How to store cabbage? Several ways
Cabbage is considered a summer vegetable, although it is available all year round. In this blog, we will discuss how to store cabbage for a long time.
Here are some storage tips for cabbage:
- A whole cabbage in the refrigerator can be kept for 2 weeks.
- Prepackaged cut and refrigerated for 2 days.
- Cabbage can be kept in the freezer for 1 year.
- Pickled cabbage can be stored for 8 months.
- Fermented for half a year.
- Dried 12 months.
- Checked pointed cabbage can be stored for 1 year.
Store Cabbage outside the Refrigerator
Cabbage can be stored outside the refrigerator in a cool place for a few days. The best temperature is between 12 and 15 degrees.
Store Cabbage in the Refrigerator
Make sure the cabbage looks fresh and crisp green and firm when bought. Then the cabbage is fresh and can be stored longer. A whole cabbage can be kept in the refrigerator for a few weeks. Even when it has been cut and re-wrapped with foil, this will work fine. Keep the cabbage in the vegetable drawer.
Prepackaged cabbage can be kept in the refrigerator for up to 2 days. The cabbage can be packed under certain conditions so that the air in the bag of cabbage ensures that it is stored longer. The packaging can bulge. This also has nothing to do with the shelf life, but with the packaging method. Once open, the cabbage should be eaten quickly.
You can store ready cabbage in the refrigerator if it is well covered with foil or in a closed container. Stick a sticker on the lid so that you can read what is inside and from when. Ready cabbage can be stored in the refrigerator for 2 days.
Keep Cabbage in the Freezer
When cabbage is going to be stored in the freezer, it is advisable to blanch it first. This is done as follows:
Blanching cabbage
Wash and cut the cabbage in half. Remove the ‘heart’ from the cabbage and cut the cabbage into strips. Boil a pan of water and let the cabbage boil in the hot water for 2 minutes. Drain the cabbage and cool it in ice-cold water. Divide the cabbage into portions and put this in freezer bags or closed containers. Place the containers in the freezer. Handy to put a sticker on it and write on it what is in the container and when it went into the freezer. The cabbage can then be kept for a year.
By the end of a year, the taste is lost and the cabbage is no longer so tasty.
Cabbage Leftovers
Prepared cabbage can also be stored in the freezer in a tightly closed container. This can be kept for 3 months. Stick a sticker on the lid. For example, the best-before date is known.
Fermenting cabbage
The purpose of fermenting cabbage is to keep the cabbage longer. In doing so, the cabbage becomes sour, which can also be a reason to ferment cabbage. So it can have 2 reasons to initiate this process.
Fermenting cabbage is a long process that is not done briefly. In addition, the cabbage is only fermented after a few weeks standing quietly in pots.
Wash the pointed cabbage and cut it in half lengthwise. Cut out the ‘heart’. This is the hard part in the center of the cabbage. Now cut the cabbage into thin strips. Often other vegetables such as carrots and onions are included in the process with herbs and spices.
The sliced pointed cabbage is placed in a sterile preserving jar. This preserving jar must be sterile, otherwise, bacteria that do not belong to this process can disrupt the process. The pots are boiled at 100 degrees Celsius. Place the cabbage in a high bowl. Add salt to cabbage. The salt now extracts moisture from the cabbage. The cabbage is also fermented in this liquid. So don’t throw it away. The pointed cabbage is now going soft.
The cabbage is kept in this liquid. After 10 minutes this process of extracting moisture is complete. The cabbage is pressed well so that it is under the moisture that the cabbage itself has secreted. If this is too little, water with salt can be added. About 30 grams per liter of water.
The pot cannot be more than 2/3 full because of the expansion of air in the fermentation process. Now put the lid of the weck jar, with rubber on the rim, on the jar and close it tightly. These lids ensure that air can escape from the pot, but no outside air can enter the pot. And it should be.
Let the cabbage ferment in a quiet place at room temperature. After a week you can open the jar to taste if the cabbage is sour enough. If the cabbage is sour enough, the weck jar goes in the refrigerator.
The fermentation process then stops, otherwise, you can taste it every day to the desired taste. The pots of pointed cabbage should certainly be put in the refrigerator after 3 weeks. Fermenting is then definitely done.
Preserving cabbage
The purpose of canning or preserving cabbage is to keep the fruit or vegetables long-lasting. It is not a quick job. It is advisable to cook vegetables, boil the pots and work as cleanly as possible, otherwise, the work will be done in vain and the shelf life will be short. Below information on how cabbage can be preserved.
Wash cabbage and cut it in half lengthwise. Cut the hard part from the cabbage. Place the flat side on the cutting plant and cut thin strips. If other vegetables are to be preserved, prepare them now, according to the recipe. Cook the vegetables according to the recipe
Boil the preserving jars. That is to say: Place the pots in a large pan of boiled water and leave it in it for 10 minutes. Preferably completely underwater. The jars are made sterile to kill any bacteria that are in the jar. In this way, the prepared cabbage that goes into the pot will remain good for a year. It cannot then go moldy.
Remove the pot from the hot water with clean tongs and place it on a tea towel. Do not dry off !! Now fill the weck jar with the cabbage and any other vegetables and touch the jar as little as possible. Pre-fill the jar. ¾. The lid goes on the jar. Only touch the outside with clean hands. Close the jar with the lid.
The rubber ring should be on the inside of the lid. Place the full and closed pot in a pan with boiled water. The pot should not be underwater. About half the pot. Let the water boil. The cabbage will now boil in the pot. There should be air from the cabbage pot. Now the lid is doing its job. The lid releases air from the jar but no air can get into the jar.
Remove the pot from the pan with boiled water. Beware! The pot is hot. Place the pot on a wooden board or a coaster. Let the jars cool. The air (or oxygen) is now out of the pots, creating the vacuum. All bacteria are out. This is why the cabbage can be stored well for a year. Put the pots in a cool dark place to keep.
After this year, the cabbage loses its flavor. Always check whether the cabbage still looks good when you start eating it. If there are hairy things on it or it smells sour, it is advisable to throw the cabbage away.
Preserving is a job that will take you a few hours, but it is very satisfying when there are many jars on display on a shelf. And who keeps what has what! Lots of fun.
