Keep your digestive system happy with these easy recipes, rich in probiotics to increase the variety of microbes in your gut
MAKE IT YOUR OWN
Swap the white cabbage for red cabbage and use 1 tablespoon lightly bruised juniper berries instead of caraway seeds.
Add 250g grated carrots with the cabbage and use 21g salt to allow for the increased weight of veg. Stir in 2 teaspoons of ground turmeric and 1 tablespoon grated ginger instead of the caraway seeds. 58 58
Homemade sauerkraut
HANDS-ON TIME 25 MINS TOTAL TIME 40 MINS, PLUS AT LEAST 5 DAYS’ FERMENTING MAKES 1KG V Vn GF DF
1kg firm white cabbage or other veg, see ‘Make it your own’ 16g sea salt flakes or Himalayan pink salt 1 tbsp caraway seeds
1 Reserve an outer cabbage leaf, then cut the whole cabbage into quarters.
Finely shred crosswise until you have 800g, discarding the core once you’ve worked around it. It’s important to weigh this accurately and then use 2% of the veg weight in unrefined salt.
2 Place in a large bowl and, with clean hands, vigorously massage the salt into the cabbage for 5 minutes; this will start to draw out moisture, forming a brine. Set aside for 5 minutes then massage again. Rest and massage a couple more times until the cabbage has wilted a lot and a good puddle of brine has formed.
3 Stir in the caraway seeds. Pack it all into a wide-mouthed sterilised preserving jar (see page 56), pressing the cabbage down. Leave a 3-4cm gap at the top.
4 To make sure the cabbage stays fully submerged in brine (to ferment safely), cut the reserved leaf to fit in the top of the jar. Weigh this down with a heavy item (such as a smaller jar filled with water or pickling weights). Sit the preserving jar in a dish, cover loosely and keep at cool room temperature (18-22°C) for 5-7 days, out of direct sunlight. The mixture will get bubbly, fade in colour, and the brine level may rise and fall as fermentation progresses; these are all normal.
5 It will be ready to eat after this time, but for maximum flavour leave to ferment for 2-4 weeks, tasting regularly until you’re happy with the flavour. Remove the weight, seal and store in the fridge.
Per 50g: 18cals; 0g fat (0g sat fat); 1g protein; 2g fibre; 2g carbs; 2g total sugars; 1.5g salt
RECIPE: ABIGAIL SPOONER.
Sticky charred broccoli and tofu ribs with sauerkraut
HANDS-ON TIME 20 MINS TOTAL TIME 25 MINS, PLUS COOLING SERVES 2 VVn GF DF
Charring broccoli really adds another dimension to this wonderful green vegetable, and served with a drizzle of glaze, tofu ‘ribs’ and sauerkraut, it’s magnificent.
200g firm tofu 1½ tbsp olive oil 200g broccoli 2 tbsp tamari or soy sauce* 2 tbsp tomato purée
3 tbsp maple syrup 1 tsp Chinese 5-spice 250g cooked brown rice or quinoa 100g sauerkraut
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