Curtido is a fermented sauerkraut like condiment from El Salvador. It is traditionally served with pupusas; however, I’ve also seen fermented curtido served on tacos at trendy Mexican restaurants.
Fermented Curtido
Curtido is a fermented sauerkraut like condiment from El Salvador. It is traditionally served with papusas, but it is delicious on everything from tacos to barbecued hotdogs.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 15 minutes
- Yield: 1 1/2 quarts 1x
- Category: Condiment
- Method: Fermented
- Cuisine: Salvadoran
Scale
Ingredients
- 1 medium-sized head of cabbage
- 1 medium onion
- 2 carrots
- 1 tbsp oregano (Mexican if you have it)
- 1 hot pepper or 1 tsp hot pepper flakes (optional)
- 1–2 tsp pickling salt, to taste
Instructions
- Grate or finely chop the cabbage, onion and carrots.
- Toss the grated vegetables in a bowl with oregano, hot pepper and salt.
- Pack the mixture into a jar for fermentation leaving at least 2″ of head room (for bubbling.) Use a spoon to really press all the cabbage into the jars so that there are no air bubbles.
- If the cabbage hasn’t released enough liquid to completely submerge the vegetables, then leave it for 4-12 hours, and press again. If there still isn’t enough liquid, then add a bit of purified water. The goal is to make sure the cabbage is kept away from air.
- Place the jar somewhere cool and dark to ferment.
- The curtido will bubble for the first three days. It is usually eaten fresh, so it will be ready after 5 days.
- After 5 days, store the curtido in the refrigerator to slow down the fermentation.
Notes
- To make sure that your fermenting vegetables aren’t exposed to air, use either fido jars or a mason jar
with an airlock
. Alternatively, use a crock or a mason jar with a weight
to keep the vegetables below the brine.
- If this is your first time fermenting, I recommend reading about the basic rules for fermenting vegetables.
with an 
. Alternatively, use a crock or a mason jar with a weight
to keep the vegetables below the brine.Keywords: sauerkraut, Mexican, tacos, vegan, gluten free, grain free, dairy free, egg free, keto, paleo, probiotic, spring, summer, fall
The curtido is an awesome recipe; goto for taco condiment to make Mexi night extra special. It has a great sourness that really complements refried beans and cheese. Thank you thank you!
★★★★★