2 hours ago, Smithy said:Did you make the varza murata salad? Can you say what goes into it that makes it different from German sauerkraut?
It's about the pickling process. You take whole heads of cabbage, cross-split the cores slightly (3cm deep, not the whole way through) and dunk them into 3-4% saline water, together with dried dill stems and horseradish. Some people add sour cherry tree leaves. This usually happens in large wooden barrells (think 50-100L each) and you let them cabbages rest submerged and the barrels air-tight covered for several weeks. They can last for a year or more. Every 2-3 of days until fermentation is over, you need to unscrew the lid and use a hose to blow air into the mixture from the bottom, to prevent mold from happenning. (I know this might sound like a prank, but feel free to fact-check :)))) ).
In brief: Varza murata has a deeper, purer cabbage flavour and it is slightly saltier than sauerkraut. Sauerkraut, on the other end, is more sour and - as far as I know - is put to pickle already sliced. German Kraut also has caraway seeds and some other stuff which makes it aniseed-ish tasting. They are both great for health.
Not saying one is better than the other, but they are very different in taste.
