steelem, I think I am getting enough fiber. I am also taking psyllium husks daily. I do agree fiber is very important. I was able to ease my IBS early on by taking some of the steps you list.
As for sauerkraut, I cannot recommend it enough. Buying sauerkraut in a jar at a store does not have any live cultures. You need to make your own to get all the probiotics, or perhaps you might find some very specialized store/restaurant that makes sauerkraut on premises (..no doubt this is done central/eastern Europe).
Here is my recipe, as posted earlier:
1) Find yourself a 2 quart glass or ceramic jar with a wide mouth. It doesn't need to have a lid (since you won't use it). With a 2 quart container you can get about one full cabbage's worth of sauerkraut. And I eat through this amount in about 7-10 days. Therefore at some later point you might want to get a bigger container.
2) Buy an organic cabbage. In my first batch I bought a red cabbage. It was crunchy and juicy, and made wonderful sauerkraut. I am now doing a batch using a plain green cabbage. It is not as crunchy or juicy, although the sauerkraut appears to be curing nicely. Do NOT use Chinese (aka Napa) cabbage (, which is used to make kimchi).
3) Buy ground sea salt, or buy sea salt crystals and grind them yourself (using a coffee grinder). Do not use iodized table salt.
4) You will need something less than a quart of filtered water.
And so with the above ingredients....
1) Shred (using a food processor) the cabbage, or hack at it with a large knife. Doing it manually takes about 20 minutes, and it is messy.
2) Transfer the cabbage into a large metal pot. You will need to pound down the cabbage using your fist or a potato masher. The idea is to extract as much as the cabbage juice as you can. While doing this sprinkle in a little salt (..like a teaspoon's worth).
3) Transfer the cabbage & juice) into your glass/ceramic jar. Hopefully is a very juicy and a somewhat stinky pile. Add in water, one cup at a time, until the cabbage is fully covered. I usually add about 3 cups. For each cup of water add a teaspoon of salt. And so for one cabbage you want about 5 teaspoons of salt.
4) Find a plate to weigh down the cabbage. The idea is to have all the cabbage underwater. If you don't have a plate to use then find a one quart sealable plastic bag, fill it partially with water and a bit of salt, seal it and push it down on the cabbage. Again you want all the cabbage submersed. Any floating bits of cabbage will turn foul(, although it won't spoil the whole batch).
5) Cover the container with clingy plastic wrap (Glad wrap). I then use a rubber band over the mouth of the jar to hold it down. This is not to make it air tight but only to ensure no bugs get in. Place the container on a plate. Invariably stuff will spill over because of all the gas that is produced in the fermentation process.
6) Place the container in a quiet place in your kitchen. Check on it in about 5 days. Pick away any bits of floating cabbage and any signs of yeast (..not harmful stuff, but not worth eating!). You should see bubbles. I push down the cabbage with my hands to force out the bubbles. If required, pour in a bit more brine (1 teaspoon of salt per cup of water) if you've had considerable spillage. Then seal up the container.
7) My kitchen is about 80 degrees (..hey, I'm in Florida!) and I find the sauerkraut is done after 7-8 days. If yours is more like 72-75 degrees it will probably take 10-14 days. 68 degrees? It'll probably take 3 weeks. At some point simply unwrap the container and do a taste. It should taste quite sour, and a bit salty.
When finished simply transfer the sauerkraut into some sort airtight Tupperware container or two and stick it in the fridge. I should be able to keep in the fridge for months.
I eat a small portion (..it's hard to describe a portion) when I eat my lunch and dinner (; apparently it is best to eat sauerkraut as part of a meal).
Once you become good at this sauerkraut business you can add all sort of other veggies and seasonings to the mix. I'm not there yet!
How can you screw this up? By adding too much or too little salt. Otherwise it is pretty much fool proof.
_Lazza
