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Some time ago I was asked by one of our regular clients if I know how to make MOST. Now to clarify – “Most” is the German word for Apple Wine. This used to be a very traditional beverage in especially rural German households. When I was just a little kid, I remember the apple harvest each autumn. My grandfather and than later my father would sort through the apples and pears to pick the most perfect ones, the ones without pressure marks, without worms to be either stored away for the winter or to be used for the Most.

Later we would take out our handcart, something like that:

We’d load it with the apples and the barrels and would push and drag it to the local “Mostmacherei” (big cider presses) . Mind you we didn’t have horses or cattle for the cart, my grandfather and my father would drag it and the women and we kids would push. Let me tell you, though it certainly wasn’t fun for the adults, we kids loved it. The whole village would meet at the Mostmacher (cider press), each family patiently waiting for their turn. Do I need to add, that while waiting the adults would finish the apple wine from the last year? In our village we had a nice “Mostmacher”, he always let us kids try the first few drops of the freshly pressed apple juice. Hm, what a taste. After a day of playing and drinking apple juice we would drag the handcart home and heave the barrels with the apple juice in our cellar where it would slowly turn into our own homemade Most.

Now here in Mexico it might be a little bit difficult to make Most, because generally we do not have cellars here, but if you can find a cool place it still is possible.

Here is what you have to do:

Make your own apple juice with healthy and ripe apples. Best use sour apples, very juicy for more juice. We think that the Red Delicious Apple that can be bought here in Mexico everywhere are not really very good for juice. You might want to go with one of the yellow/red ones. I have found this website which offers a very good selection of different apples, their use, their harvest and their taste. You can add also some pears in a relation of 1/3 pears and 2/3 apples.

Pour the juice in a dark bottle, a barrel or a plastic container and let it rest in a cool place. Fill your container only 2/3 parts because once the fermentation starts the juice will foam up. However do not keep it cooler than 8° Celsius (or 46 Fahrenheit), no fermentation will take place if it is too cool.

You do not have to add anything, the fermentation will start by itself, nevertheless you can add yeast. Our Mostmacher recommends to use dark beer, this way fermentation will start earlier and the apple juice won’t develop bad fungus or turn bad that easy.

Keep in mind though that the container needs to have a valve so that the carbon acid can escape but oxygen cannot enter the container. In Germany we use a fermenting tap as you see in the picture above, and I am sure, that you’ll find it too in USA, Canada or in Mexico. But I haven’t seen it here in Puerto Vallarta so far.

Once the fermentation tap stops bubbling, the fermenting process is completed. Please note that the fermentation tap stops bubbling also if your storage place is to cold, fermentation has not taken place then and your apple juice will just turn sour.

After the fermentation process is completed you need to filter the Most. You will find sediments on the bottom of your container and you need to separate the Most from the sediments. To do so put a small flexible tube in your container and suck until you have the Most all the way in the tube and let it stream into a new and clean container.

Now you have what we call Most. And if you do so, I wouldn’t mind try it! Some come over and tell me how it worked out.

If you like the sweet-tart flavor you’ll enjoy this recipe.

Ingredients:

• 1 medium head red cabbage, cored and sliced (around 1 kg)
• 90 g sugar
• 80 ml vinegar (Winfried recommends cider vinegar)
• 150 g white onions
• 2 green apples peeled and sliced
• some red wine
• 2 tablespoons of cornstarch
• 100 g lard

Preparation:

1. Toss cabbage, apples and onion in a large bowl. Add water, vinegar, sugar, red wine and salt.
2. Let it rest for about 3 to 4 hours
3. Sauté the cabbage with the lard. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 30 to 45 minutes.
4. Combine cornstarch and cold water until smooth; stir in cabbage mixture. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 1-2 minutes or until thickened.

This is a Black Forest Restaurant original Recipe. If you like to use this recipe commercially or distribute it, please contact us for our permission.

What you need:

• cabbage
• sea salt
• filtered water
• crock or mason jar

Preparation:

1. Wash your canning jars or crock.

2. Shred or slice your cabbage. Most recipes call for pounding the cabbage, to release the juices. I use the side of a wooden meat tenderizer. Pound until the cabbage is glistening. I do this in the crock, but you can use a roasting pan, or anything to keep the cabbage from flying. (I’ve also tried this without any pounding, and achieved great results either way. I recommend trying both approaches to see which you prefer. No pounding is less work.)

3. Put a few handfuls of cabbage in, followed by a sprinkling of sea salt (about 1 teaspoon.) Mix the salt into the cabbage a little. Mushy sauerkraut is often caused by lack of salt, so don’t worry about overdoing it with salt. (If you use processed table salt, save it for icy sidewalks. Unrefined sea salt is much healthier for you, and will not cause hypertension.) For a quart mason jar, use about 2 teaspoons of salt.

4. Pack all of your cabbage layers into the crock or jars. Do this as tightly as you can. Add filtered water, just enough so that it covers the top of the cabbage.

5. Put lids on your jars or crock. You might want to put a plate or pan under the jars to catch any later overflow water from fermentation. If you don’t have a lid for the crock, a small plate, or a water filled bag works to keep the cabbage submerged.

6. Set the crock or jars to ferment in a warm place (room temperature) for a week or two. I put mine either in a cupboard or on top of the fridge. I’ve sometimes had to add a little more water part way through the week. The longer you leave it, the more effervescent it will get. Sample a forkful periodically. When it’s ready, put it into the fridge to stop the fermentation.

That’s it. It’s amazingly simple, and produces an excellent result every time. You’ll soon find it a regular part of your meals, and your gut will thank you.

Original Article: Easy Sauerkraut – Stumbling Homestead