Cabbage began to be used as food back in the Stone Age. One of the first mentions of it dates back to the times of Ancient Rome. Even then there were many varieties of it. In Rus' they began to grow it in the eleventh century. Today it is the most popular vegetable.

But it happens that our favorite cabbage comes with a bitter taste. Why is fresh cabbage bitter, what should I do?


If cabbage has a bitter taste, then there may be two reasons for this - natural and errors made during cultivation. In the first case, there are varieties, for example, “amager”, which by their nature have bitterness. There is no point in fighting here.

Important!

The vegetable contains glycosides. These are a kind of protectors against diseases. Their greatest concentration is in the stalks and leaves located on the surface of the welk. This causes bitterness.

There are fewer glycosides in early varieties than in late varieties. The latter are suitable for winter consumption, but after they have been lying down. They are usually denser, the leaves have a bluish tint. The longer the cabbage sits, the less the amount of glycosides becomes. It is better to store it in the cellar. Use no earlier than February. Then the bitterness will completely go away.

In addition to the natural causes of bitterness, some gardeners make mistakes when growing. With abundant fertilizer and a lack of certain microelements, they give the vegetable a bitter taste. If you water it rarely, the cabbage will also taste bitter. During the hot and dry season, more moisture is required.

Some amateur farmers plant cabbage near hot peppers. This is also the cause of bitterness. The harvest needs to be done on time. If you cut the head of cabbage earlier or later, it will taste bitter.

Ways to eliminate bitterness


These methods will help remove bitterness and are good for frying, making salads and stewing.

  1. To remove the bitterness, the leaves need to be kept in boiling water for about a minute.
  2. You can chop it finely and let it soak in cold water for half an hour.
  3. One of the most effective ways is to soak it in a solution of lemon juice.
  4. You can get rid of bitterness with salt. Chop, salt and mix. When the juice is released, drain it and rinse the cabbage in cold water.

Reviews

Katerina, 39 years old. If you grind the cabbage, the bitterness will disappear. Or you can scald the leaves with hot water. If the head of cabbage itself is not wet, then there is no need to drain the water after grinding, but after scalding it is necessary. I always crumple. It tastes better and is easier to digest.

Olga, 42 years old. I use plain apple cider vinegar. When I cut the bitter cabbage, I simply add a small portion of apple cider vinegar. Mix thoroughly. After an hour, I drain the resulting liquid. I use ready-made cabbage for cooking.

Good day, my dear hostesses! Today I will share with you my personal experience and tips on how to remove bitterness from cabbage. This vegetable occupies a leading place in my kitchen, and therefore I have come across a problematic product quite often.

Why is cabbage bitter?

The presence of an unpleasant wormwood taste depends on several factors:

  • unripe vegetables;
  • violations of agricultural technology during cultivation;
  • dry summer;
  • a large number of chemical growth stimulants.

Let's look at each case separately and try to correct the situation.

Most often, such a nuisance occurs with early varieties of this invaluable vegetable. The first cabbage harvest of the season suffers from an excess of nitrates, because its production is quite expensive.


It is necessary to heat the greenhouses, light them, and provide the plants with the required amount of nutrients and watering. Therefore, unscrupulous farmers intensively “feed” the seedlings with a mass of nitrogenous substances, which guarantee rapid leaf growth.

In this case, it is impossible to correct the situation - nitrates do not leave the product even during heat treatment. Therefore, when buying early cabbage at the market, you should tear off a small piece and chew it, of course, with the permission of the seller.

It’s another matter if bitterness is a feature of a particular variety. In this case, you can correct the situation as follows:

  • Shredded shavings from a young vegetable should be lightly salted and pressed a little with your hands. Set aside; when the cabbage releases juice, drain it;
  • The prepared pieces can be sprinkled with lemon juice and added to the salad. The combination of acid and olive or any other oil perfectly removes the wormwood taste;
  • Immerse the prepared cabbage in boiling water for a few seconds and then quickly plunge into ice water to stop the cooking process. This option is especially good for small children. One minus is that during heat treatment some of the vitamins will be destroyed.

In late varieties of cabbage, unripe heads of cabbage may taste bitter. Therefore, put it away for storage only after the first frost. All unpleasant substances are concentrated in cruciferous plants in the seals and the stalk itself, so in varieties with such a defect these places should be removed.

Little secret. My family loves stewed cabbage. On most cooking sites, it's simply topped with tomato sauce and put on the stove. I crush the pre-salted chips a little and lightly fry them in a dry frying pan. There is no bitterness or unpleasant odor left in the pieces.

