Salads

Sauerkraut Salad

This is the kind of dish people make by eye rather than by recipe, yet a few details decide everything. Don’t rinse the sauerkraut, just squeeze it — the brine is where the flavour lives. Use red onion, which is sweeter. And the sugar isn’t for sweetness but to take the edge off the acidity; half a teaspoon is enough.

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Sauerkraut Salad — the finished dish
Prep
15 min
Rest
15 min
Total
30 min
Servings
4
Level
Easy
Per serving
130 kcal

Ingredients

  • What to use instead

    Unrefined sunflower oil carries the flavour here, but olive oil works too.

Makes: 4 servings

Method

  1. Step 1: Squeeze the cabbage

    Squeeze the sauerkraut lightly by hand, but never rinse it — the water takes the acidity and the vitamin C with it.

  2. Step 2: Cut long strands

    If the cabbage was cut long, chop it into 3–4 cm strands so the salad is easier to eat.

  3. Step 3: Slice the onion

    Slice the onion into thin half-rings. For a milder salad, pour boiling water over it for a minute and drain.

  4. Step 4: Shred the carrot

    Shred the carrot in a food processor with the grating disc, or coarsely by hand — it adds sweetness and colour without overwhelming the cabbage.

  5. Step 5: Dress

    Combine everything in a bowl with the oil, sugar and pepper and mix thoroughly with your hands.

  6. Step 6: Let it stand

    Leave the salad for 15 minutes at room temperature so the onion releases its juice and the sugar dissolves.

  7. Step 7: Serve

    Scatter with chopped dill and serve with potatoes, porridge or just dark bread.

Tips & variations

  • Tip

    If the kraut is very sour, add another half teaspoon of sugar rather than water — water only makes it bland.

  • Variation

    A handful of cranberries or grated apple turns this into something festive.

  • Swap

    Unrefined sunflower oil carries the flavour here, but olive oil works too.

  • Storage

    Keeps 3 days in the fridge, softening a little each day.

Nutrition

Approximate nutrition per serving and for the whole dish
1 serving Whole dish 4 servings
Energy130 kcal520 kcal
Protein2 g8 g
Fat9 g36 g
Carbohydrates10 g40 g

Approximate values calculated from standard ingredient data.

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