what's the best cabbage for sauerkraut?

[put'n the dog on]

Hey guys, its been years since I've made sauerkraut. I was curious what varieties some of you with experience use? I'm looking for something that will keep a crisp texture. Another question is, can it be made with red cabbage?

  thanks,

    Greg

[Brad H.]

I've never personally tried to make it with Red Cabbage, but I don't see why it wouldn't work. My favorite to use is Stonehead. They have a very tight layering to the cabbage, and makes for a nice crisp end product.

Good luck and let us know how it turns out!

[mdtreehugger]

Last year I grew a cabbage called Tiara. I got it from Johnny's Seeds out of Maine. I was very pleased with the sauerkraut that I made from that variety. Very easy cabbage to grow and the slugs seemed to leave it be more than other variety's. I usually will grow 3 or more variety's of any vegetable at a time to help try to avoid crop failure. My other cabbages were the preferred food of choice for the slugs. This year I will be growing the Tiara again, as well as Primo Vantage, a red called Omero, and a Nappa cabbage called Minuet. The nappa will be used for Kimchi, a favorite in our house. 

[put'n the dog on]

Excellent. Thanks for all the input guy's. I'll have to order some seeds.