Whole Cabbage Ferment
No shredding, no squeezing, no mandoline required — just patience, salt, water, and time. The result is tender, tangy, and versatile.
It's as simple as this: cut out the core of a whole cabbage, fill the cavity with salt. Place it into a bucket or fermenter, cover with water, weight it down, lid it, and leave. That's it. When it's done you can pull leaves, or slice it however you like straight from the crock — thin strips alongside your meal, roughly chopped and mixed through other veg or salads, or piled onto anything that needs a lift.
Ingredients
- 1 whole cabbage (about 1–1.2 kg)
- 1 litre unchlorinated water
- 20 g non-iodised salt
Method
1. Prepare the cabbage
Remove the outer leaves. Using a sharp knife, cut out the core, keeping the cabbage as intact as possible. Pack the salt firmly into that hollow cavity, then place the cabbage — salt side up — into your vessel. A 3-litre jar or bucket with a lid works well.
2. Submerge
Pour in enough unchlorinated water to fully cover the cabbage. Weigh it down with a plate and a heavy weight, or a smaller jar filled with water sitting on top — you want the cabbage staying under the brine, not floating up.
3. Cover and wait
Lid the vessel, or secure a fabric cover over the top. Leave at room temperature for 10–14 days, checking in occasionally to make sure the cabbage stays submerged. Top up with a little extra brine (same ratio: 20 g salt per litre of water) if needed.
4. Taste and finish
When the leaves have softened right through and it's reached a sourness you find pleasing, it's ready. Move it to the fridge, or somewhere cold — outdoors in winter works perfectly well. It will keep for months.
5. Serve
Slice or pull leaves straight from the crock as you need them. Thin strips alongside a meal, roughly chopped through salads or grains, piled onto eggs, tucked into a sandwich — it suits almost anything.
Notes
On water: Chlorinated tap water can interfere with fermentation. Use filtered water, or leave tap water to sit uncovered overnight before using.
Aromatics: Add a few cloves of garlic, some dill seed, a dried chilli, or a bay leaf if you like. Or leave it plain and let the cabbage do the talking.
On salt: Non-iodised salt is important here — iodine inhibits the wild bacteria you're relying on to do the work. Sea salt or pickling salt both work well.
Storage: No fridge? No problem in winter. A cold garage, shed, or outdoor space will do the job — traditionally this is exactly how it was done. Once the weather warms up, move it inside to the fridge to slow fermentation.
Cabbage variety: Green cabbage is the classic choice, but red cabbage works beautifully too — it turns a deep jewel-purple in the brine and has a slightly earthier flavour.
