Sauerkraut is a product that many housewives use both as an independent dish and as one of the components of other dishes (soups, salads, pies, etc.). Crispy cabbage is especially appreciated, and preparing a vegetable so that it meets this requirement is not an easy task.
If the sauerkraut turned out to be soft, then in this case you will no longer be able to get a crunchy product from it; such cabbage can be used only in the preparation of soups. And so that the next time, with the next pickling / pickling, you do not spoil the vegetables, you need to get acquainted with the main factors that help in the end to get tasty and crispy sauerkraut.
So, in order for the cabbage to turn out to be crispy, it is important to use the right type of vegetable for pickling. The most optimal are late-ripening white-headed varieties, for example, Valentina F1, Mara, Snow White, etc. In addition to the variety, you need to pay attention to the heads of cabbage themselves - they must be elastic and well-formed.
To obtain crispy cabbage, the recipe is especially important, and in particular, the amount of salt used and the time the vegetable is kept warm. It is worth remembering that the more salt is put, the more crisp the cabbage turns out, but it is unnecessary to forget that an excessive amount of salt negatively affects the taste of the finished product - the cabbage turns out to be salted and hard. Keeping the cabbage warm is an important point in fermentation. It is known that fermenting vegetables in warmth begins two days later from the moment of salting, and ends after another 3-5 days (depending on the temperature at which fermentation occurs). The main sign that the cabbage is ready for harvesting for storage is the cessation of the formation of bubbles on the surface of the brine. So, as soon as this sign appears, the product must be immediately removed to a cool place, otherwise the vegetable will simply turn sour and become soft.
Well, in conclusion, it is worth noting that it is believed that cabbage, fermented for the growing moon, always turns out to be crispy. The fact is that on days when the heavenly body is in the growth phase, the vegetable easily absorbs the juice mixed with salt. That is, shredded vegetables are salted better, which has a more favorable effect not only on their taste, but also on the duration of storage.
