Experienced housewives will tell you whether it is possible to pickle early cabbage for the winter and how to do it correctly

There is an opinion among housewives that young cabbage is unsuitable for harvesting for the winter. This is explained by the absence in early varieties of some characteristics that are endowed with mid- and late-ripening vegetables, which negatively affects the taste and shelf life of the product. But, as experience shows, this assertion is groundless.

There are many ways to preserve cabbage, even ultra-early varieties.

Is it possible to salt and ferment early cabbage for the winter?

Contrary to popular claims, winter preparations made from early cabbage are tasty, rich in vitamins and can last until the end of winter.

As practice shows, there are no critical restrictions prohibiting the use of early varieties of cabbage for pickling, also does not exist. The only difference is that early varieties of cabbage do not need to be ground. Fill it with brine to make juice appear. This will make it crispy and tasty. If you try to grind it with salt, the thin and tender leaves will turn into mush.

Attention! Early cabbage is not stored for a long time, so it is necessary to prepare it for the winter as early as possible.

Points for and against

There is disagreement regarding the advisability of pickling young cabbage for the winter. Opponents believe that early varieties cannot be used for cooking. After all, they contain little sugar, which can disrupt the fermentation process. But this is not the main problem.The vegetable, which ripens so rapidly, has tender leaves, which during fermentation become tasteless and too soft.

However, the arguments of supporters of pickling early varieties are very compelling and cannot be discounted. The young vegetable, which contains a large amount of vitamins and microelements, helps the digestive system. It is considered to be suitable for the prevention of duodenal and gastric ulcers. In addition, this plant has the property of inhibiting obesity - tartronic acid prevents the transformation of carbohydrates into fatty tissue.

Features of pickling early cabbage

The peculiarity of salting is that the development of unnecessary bacteria can be suppressed by adding salt to the preparation in the correct proportions. In this regard, one must be extremely careful. After all, salt brings not only benefits, but also harm. Its excess slows down the release of lactic acid, which is important for preservation.

Suitable varieties

When preparing pickles for the winter, special attention is paid to choosing suitable varieties of cabbage. Their growing season should not exceed 100-115 days.

The forks of an early variety plant are prone to flowering, so you should choose the freshest specimens possible.

Suitable for canning:

• June - a variety grown in all regions of Russia;
• Cossack is a hybrid that also grows beautifully throughout the country;
• Transfer – characterized by almost simultaneous ripening of forks;
• Surprise - Dutch guest, famous for its high resistance to cracking;
• Malachite - grown in the southern and central regions of the country, recognized as one of the best early varieties suitable for pickling;
• Parel - among all the variety of young cabbage, this is considered one of the most delicious.

Selection and preparation of vegetables

Based on timing development of early varieties of vegetables, it is important to harvest the ripe harvest on time. Only dense heads of cabbage are suitable for pickling. Delay in cleaning may result in cracking and damage.

A product suitable for canning must meet the following standards:

• uniform leaf color;
• no signs of rotting or stains;
• the right cabbage aroma;
• lack of bitterness.

Before cooking, remove the outer leaves from the heads, wash and dry. Cut into several pieces and remove stalks. All additional ingredients are also washed and dried.

Reference. During the preservation process, only coarse table salt should be used. Iodized and marine products are absolutely not suitable.

Preparing containers

1 liter glass jars are ideal for canning. If you plan to cut the cabbage large, take 2-3 liter jars.

The selected containers are washed in advance with soda and sterilized. Kitchen utensils and all working surfaces involved are also treated.

Pickling early ripening cabbage

So, how to pickle early cabbage in August? Very simple. This dish literally takes 20 minutes. And it will be ready for use within 24 hours.

Ingredients:

• cabbage – 2 kg;
• carrots – 2 pcs.;
• garlic – 1 head;
• red onion – 1 pc.

For the marinade:

• water – 1 l;
• salt – 2 tbsp. l.;
• sugar – 1 tbsp. l.;
• bay leaf – 2 pcs.;
• cloves – 1 pc.;
• allspice – 5 peas;
• vegetable oil – 200 ml;
• apple cider vinegar – 100 ml.

Cooking process:

1. Cabbage heads are chopped, carrots are grated, garlic is chopped, onions are cut into half rings. The components are mixed in a separate container.
2. To make the marinade, dissolve sugar and salt in a saucepan and bring the mixture to a boil. Add spices and pour in vegetable oil and vinegar. Bring to a boil again.
3. The mixed vegetables are poured with the resulting marinade, allowed to cool and placed under pressure.
4. Place in a cool place for a day.

For the marinade, try not to use tap water, otherwise there is a chance that chlorine will ruin the product. Use bottled or well water.

Recipes for pickling early cabbage for the winter

Traditional recipes Picklings for early cabbage include salt, spices and carrots. In addition, young forks go well with beets, zucchini, tomatoes, peppers and apples.

With carrots

Let's start with the classics. Ingredients:

• cabbage – 1.5 kg;
• carrots – 600 g;
• bay leaves – 2 pcs.;
• cloves – 3 pcs.;
• ground pepper – 2 tsp;
• water – 1 l;
• salt – 1 tbsp. l.