When a bitter taste spoils your sauerkraut, it means you prepared it incorrectly. During the fermentation process in vegetable pickling, gases are formed that must be released by piercing the cabbage mass with a wooden stick. And be sure to remove the foam that actively forms on the surface of the bucket or barrel during the first week of fermentation.

This type of vegetable becomes bitter only if the head is overgrown or has been stored in the wrong place for a long time. Moisture gradually leaves the inflorescences, and the juice in the vegetable becomes concentrated.


To remove bitterness from cauliflower, you can:

  • Place in cold, lightly salted water and place on the stove. As soon as the liquid boils, drain
  • first decoction and pour clean boiling water. Then cook according to the recipe;
  • disassemble the flowers into inflorescences and soak for at least half an hour in cold water acidified with lemon;
  • pre-boil in water with added milk or in whole cow product;
  • Place the cabbage, disassembled into florets, into the freezer for an hour or two. After sub-zero temperatures it never tastes bitter.

Naturally, none of the above methods will help against pesticides and nitrates.

This vegetable has a wormwood taste regardless of the growing method, which is why children do not really like it.


I adapted to making these little heads edible very simply:

  • I remove the top leaves, carefully cut the stalks crosswise with the tip of a knife;
  • I immerse the heads in salted boiling water for a minute;
  • I take the hot Brussels sprouts out of the pan with a slotted spoon and place them in ice water.

Before removing bitterness from cabbage, be sure to have the vegetable analyzed in the nearest laboratory or using a portable device - excess chemicals in the diet of children and adults can lead to dire consequences.

I hope my tips will be useful to you in the future or right now! Subscribe to my blog and recommend it to your friends on social networks - I know what to surprise you with!

Why is sauerkraut bitter?

    It could also be a matter of salt; you need to ferment it with regular salt, and not with iodized salt or some other kind. And you can’t take it out into the cold too early; it should ferment well in the warmth. The brine may not be enough.

    Sauerkraut tastes bitter not because it was cut early from the garden or because it is such a variety, but because after pickling it was not pierced to allow gases to escape.

    As soon as cabbage begins to ferment, gases are formed in it, which cannot escape from the depths of the barrel (bucket) on their own. Therefore, it is necessary to pierce it with a wooden stick with a sharp end to the very bottom.

    Such punctures should be done several times a day until the cabbage ferments.

    This is not a secret for those who make sauerkraut every year, but few newbies know about it and that’s why their sauerkraut tastes bitter. After all, cabbage has a slight natural bitterness, which goes away with gases when fermented.

    My sauerkraut never tastes bitter. Although I heard that after frost it becomes sweeter. But I always make it before and after frost, the cabbage is always equally tasty (all my guests talk about this!). I think it all comes down to the recipe and the container you use.

    I’ve been making sauerkraut in three-liter jars for about 15 years now. Here, on BV, is a detailed recipe, try it, you won’t regret it. Another plus of three-liter jars is that there are no problems with storage, it does not become soft over time (it doesn’t have time!) and you can make it even until spring: you eat it today, make more tomorrow. Only closer to March-April, when the heads of cabbage are already a bit dry, do you have to throw away a small amount (the top layer in the jar, there is not enough cabbage juice for it), but even then there is no comparison with the cabbage that has stood in the cellar for six months.

    Cabbage may taste bitter because you did not pierce the cabbage during fermentation. I usually start leaking with a wooden stick starting from the second day of pumping. It is also possible that you took the wrong variety of cabbage; you need to take late varieties, such as Slava

    Sauerkraut can taste bitter for one reason: during the warm souring period, it was not pierced with a wooden stick often enough so that the gases formed during fermentation could escape freely. You need to pierce the cabbage to the bottom of the container several times a day as long as it is at home, and then calmly take it out into the cold.

    The first reason may be the growth of cabbage heads next to hot peppers.

    Late varieties of cabbage may become bitter after fermentation begins, when they are cut ahead of time.

    You can ferment such cabbage, but in order for it not to be bitter, the heads of cabbage must sit for a while to gain the required maturity.

    Or the cabbage is not ready yet, you can even compare at the beginning of the fermentation process and after, the taste is absolutely different.

    Sauerkraut is bitter because it was cut before frost.

    To pickle cabbage for the winter, do not salt it early.

    To ensure that the cabbage ferments and does not taste bitter, it must be cut two days after frost.

