Pelustka is fermented pink farmer's sauerkraut with beet and celery.

The vibrant color, spicy flavor and rugged texture, Pelustka is fermented Ukrainian-style white cabbage (Ukrainian Пелюстка) and one of the most popular snacks in all Eastern European states. The magenta-pink color is one of the defining features of this sauerkraut. The secret of its aromatic taste and unique color lies in the combination of white cabbage, beet, celery leaves, garlic and hot chili.

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Among the many ways to ferment white cabbage, this chunky sauerkraut is an absolute favorite. And the best thing about it is that it can be eaten just a few days after being made.

The name pelustka translates to flower petal. In fact, the cabbage leaves colored by the beet are reminiscent of the petals of a rose. When this ferment is beautifully presented on a plate as an appetizer, it becomes an irresistible eye-catcher on a festive table.

Ukrainian Pelustka

Ukrainian Pelustka

Course: Side dish, snackCuisine: Ukrainian, GeorgianDifficulty: easy
Servings

6

Prep time

20

minutes
Fermentation time

4

weeks

Equipment

  • 1 liter bail-top jar (1)

Ingredients

  • 500 grams cabbage

  • 200 grams beetroot

  • 4 garlic cloves

  • 80 grams celery leaves

  • 1 fresh red chilli

  • 1 liter water

  • 30 grams salt (3% brine)

Instructions

  • First, prepare the brine so that the salt has enough time to dissolve. To do this, add the salt to the water and stir thoroughly.
  • Then prepare the cabbage. To do this, cut it into quarters and remove the stalk from each piece. For the quantity given above, probably ½ head of cabbage is enough. From the rest you either make something else, or you double all the ingredients and make more pelustka. Cut the quarters into pieces about 5×5 cm.
  • Peel the beet and cut into 1-2 mm thick slices. The easiest way to do this is with a vegetable slicer. Wash the celery leaves well and chop them into coarse pieces. If you find the leaves too leathery in the finished ferment, you can remove them more easily this way. I appreciate their robust structure, but that is absolutely a matter of taste.
  • Peel the garlic cloves and cut them in half. If half garlic cloves are too big for you to eat later, you can also chop them. Cut the chili into rings. When handling chili, it is recommended to wear gloves.
  • Then layer the vegetables in the fliptop jar. Start with beet, then add a layer of cabbage pieces on top. Spread some garlic, chili and celery leaves on top of the cabbage. Keep alternating layers until the ingredients are used up. The top layer should be beet, this will make everything nice and pink. The slices also make a good barrier for everything underneath. It is important that all the vegetables are always under the brine.
  • Place a weight on top so that some pressure is exerted and fill up with the brine. You should leave 2-3 cm space to the brim of the jar, so that when in the process of fermentation the level rises, nothing would overflow. Place in a dark and warm place, ideally between 18° and 24° C.
  • After 3-5 days, this ferment can already be eaten. However, I recommend you to be patient for 4 weeks. Then the aroma is balanced and the cabbage crunchy and tender. In that case, after a week, please put a little cooler, between 16 ° and 20 ° C.

Notes

  • You can control the spiciness of the ferment yourself by adding or reducing the amount of chili. You can also decide on the salt content. The more salt, the more tart the product will be. In addition, it remains crunchier due to a greater salinity.

Nutrition facts

  • Calories: 47kcal

Did you try this ferment?

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Mzhave

This delicious kraut is also appreciated in Georgia. There it is known as mzhave (Georgian მჟავე კომბოსტო).

Basically, it is not much different from Ukrainian pelustka, except that a lot of additional ingredients are used. Most notably, a variety of aromatic herbs and spices, as is common in Georgian cuisine. Mzhave is particularly characterized by a distinct spiciness, which is created by adding chilli to the mixture.

You can also add carrots and kohlrabi to the ferment, spices such as ground pepper or pink berries, horseradish root, parsley and bay leaves are also acceptable. So there is plenty of scope for creativity in the preparation.

11 Comments

  1. Das tönt verführerisch! vielen Dank für das Rezept. Ich glaube nicht, dass ich Sellerieblätter bekomme. Bei uns sind die Knollen nur ohne Grün zu kaufen. Soll ich ein paar Scheiben oder Raspeln vom Knollen beigeben als Würze oder eignet sich das schlecht?

    • Liebe Barbara,

      bei uns gibt es Sellerie mit Grün immer im Frühjahr und im Spätsommer, sogar im Supermarkt. Wenn Du noch ein bisschen warten kannst – es lohnt sich, die Blätter schmecken ganz anders als die Knollen. Wenn überhaupt, würde sie eher mit Stangensellerie ersetzen. Du kannst sie auch weglassen, das Kraut schmeckt auch ohne superlecker!

      Berichte gerne von Deinem Ergebnis.

      Best regards,
      Katsu

  2. Hallo Katsu,
    Heute gab es mein erstes Pelustka😀 Wir haben es zusammen mit unseren ukrainischen Mitbewohnern gekostet, und uns hat es allen sehr sehr gut geschmeckt. Laut unserer Mitbewohner macht man in der Ukraine dieses Kraut mit Essig und Zucker. Für mich persönlich war es so nach deinem Rezept perfekt. Auch die Lake ist so was von lecker,unglaublich gut👍👍
    Also vielen Dank für diese Inspiration, das werde ich bestimmt wieder machen.
    Alles Liebe und einen schönen Restsonntag 😀
    Carolin

    • Hej Caro,

      das ist ja schön, dass ihr es gemeinsam gegessen und es euch gut geschmeckt hat. Ja, es wird häufig nicht fermentiert, sondern schnell süss-sauer angemacht. Das ist auch lecker 🙂

      Herzlichst,
      Katsu

  3. Das klingt sehr lecker und ich werde es gerne ausprobieren.
    Ist es egal welches Salz man verwendet?
    Viele Grüße 👋

    • Hej Alexander,

      das Selleriegrün bringt einen besonderen Geschmack mit, ich würde es durch nichts ersetzen wollen.

      Gutes Gelingen!
      Katsu

  4. Liebe Katsu,
    Pelustka nach Deinem Rezept ist ein wahrer Genuss. Es ist eines unserer größten Favoriten geworden. Wir und unsere Freunde lieben es. Vielen Dank dafür.
    Sonnige Grüße
    Sabine

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