RECIPE - Cortido (Latin American Sauerkraut)

[rdback]

With the abundance of cabbage this time of year, I enjoy making sauerkraut. I make the "traditional" sauerkraut, as well as cortido (aka Latin American Sauerkraut). Cortido takes sauerkraut to a whole different place. It's delicious.


Cortido (Latin American Sauerkraut)

Ingredients:

1 large cabbage, cored and shredded
1 cup grated carrots
2 medium onions, quartered lengthwise and very finely sliced
2 garlic cloves, minced (optional)
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes (or 1 grated Jalapeno)
4 tablespoons sea salt
1 tablespoon whey

Instructions:

1. In a large bowl mix cabbage with carrots, onions, garlic (if using), oregano, red pepper flakes or jalapeno, sea salt, and whey.


2. Pound with a wooden pounder or mallet for about 10 minutes to release juices.


3. Place in two quart-size, wide-mouth mason jars and press down firmly with a pounder or mallet until juices come to the top of the cabbage. The top of the cabbage mixture should be at least 1 inch below the top of the jars.


4. Cover tightly and keep at room temperature for about 3 to 10 days, depending on temperature. Release pressure daily. Transfer to cold storage.

[macmex]

Looks delicious! Very similar to kimchi. When our family first moved to Mexico we started making kimchi. It was interesting, as non of our Mexican friends had heard of it before, yet, every one who tried kimchi loved it!

[rdback]

Thanks George.

I make kimchi as well. In fact, I grow a pepper called Hong Gochu, which is the traditional pepper used in kimchi. Maybe I'll post the recipe I use for that as well.

[macmex]

Yes, do post your kimchi recipe. All of this information is invaluable

[heavyhitterokra]

Thanks, Rick.

reading that sure brought back good memories. My Grandma used to make sauerkraut by the horse watering trough full when I was a kid; except we never thought of using the wooden pounder from our colander as a cabbage jar stuffer. We only used our thumbs to push the cabbage down until the juice rose to the top of the jars.

I can still remember the sore and exhausted thumbs to this day. What a game-changer! Because of the way I was taught to make sauerkraut, I probably would never have thought of doing it another way ... I wish Mom, Grandma, and Aunt Ida, were still here to read this. We'd all have a great laugh together this morning.

[chrysanthemum]

Our family ferments a lot of sauerkraut and the occasional kimchi.  I have Chinese cabbage growing now, but I lost all my daikons I had seeded in January for spring eating to the freeze in February, and I haven’t replanted.

We discovered cortido a year or two ago after moving to Texas  it was sold for a time in our local grocery store, and I immediately realized that I could make it easily.  I understand that it uses “Mexican Oregano” rather than the Greek version.  In researching what that spice was I learned that there are two different plants called Mexican Oregano.  One is in the verbena family, but the other is a shrub in the mint family.  I looked at a picture and thought, “So that’s what those bushes are that I haven’t been able to identify.”  I have one growing at the front side of my house, and one in the back.  The front one froze to the ground last month, but I think it will come back.  The back one grows right next to our foundation and has a western exposure.  The top died back, but it’s already green and thriving, and we used a big bunch in spaghetti sauce yesterday.  It’s milder than Greek oregano with an almost citrus component.  (It makes the outside smell wonderful after a hail storm.).  In the summer it is covered with small trumpet shaped flowers in white or lavender.