Fermented Curtido
Curtido is a fermented sauerkraut-like condiment from El Salvador. It is traditionally served with pupusas, but it is delicious on everything from tacos to hot dogs.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 15 minutes
- Yield: 1 1/2 quarts 1x
- Category: Condiment
- Method: Fermented
- Cuisine: Salvadoran
- Diet: Vegan
Ingredients
Scale
- 1 medium-sized head of cabbage (I like purple)
- 1 medium onion
- 2 carrots
- 1 Tbsp oregano (Mexican oregano if you have it)
- 1 hot pepper or 1 tsp hot pepper flakes
- 1 Tbsp pickling salt, to taste
Instructions
- Grate or finely chop the cabbage, onion, and carrots.
- Toss the grated vegetables in a bowl with the oregano, hot pepper, and salt.
- Pack the mixture into a jar or two jars for fermentation leaving at least 1-inch of headroom (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 it still hasn’t released enough liquid, then add a bit of purified water. The goal is to make sure the cabbage is kept under the liquid.
- 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 3 days. Move the jar(s) to the refrigerator to slow down the fermentation.
Notes
- To make sure that the 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.
- Field-grown cabbage naturally has the bacterial cultures needed for fermenting. There’s no need to use a starter with this simple recipe.
with an 
to keep the vegetables below the brine.Keywords: sauerkraut, Mexican, Salvadoran, tacos, vegan, gluten free, grain free, dairy free, egg free, keto, paleo, probiotic, spring, summer, fall