ADAPTED FROM FERMENTED VEGETABLES BY SHOCKEY & SHOCKEY
Serving Size
Ingredients
From your CSA box:
1 head of any firm leafy thing (calls for cabbage, bok choy worked great)
1/4-1/2 cup shredded or thinly sliced root veg (calls for daikon, every other radish worked)
1/4-1/2 cup some other root veg, shredded or thinly sliced (calls for carrot, can use parsnip or whatever)
1 handful coarsely sliced green shoots (calls for scallions, we used leeks and shallots)
From the kitchen:
1/2 gallon pure-ish water (well water was no issue, avoid city water)
1/2 cup salt (calls for unrefined sea salt, kosher will do)
1/4 cup red pepper flakes (calls for gochugaru, regular kind works too)
2 1-quart, large mouth mason jars (clean but pristine, no antibacterial soap or bleach residue. I just carefully swirl boiling water in them.)
2 baby jars with lids that fit inside the momma jars (1-1.5 cup mason jars work great)
From the green grocer:
Cloves from 1/2 head of garlic, minced
1" ginger root, minced
Recipe Directions
Mix the salt and water in a large mixing bowl ... POOF: it's brine!
Clean, rinse, and trim, discarding dirty outer leaves, reserving 2 clean outer leaves, then halve or quarter the remaining head (remove core if cabbage)
Submerge in brine, weigh down with a water filled Ziploc, soak for for 6-8 hours
Drain, reserving at least 1 cup of the brine and setting aside the 2 whole leaves
Roughly chop, and toss back into the empty mixing bowl
Mix well the roots, shoots, ginger, garlic, and pepper flakes
Dump the mixture onto the leaf pile, massage together thoroughly until vibrantly pink (nitrile gloves are a good idea)
Pack into the mason jars, pressing out air pockets as you go, and adding brine if necessary to submerge (leave 2-3 inches open at the top, or it will bubble over)
Cover with the reserved whole leaves, and weight down with smaller, water-filled jars
Set in a cool dark place for about 10 days, checking every few days that it stays submerged (add brine if not) and that it's not making a huge mess.
