Sauerkraut
[2][3] It has a long shelf life and a distinctive sour flavor, both of which result from the lactic acid formed when the bacteria ferment the sugars in the cabbage leaves.
According to Wilhelm Holzapfel et al, Plinius the Elder, writing in the first century A.D., is reputed to have been the first writer to describe the making of sauerkraut by preserving what the Romans called salt cabbage in earthen vessels.
[5] Popular folklore has imagined that sauerkraut was introduced to Europe by the trade networks formed across Eurasia by the Golden Horde.
[8] It then took root in Central and Eastern European cuisines, but also in other countries including the Netherlands, where it is known as zuurkool, and France, where the name became choucroute.
[1] The names in Slavic and other Central and Eastern European languages have similar meanings with the German word: "fermented cabbage" (Albanian: lakër turshi, Azerbaijani: kələm turşusu,[11] Belarusian: квашаная капуста, Czech: kysané zelí, Lithuanian: rauginti kopūstai, Polish: kapusta kiszona/ kapusta kwaszona, Russian: квашеная капуста/кислая капуста, romanized: kvašenaja kapusta, Turkish: lahana turşusu, Romanian: varză murată, Persian: kalam torş, Bulgarian: кисело зеле, Estonian: hapukapsas, Hungarian: savanyúkáposzta, Latvian: skābēti kāposti, Macedonian: расол / кисела зелка, Serbo-Croatian: кисели купус / кисело зеље, kiseli kupus / kiselo zelje, Slovak: kyslá kapusta, Slovene: kislo zelje, Ukrainian: квашена капуста, kvashena kapusta).
[citation needed] Fermentation by lactobacilli is introduced naturally, as these air-borne bacteria culture on raw cabbage leaves where they grow.
[17] Properly cured sauerkraut is sufficiently acidic to prevent a favorable environment for the growth of Clostridium botulinum, the toxins of which cause botulism.
It was also found that Lactobacillus brevis and Pediococcus pentosaceus had smaller population numbers in the first 14 days than previous studies had reported.
This sourdough process is known as "backslopping" or "inoculum enrichment"; when used in making sauerkraut, first- and second-stage population dynamics, important to developing flavor, are bypassed.
[19] In Azerbaijani, Belarusian, Estonian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Moravian, Polish, Russian, and Ukrainian cuisine, chopped cabbage is often pickled together with shredded carrots.
[citation needed] A homemade type of very mild sauerkraut is available, where white cabbage is pickled with salt in a refrigerator for only three to seven days.
[20] Sauerkraut is also the central ingredient in traditional soups, such as shchi (a national dish of Russia), kwaśnica (Poland), kapustnica (Slovakia), and zelňačka (Czech Republic resp.
[citation needed] In Germany and Austria, cooked sauerkraut is often flavored with juniper berries[22] or caraway seeds; apples and white wine are added in popular variations.
The Czech national dish vepřo knedlo zelo consists of roast pork with knedliky and sauerkraut.
In Romania, the local type of sauerkraut ("varza murata" = whole pickled cabbage heads) are used as wrap for the national dish called "Sarmale", a Turkish-inspired roll, made of pickled cabbage leaves with minced pork and rice, having its own personality and very distinct in taste from its Ottoman predecessor.