    And cabbage can also taste bitter because it is not ready yet, it has not fermented.

    One of the reasons why sauerkraut may taste bitter is that it is picked too early from the garden. It should be collected only when the first frosts appear. Another reason may be that the cabbage simply has not fermented, it’s too early))

    Sauerkraut may taste bitter due to the fact that cabbage heads were cut before frost. That is why cabbage for pickling and pickling is not cut down early and is not salted early. To prevent cabbage from becoming bitter, cabbage heads should be cut down after 1-2 days of light frosts.

    Another reason why sauerkraut is temporarily bitter (I emphasize that it is temporary) is that it has not yet been fermented.

    Yes, cabbage that is not yet ready is bitter! Usually, stores sell super fresh stuff in bags. We recently bought one of these. The cabbage pieces were white and fresh and it was bitter. You need to put it in the refrigerator and wait a few days until the white pieces of cabbage leaves turn grayish and slightly transparent.

Due to several reasons.

  1. During the fermentation period, a large amount of gas appears, which cannot leave the cooking container. To avoid the accumulation of gases, it is recommended to frequently pierce with a wooden stick; birch is most often used. If you neglect this method, the salad and brine will become bitter.
  2. Little salt added to it results in a bitter taste. There is no need to deviate from the standard recipe, calculating 0.2 kg of spice per 10 kg of vegetables.
  3. The appearance of bitterness in cabbage is facilitated by a violation of the required temperature regime when the room temperature exceeds 20 degrees Celsius.
  4. Incorrectly selected salt for sourdough. Be sure to use table salt. A common mistake is using iodized water.
  5. If you decide to eat the cabbage before it is cooked, the taste will differ from what was intended. Before opening, finishing the salting process, you need to check the appetizer for readiness. The finished product differs in color. The cabbage will be transparent and take on a grayish tint.

These errors during cooking can lead to spoilage of the finished product.

How to get rid of bitterness

Removing the bitter taste from the finished product is difficult and does not always work. You should try to take all possible measures to prevent the development of bitterness during fermentation.

  1. You need to remove the “lid” from the container where the cabbage is located. Next, pierce the mixture about 10 times with a wooden stick. Excess gas will be released, which will eliminate the bitter taste. After the procedure, the jar is placed in a cool, dark place. It is advisable to get rid of gas several times during fermentation.
  2. It is also possible to immediately place a wooden stick in the center of the container, which will absorb the unpleasant taste.

If the cabbage turns out to be bitter, you can improve its taste before consumption. Adding snacks to soups will eliminate the unpleasant aftertaste. Rinsing with cold water will also help reduce the bitterness, but may ruin the snack.

Important! Before serving the cabbage, it is recommended to ventilate it, stirring it occasionally.

You can save cabbage by pickling it. First, the juice is squeezed out of the product, a small amount of sugar, vegetable oil and vinegar are added. For taste, add fresh onions, chopped into half rings, to the cabbage. After mixing the resulting mixture, you need to place it in glass jars and put it in a place with a temperature of about 15-18 degrees Celsius. Too low a temperature will negatively affect the quality of the finished product.

Following these recommendations will help achieve good quality workpieces.

  1. It is recommended to use 3-liter glass jars as containers. Thus, the finished product is quickly eaten and does not have time to spoil.
  2. To prepare sauerkraut, it is recommended to take late varieties: “Slava”, “Kharkovskaya Zimnyaya”.
  3. It is necessary to release excess gas during the fermentation period using a wooden stick.
  4. It is advisable to strictly follow the cooking recipe.

Recipe

To achieve a taste without bitterness, you do not need to deviate from what you have chosen, follow the advice and study possible mistakes in advance to prevent them. For the “original” recipe you will need: fresh cabbage, beets, carrots, sweet pepper, garlic, dill, salt. The recipe with the addition of bay leaves requires the following ingredients: cabbage, carrots, bay leaf and salt.

To prevent possible bitterness, preparation is as follows:

  1. Finely chop the cabbage and other vegetables with a knife or a specialized grater.
  2. Place in a bowl or large bowl. In this case, each layer must be sprinkled with table salt.
  3. Next, mix the contents of the container with your hands, kneading and pressing the cabbage.
  4. If necessary, other spices are added and the mixture is further stirred.
  5. The next step is transferring it into pre-prepared jars and sealing them.

Important! Recipes often use ingredients such as apples, cranberries, and honey. Sauerkraut is consumed as a salad with various side dishes. Used as a filling for pies and dumplings. Add to other salads in addition to eating as a separate dish.

