Whether served fresh as a salad, fried, sautéed, stuffed or boiled,
fresh homemade sauerkraut certainly has its culinary values and a great potential for delightful and interesting recipes. Well fermented cabbage is a joy for taste buds, but what about its nutritional value? You will be amazed just how much a simple food like this
is beneficial to your health!
Our ancestors knew the sauerkraut health benefits well
Preserving cabbage by fermentation was a method known even in Roman Empire. The Tatars have spread the culture of fermenting cabbage through Europe, bringing it in their saddlebags as a valued source of nutritional food which can be preserved for a long time without spoiling. Even famous James Cook, British captain, navigator and explorer always carried fermented cabbage along on his sea journeys as a way to
prevent scurvy – a vicious disease derived from deficiency of vitamin C, which affected numerous sailors before it was discovered it can be easily avoided with sauerkraut. Our ancestors knew and understood sauerkraut health benefits well; They used the power of this food
to fight hunger, digestion problems, stomach diseases, ulcers, flu and sour throat, especially during winter time when they had no fresh fruit and vegetables, but remained healthy and resistant to diseases just the same.
Fresh homemade sauerkraut is incredible source of almost all probiotic bacteria we need
Through
process of lacto-fermentation cabbage and its juice become rich in wide range of
probiotic bacteria who are necessary for healthy digestion. Unhealthy diet, use of antibiotics and even chlorine in water often kills healthy bacteria in our stomach which causes diarrhea, constipation, urinary and genital infections, worsen rheumatoid arthritis symptoms and boosts helicobacter pylori infections. This is why
homemade kraut is better than store-bought; it’s still “alive” and brimming with good bacteria and probiotics. Fresh, uncooked and unpasteurized
homemade sauerkraut is excellent way to maintain or
rebuild healthy gut flora.
Great source of vitamins (especially C, B, K and U) and minerals (calcium and magnesium)
The healthiest way to get your vitamins is through the food, so a small daily serving of fresh homemade sauerkraut would be a great step in a right direction. Our ancestors have figured out that this magical food helps against flu and scurvy; later, as science progressed – we learned it was because it has a lot of vitamin C. Fermentation process makes cabbage more rich in vitamins than when it’s raw:
-
vitamin B (a key role for normal function of brain, nervous system, metabolism and formation of blood)
-
vitamin K (necessary for blood coagulation, protein synthesis, healthy bones and against atherosclerosis and other cardiovascular diseases)
-
vitamin U (protective effects on gastrointestinal mucosa and liver)
It is a
low calorie food which contains
calcium, magnesium, iron, potassium, manganese, copper and it’s a great source of
dietary fibers. All this makes homemade sauerkraut a
jar of health each home should have as a food and as a nature given medicine! For more detailed guide on how to make sauerkraut please check our
homemade sauerkraut - video and recipe instructions
post.
