves

1/4 cup- crushed red peppers

3/4 cup- Kosher salt

1+ gallon filtered water

8lbs+(?)- OG green and yellow pickling cucumbers

As much as I wish I had a real crock, it's nice to be able to watch all these ingredients take shape. Though this picture was taken Wednesday, the mixture has already become cloudy and murky. But that's exactly what you want from sour pickles.

So why sours? Because they're real pickles. And nobody does them here and I'm fucking tired of hearing New York transplants complain about the state of bagels, pizza and dills here in Portland. I'm doing my part, now shut up... This will take a few weeks.

Sauerkraut Watch, Day 30

Pins and needles, right? The month has dragged by as you fret for my rosy veggies to emerge edible?

Last night I decided to try it again and package the rest. The flavors of the vegetables and toasted spices have opened up, gelling better than two weeks ago. The sour tartness is more pronounced, more effervescent. The punch of the red onion and garlic has toned down slightly. The texture is still slightly squeaky and crunchy, though the act of repacking into jars will mitigate that. My only regret is using Real Salt rather than sea or kosher... some of the trace minerals haven't dissolved past the gritty, sandy stage. Overall, I think it turned out pretty freaking good. Can't wait to try it on a good frankfurter or a fish taco.

The remainder fit into 12 pint and two quart mason jars, which were promptly tossed into the fridge. I used the business end of a french rolling pin to really pack the jars, leaving a decent layer of protective kraut juice. Since I didn't use a water bath or pressure cooker, I'm slightly worried about botulism. Heh heh.... Well, that stuff in the store wouldn't say "Raw" if it had been through a commercial canning process right? Anyone? :::crickets:::

In an attempt to distract myself from potential liability, I decided to make a fancy-pants label for my pseudo-professional product. Laugh all you want, cynical prick, it's fun to dream. I've done this before when bottling my homebrewed IPAs and barleywines, but this time without the help of Adobe CS3. Evidently, MS Word and Avery labels require one to trick them into working as you want it. Jeebus.

So now it's time to pawn these jars o' botulism off on innocent co-workers ($5-a-pop sound right to you?). But then, what's next? Spicy dill pickle slices? White-guy kimchi? Whole dills? Pickled green beans? Hot-pickled carrots and cauliflower? Fermented hot sauce? Lawsuits?

Sauerkraut Watch, Day 16

More than two weeks have passed since the rosy-looking kraut went into the basement to quietly ferment away. Every time I go down there, I'm reminded I threw in two heads of garlic and one red onion for shits and giggles. It smells like a sweaty Oktoberfest down there.

This whole time, only two small patches of mold materialized. Skimmed with a sieve a couple of times, but really nothing to get. I wondered if I used too much salt, all eyeballed (of course). It was time to throw this baby into the pool to find out what it's made of.

So on Wednesday I pulled out a quart mason jar's worth and tossed it in the fridge. Last night I grilled off two Widmer hefeweizen brats from New Seasons... overcooked them (of course), but they got nice and crispy, and managed to stay moist inside. I didn't even bother with a bun, or a side of mustard (what??), just wanted the brat and kraut to duke it out. It turns out they play well together. There's a background harmony of spice in both - a nutmeg-y, complex, rich sausage vs. acidic, briny vegetables and occasional flurry of caraway or cumin. I was skeptical about the juniper berries, but they added something. Maybe a dry, slightly medicinal presence, but worth it... and nice to know I could use them for something other than turkey brines at Thanksgiving.

I love this stuff. The cabbage, carrot and beets are soft but slightly crunchy. Their mass is already sour sauer and vinegar-y, but I can't wait to see what it's like in the coming weeks. This week, think I'll use some in crock-pot sauerbraten. Oh yeah. BYOS.*

*bring your own spaetzle

Raw sauerkraut... let's do this

I stumbled onto this book recently and just thumbing through it for a minute (sorry, I promise to buy it later) left an impression on me. This isn't just some earth mother's idea of a Saturday night, this is the foundation of food. This is peasant food that has roots in every corner of the globe. Though not a raw foodie in the least, it was high time I acknowledged this.

In Portland, you can find small jars of 'raw' fermented kraut and sea veggies at New Seasons or any of the food co-ops. I tried a couple and loved them; there's a slight, bright effervescence to balance the sour. Contrast this with canned/jarred kraut or pickles and it may be hard to go back... most industrial food companies have outsourced even this to India, and the product is dead and left without many nutrients it could have had. This pickling travesty is a topic for another post on another day.

Being the enterprising sort, I decided this is a food exercise I should probably learn to master. We're not canning here, this is simply open air, raw fermentation in a large container. I've spent hours brewing beer, how 'effing hard could this be? Until I'm able to pry that old antique crock away from my mom, I had to do with a large Anchor Hocking jar (2-4 gallons?) sans lid.

Here's a list of what I used, based on suggestions found in the book and on various websites. Note that I went 'red' on this batch, with plenty of non-cabbage accouterments.

3 heads OG green cabbage - cored, rough shred
2 heads OG red cabbage - cored, rough shred
1 OG red onion - diced
2 heads OG garlic - sliced
3 large carrots - coarsely grated
2 large OG red beets - coarsely grated
8-10 tbsp Real Salt (mined mineral rich salt)
2 tbsp cumin seed - toasted
2 tbsp caraway seed - toasted
1-2 tbsp celery seed
3/4 cup juniper berries - crushed
1 tbsp cracked pepper
1-2 qts filtered water

Mix the ingredients in a large bowl and place in the crock a little at a time, packing and macerating as you go. I read somewhere that a sanitized wooden baseball bat works well, but hell, I've got these two awesome fists of fury at my disposal. And they're FREE.

Once the cabbage mix is salted, it starts letting go of its water in a big way. Place a plate over the pressed mass with some kind of weight (and keep the whole thing covered with a t-shirt or towel). I used an old glass juice container filled with water, but it probably needs to be heavier. Whatever the means, the idea is to keep the kraut well under the fluid in its anaerobic state, fermenting away and creating a probiotic wonderfood while you skim the occasional slime off the surface. Yum!

So it sits in my cool, dark basement-- an optimal and unobtrusive spot-- until it's ready (days? weeks? how will I know?). Until then I'll ponder my sausage choices for the kraut (read: any) and post more pictures as this rosy baby comes alive...

**Update 7/25/09 1:52pm- Think I forgot to mention 2 tbsp of white miso paste was added to kickstart the probiotic process.