The benefits of sauerkraut

The amount of vitamin C increases in the product after it is fermented. has useful properties:

  • strengthening the heart muscle;
  • improvement of metabolic processes;
  • prevention of colds;
  • helps strengthen the nervous system;
  • increases resistance to stressful situations;
  • lowers cholesterol levels.

It's hard to imagine a winter table without sauerkraut. It’s very easy to prepare, and it contains so many vitamins! Everyone can afford this delicacy!

Sometimes there is such an unpleasant moment as bitterness in taste. Let's try to understand the reasons for the bitter taste. Causes of bitter taste. How to remove bitterness from cabbage. Salting procedure.

It may be bitter due to the fact that it was not pierced and salted.. As soon as the fermentation process begins, gases begin to form in the cabbage, which do not have the opportunity to independently escape from the depths of the container in which it is fermented.

It is necessary to help her with this, piercing with a wooden stick with a sharp end. This should be done, reaching to the very bottom, several times a day. You need to stop when the cabbage has fermented.

Of course, this is not news for those people who make sauerkraut every year. But it will be very helpful for beginners. Cabbage contains bitterness, which goes away with gases during fermentation.

Bitterness may come from salt. When fermenting, you should use regular table salt. Some take iodized, thinking that they do better, but not in this case. After pickling, it is not recommended to immediately take the cabbage out into the cold. It must be kept warm to ferment well. After removing the foam, take it out into the cold.

Another reason may be insufficient salt. In the classic recipe, 200 grams of salt are used for 10 kilograms of cabbage.

It may be that the variety is not suitable for pickling. For this purpose, cabbage varieties need to be taken late. For example, very good varieties “Slava”, “Moskovskaya late”, “Kharkovskaya zimnyaya”, “Geneva f 1” and “Valentina f 1”.

A very important point is the cutting time of the cabbage.. It must be cut two days after the first frost hits. If you cut it early, it will become bitter when salted, as it has not been aged. Even after cutting the heads of cabbage, it is not salted early. She needs to lie down and gain maturity.

It may taste bitter for a simple reason: it’s not ready yet.. The salting process is not completed. It's easy to find out. Look at it, if the cabbage is white in color it is definitely not ready. It should be slightly transparent and slightly grayish. At the beginning of salting and at the end, the color and taste are very different.

Even the barrel or container in which you salt the cabbage could be the cause.. Many people use three-liter glass jars. This is a very good option. The problem with storage disappears by itself. And it doesn’t become soft - it just doesn’t have time!

You can do it throughout the winter. As soon as you want. Only by April the cabbage heads become a little dry. When salting, there is not enough juice released. In this case, the top layer in the bottle just needs to be removed.

You can try to remove the bitterness in the cabbage. When fermenting heads of cabbage, they must be carefully pierced with a wooden and thin stick in different places. This stick is also stuck in the middle of the container in which the cabbage is placed.

Before you are going to serve the cabbage, you need to put it on a plate and let it air out a little, stirring occasionally.

Do not rinse cabbage with water. This will ruin everything even more. If you can’t part with it, you can save the situation by turning sauerkraut into pickled cabbage.

Squeeze the juice from the cabbage, add a little sugar, vegetable oil, a little vinegar and chopped onion into half rings. After this, mix well, transfer to glass jars and put in a cool place.

Salting procedure

Cooking goes like this. The cabbage must be finely chopped using a knife or a special grater. Place the chopped cabbage in a bowl or basin, sprinkling each layer with salt.

After this, mix by pressing with your hands and transfer to prepared containers where salting will take place. It is very convenient to put cabbage in three-liter jars. They are convenient to store and are always there when needed. Glass is good because it has no foreign odors.

When fermenting in such a container, there is no foreign taste. Then place the jar in a bowl. This is so that the brine that pours out of the neck does not end up on the table. The cabbage should remain warm for three days.

Do not forget to pierce the jar with a wooden stick several times a day to the bottom of the jar (so that carbon dioxide escapes). After this time, close the lid and take it out to the cold or put it in the refrigerator.

Cabbage is prepared with the addition of the following ingredients: carrots (grated), apples, cranberries and honey. Sauerkraut can be eaten with various side dishes. It is added as a filling to pies and dumplings. It is an important ingredient in preparing vinaigrette and other salads.

When serving, pour sunflower oil over the cabbage and add onions cut into half rings.