Preparation:

1. The prepared head of cabbage is immersed in boiling water for 1 minute.
2. They are disassembled into leaves from which the veins are cut off.
3. The carrots are peeled, grated on a coarse grater and mixed with spices.
4. The cabbage leaves are folded into a bag shape, filled with the carrot mixture and closed.
5. Envelopes are placed in enamel dishes.
6. Prepare the marinade in advance. To do this, salt is dissolved in boiling water.
7. Vegetables are poured with brine and placed under a load.
8. After three days, the resulting product is transferred to jars, sealed and refrigerated.

With zucchini and pepper

Cabbage goes well with other vegetables of its season. For example, with zucchini and pepper.

Ingredients:

• cabbage – 1 kg;
• sweet pepper – 200 g;
• young zucchini – 1 piece;
• carrots – 1 pc.;
• hot pepper – 1 small pod;
• water – 2 l;
• salt – 4 tbsp. l.

Preparation:

1. The fork is divided into four parts, boiled for 5 minutes in boiling water and finely chopped.
2. Sweet peppers are chopped into strips and also subjected to five-minute heat treatment.
3. The zucchini is chopped, the carrots are grated on a coarse grater, the hot pepper is seeded and finely chopped.
4. All vegetables are placed layer by layer in a prepared jar.
5. Prepare a special brine from water and salt and pour it into the filled containers.
6. The product for pickling is placed in a cool place for three days.

With tomatoes

A pleasant sour preparation is prepared from early cabbage varieties and tomatoes.

Components:

• cabbage – 1 kg;
• tomatoes – 300 g;
• carrots – 200 g;
• sweet pepper 300 g;
• salt – 30 g.

Recipe:

1. The cabbage is chopped as standard, the tomatoes are divided into two parts, the carrots are grated on a coarse grater, and the peppers are cut into slices.
2. All ingredients are salted, kneaded directly in the pan and placed under weight for three days.
3. The pickling is transferred to the cold.

With beets and horseradish

Spicy cabbage with horseradish will be an excellent addition to hot meat dishes.

Ingredient products:

• cabbage – 8 kg;
• beets – 300 g;
• garlic – 100 g;
• horseradish - 1 root;
• water – 8 l;
• salt and sugar – 400 g each

Cooking sequence:

1. The heads of cabbage are being chopped.
2. The beets are washed, peeled and cut into slices;
3. Garlic is crushed in the press.
4. Horseradish is cleaned and ground in a meat grinder.
5. Cabbage layers are placed in prepared dishes, alternating with other vegetable components.
6. A marinade is prepared from water, salt and sugar, brought to a boil and allowed to cool.
7. Warm liquid is poured into the vegetable mixture and placed under pressure for two days.
8. The workpiece is moved to a cold storage place.

With vinegar

Option for long-term storage with the addition of vinegar.

Ingredients:

• cabbage – 3 kg;
• carrots – 1 pc.;
• bay leaf, cloves, black peppercorns - to taste;
• vinegar essence - 1 tbsp. l. (can be replaced with 7 tbsp. 9% vinegar);
• water – 2 l;
• sugar – 1 glass;
• salt – 1 tsp.

Preparation:

1. Kochany chop, cut the carrots, mix everything and knead a little.
2. To make the marinade, boil water, dissolve salt and sugar in it and add spices before boiling.
3. The liquids are allowed to cool, the essence is added and the resulting mixture is poured over the vegetables.
4. The product is kept for 5 hours and sent into the cold.

With apples

Apples and early cabbage are an excellent flavor combination.

Components:

• cabbage - 2 medium heads;
• carrots – 1 pc.;
• apples – 3 pcs.;
• garlic – 2 cloves;
• dill seeds - a pinch;
• black pepper – 6 peas;
• water – 1 l;
• salt – 2 tbsp. l.;
• sugar – 6 tbsp. l.

Preparing the pickling:

1. Finely chop the forks.
2. The carrots are chopped.
3. The apples are freed from the middle and cut into slices.
4. Mix the ingredients and add chopped garlic.
5. To make brine, sugar and salt are diluted in water, boiled and spices are added.
6. Vegetables are immersed in the resulting hot liquid and placed under pressure.
7. Allow to cool and put into jars.

Advice from experienced housewives

Experienced housewives know that it is not enough to know how to properly prepare young cabbage; it must also be preserved. Ideal conditions for winter harvesting are the absence of light and a temperature of 0 ... + 6 ° C. If these standards are observed, products can be stored for a year.

A few more recommendations:

• for preparations it is better to use large heads of cabbage - this will reduce waste and save product;
• Grated carrots give cabbage an attractive appearance;
• It is not recommended to chop young cabbage too thinly - it will stop crunching.

Conclusion

Early cabbage is completely unnecessarily relegated to the background when preparing pickles.There are many recipes that allow you to prepare it in combination with peppers, carrots, beets and other vegetables.

The main thing is to choose dense heads of cabbage without damage for processing, not to deviate from the recipe, and to store ready-made pickles in places with a constant low temperature.