American · side, sauce

Fermented Kale or Swiss Chard

Name: Fermented Kale or Swiss Chard
Total time: 45 min
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: Kale: 8 cups thinly sliced kale or Swiss chard leaves, stems removed, loosely packed (about 130 g); 1 cup chopped cabbage, plus 1–2 outer leaves to cover; ½ cup chopped carrot; ½ large onion, sliced; 2–3 cloves garlic, sliced; 2 tbsp caraway, fennel or dill seed, freshly ground; 1 tbsp salt (about 16 g) in 1½ cups water, for the brine (the vegetables take up about 8.5 g)

Fermented Kale or Swiss Chard — from Clean Food Living's cooking video

Watch how it’s made · 21:29

Video by Clean Food Living on YouTube · Open on YouTube

45 min · plus 14–21 days fermentingMakes 10 × ¼ cup (40 g)21 kcal a portion

Low carb (2.5 g net carbs) but not keto: 15% of the energy is from fat, and keto meals get about 60% or more
Vegan
Gluten-free ingredients
Nut-free

Contains: none of the common allergens in the listed ingredients. Check labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes.

A tangy fermented 'green kraut' with no vinegar or sugar: about 20 kcal a quarter-cup, with some fibre and nearly half a day's vitamin K from the kale. It is salted, at about 340 mg sodium a serve.

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Ingredients 7

Kale: 8 cups thinly sliced kale or Swiss chard leaves, stems removed, loosely packed (about 130 g)
1 cup chopped cabbage, plus 1–2 outer leaves to cover
½ cup chopped carrot
½ large onion, sliced
2–3 cloves garlic, sliced
2 tbsp caraway, fennel or dill seed, freshly ground
1 tbsp salt (about 16 g) in 1½ cups water, for the brine (the vegetables take up about 8.5 g)

Method

Tap a time to watch that step in the video.

Use freshly picked kale or Swiss chard (her store-bought kale batches failed). Rinse lightly only where there's dirt or bugs. Cut out the stems, stack and roll the leaves, slice thinly, then cross-slice. You need 7–8 loosely packed cups. 5:41
Put the greens in a large bowl with ½ large onion and 2–3 garlic cloves, sliced, 1 cup chopped cabbage (keep 1–2 whole outer leaves aside) and ½ cup chopped carrot. Add 2 tbsp caraway, fennel or dill seed, freshly ground. 7:06
Stir 1 tbsp salt (one without anti-caking agents) into 1½ cups water, pour it over the vegetables and toss well. Leave 15–20 minutes, until the greens soften and the brine turns dark green. 8:29
Pack into a clean quart jar a couple of handfuls at a time, pressing down hard and adding brine as you go; leave about 3 inches (8 cm) of headspace. Cover with torn cabbage leaf and a glass weight so everything is under the brine. 9:11
Set a lid on loosely, stand the jar on a plate and leave at 70–80°F (21–27°C), out of direct sun, for 14–21 days. Cloudy brine and bubbles in the first 1–3 days are normal; spoon off anything that floats up. 11:10
With a pH meter it must read below 4.5 by day 5; if not, or if it smells foul or musty, throw it out. Taste from day 14; then lift out the weight, wipe off any harmless kahm yeast, close tightly and refrigerate (keeps 6+ months). 12:48

Tip. Makes 1 quart jar, about 10 quarter-cup serves (our estimate). Use garden-fresh greens: her store-bought kale batches failed. Short on greens? Add more cabbage, onion or carrot. Pick one seed: caraway, fennel or dill.

The method is a summary in our words — the video shows every step.

One portion, ¼ cup (40 g), gives you 1 of 10

Energy21 kcal90 kJ

Protein1.1 g2% of a day

Fibre1.5 g6% of a day

Carbohydrate4.1 g2.5 g net · 1.3 g sugars1% of a day

Fat0.3 g0 g saturated0% of a day

Sodium340 mg15% of a day

Where the energy comes from one serve

Net carbs 58%
Protein 26%
Fat 16%

For comparison, low-carb eating usually gets under 26% of its energy from carbs, and ketogenic eating under 10%. Why this is here

Vitamins & minerals % of a day, one serve · tap for more

Vitamin K High48%

58 µg a serve, mostly from kale (87%). Needed for blood clotting and bones. Leafy greens and herbs are very rich in it. If you take warfarin, keep your intake steady and talk to your doctor.

Vitamin C High22%

20 mg a serve, mostly from kale (76%). An antioxidant needed for collagen, immunity and iron absorption. Long cooking destroys some, so raw herbs, citrus and capsicum help.

Show the other 13

Vitamin A9%

85 µg a serve, mostly from carrot (63%). Keeps eyes, skin and the immune system healthy. Orange vegetables and dark greens give beta-carotene, which the body turns into vitamin A.

Vitamin B65%

0.1 mg a serve, mostly from kale (43%). Helps turn food into energy and make brain messengers. Chickpeas, fish, poultry, potatoes and bananas are good sources.

Folate4%

15 µg a serve, mostly from kale (53%). Needed to make DNA and new cells — especially important before and in early pregnancy. Legumes and leafy greens are rich sources.

Potassium3%

130 mg a serve, mostly from kale (47%). Balances sodium to help control blood pressure and keeps muscles and nerves working. Beans, potatoes, leafy greens and fruit are rich sources.

Calcium3%

38 mg a serve, mostly from kale (51%). Builds bones and teeth and helps muscles and nerves work. Dairy, calcium-set tofu, sardines with their bones and some greens supply it.

Iron3%

0.5 mg a serve, mostly from caraway (42%). Carries oxygen in your blood. Iron from plants absorbs better with vitamin C in the same meal — lemon, tomato or capsicum.

Magnesium3%

12 mg a serve, mostly from kale (49%). Takes part in hundreds of reactions — energy, muscles, nerves, blood sugar and bones. Nuts, seeds, legumes and whole grains are good sources.

Zinc2%

0.2 mg a serve, mostly from kale (37%). Needed for immunity, wound healing, taste and growth. Meat, seafood, legumes, seeds and whole grains supply it.

Vitamin E1%

0.2 mg a serve, mostly from kale (48%). An antioxidant that protects cell membranes. Nuts, seeds and plant oils such as olive oil are the main sources.

Selenium1%

0.5 µg a serve, mostly from caraway (34%). Part of the body's antioxidant enzymes and needed for thyroid hormones. Seafood, eggs, meat and Brazil nuts are rich sources.

Omega-31%

0 g a serve, mostly from kale (99%). Omega-3 fats support the heart and brain. Oily fish give EPA and DHA; walnuts, flax, chia and canola give ALA, which the body converts only a little.

Vitamin D0%

0 µg a serve. Helps you absorb calcium for bones and supports muscles. Few foods have much — oily fish, eggs, UV-exposed mushrooms, fortified milks. Sunlight is the main source.

Vitamin B120%

0 µg a serve. Keeps nerves and blood cells healthy. Found almost only in animal foods and fortified foods (some plant milks, nutritional yeast), so vegans need a reliable source.

Estimated from the ingredient list with USDA FoodData Central values; % of a day uses the food-label daily values. How this works

Recipe and video by Clean Food Living; the method summary, nutrition estimate and diet notes are Notbroken’s. General information about food, not dietary advice.