Homemade Sauerkraut

Steps

1. 1
   Choose firm, heavy late-autumn white cabbages; remove the loose outer leaves and rinse the heads.
2. 2
   With a small sharp knife, cut out the core of each head in a cone about 4–5 cm deep, without splitting the head.
3. 3
   Fill each cavity with coarse salt and pack the heads, cavity up, into a clean barrel or 20 l jar as tightly as possible, scattering the maize kernels between them.
4. 4
   Dissolve the brine salt in the water — use only non-iodised salt, as iodised salt stalls the fermentation and darkens the leaves — and pour it over until the cabbages are covered by at least 5 cm.
5. 5
   Weigh the cabbages down with a clean plate and a heavy stone or a water-filled jar so they stay under the brine, and keep the container somewhere cool, around 15–18°C.
6. 6
   From the third day, circulate the brine every 2–3 days: draw it off through the tap or with a jug or siphon and pour it back over the top — this releases trapped gas and keeps the brine from turning slimy.
7. 7
   Each time you circulate the brine, skim off any white film that has formed on the surface.
8. 8
   After 3–4 weeks the leaves turn yellowish, translucent and pliable and the brine tastes clean and sour; the cabbage is ready and keeps in a cold cellar through the winter.