Fennel, Kohlrabi and Green Apple Relish from The Nourished Kitchen
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It’s a virtual dinner party! If you’re just joining us, we are the 8th blog to participate in sharing delicious courses as we eat, drink, and celebrate our way through the new cookbook that’s due to hit bookshelves everywhere next Monday – The Nourished Kitchen. (See the other courses and hosts.)
We hope you enjoy this delicious recipe that Jenny, from Nourished Kitchen, graciously allowed us to share!
We know all of you are familiar with how much Oh Lardy loves to ferment foods. The eighth chapter in Jenny's book does not disappoint!
Beautiful pictures aside, she dives into all of the ins and outs of fermentation. She covers how to safely ferment your foods, which equipment to use, how to store your ferments, and how to check for contamination.
What we loved most? Her descriptions and instructions are so simple. She makes fermentation look easy and not intimidating.
Don't worry, her recipes include WAY more than just your standard sauerkraut. We can't wait to try her brine pickled swiss chard stems as well as her horseradish, apple, and beetroot relish! She also includes recipes for fermented condiments and beverages. We think it will be really fun to try our hands at sodas made with a ginger starter!
Jenny was kind enough to allow us to share her recipe for fennel, green apple, and kohlrabi relish! But please don't stop here. This book is a treasure trove of delicious and incredibly nourishing foods. It will be a delightful addition to your kitchen library.
Does the topic of fermenting baffle you? We created a Fermenting eCourse just for you and when you sign up, we will send you a Quick Start Guide! Grab the eCourse and the guide here!
Fennel, Kohlrabi and Green Apple Relish
Ingredients
- 6 kohlrabi
- 6 fennel bulbs with fronds
- 2 small green apples about 8 ounces, cored and finely chopped
- 3 1/2 teaspoons finely ground unrefined sea salt
Instructions
- Trim the kohlrabi of their leaves and stems, then peel them. Slice them thinly into matchsticks about 2 inches long by 1/8 inch thick. Place them in a large mixing bowl.
- Remove and discard the long stalks of the fennel bulbs, but reserve about 1/2 cup of loosely packed fronds. Chop the fronds finely, and then slice the fennel bulbs no thicker than 1/8 inch. Add the sliced bulbs and chopped fronds to the bowl with the kohlrabi.
- Toss the apples and salt into the bowl and knead the ingredients with your hands until they release their juice. Layer the mixture into a quart-sized fermentation crock, 1 cup at a time. Pack it tightly into the crock so that any air escapes and the ingredients release more of their juice. Continue packing and layering until you’ve added the entire contents of the mixing bowl to the crock. Pack down the ingredients once more to ensure that they are completely submerged in the brine and that the brine rests below the lip of the crock by at least 1 inch.
- Close the crock and ferment at room temperature for 10 to 14 days before tasting. If you prefer a stronger or sourer flavor, continue fermenting until done to your liking, testing every 3 to 5 days. Transfer to the refrigerator, root cellar, or other place of cold storage once the relish achieves the level of sourness you prefer and use within 6 months.
Notes
NOURISHED KITCHEN COOKBOOK
NOURISHED KITCHEN COOKBOOKThis is a virtual dinner party and each blogger has featured a recipe from each chapter of the book so be sure to check the others out!
From the Garden: My Humble Kitchen
From the Pasture: Nourishing Joy
From the Range: The Prairie Homestead
From the Waters: The Nourishing Gourmet
From the Fields: Weed ‘Em and Reap
From the Wild: Home Grown and Healthy
From the Orchard: Kitchen Stewardship
From the Larder: Oh Lardy
hi, great recipe! can’t wait to try it with my homegrown kohlrabi. I make sauerkraut and kimchi and sell it at farmer’s markets in Miami. I use 5 gallon ceramic crocks to ferment, and a very old sanded down baseball bat to pound the juices out of the cabbage and other ingredients when i make the kraut, and simply massage all the kimchi ingredients but still use 5 gallon crocks to ferment. Can i pound the kohlrabi/fennel/apple ingredients in the 5 gallon crocks with a bat?
I would imagine that system would work just fine! Let us know!
Hello! Do either of you had a way to prepare the root of fennel? Not the bulb the root. They are so big and lovely I hate to throw them out!
I just made a batch a few minutes ago, but there is not enough brine to cover the mix? What should I do?
I always add a bit of water to the top if I need more liquid.