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5+ Things to Make with Sauerkraut Other Than a Reuben

Here are 5 6 sauerkraut recipes (plus a couple of extras) which are just as unique and delicious, as the Reuben, solving the dilemma of how to eat fermented cabbage. Enjoy, because sauerkraut and most other fermented vegetables are really good for you and your gut health. 

What is sauerkraut?

Sauerkraut is basically fermented cabbage. It is fermented using salt which creates good microbial growth. In the old days fermentation was used as a way of preserving foods for the winter. The added benefit, of course, is that fermented foods are high in probiotics which helps keep our digestion and immune health in check.

How to eat sauerkraut?

You can eat sauerkraut straight out of the jar or barrel as a snack. It’s also a delicious addition to meals as a side, sandwiches and salads.

And you’ve probably heard of the famed New York Reuben… what would it be without a generous helping of fermented cabbage? Just another layered sourdough sandwich filled with thin slices of corned beef and Swiss cheese. It’s probably safe to say then, that with the ingenious addition of pickled cabbage to the sandwich, it is one dish which has single-handedly helped lift kraut to international stardom.

Things to make with sauerkraut

But there are many more ways you can enjoy this delicious fermented vegetable. You can add it to soups, pancakes, dumplings and even smoothies!

Check out this list of 5+ more sauerkraut recipe ideas which are just as unique and delicious, if in fact, not better!

1. Sauerkraut Kiwi Smash (Smoothie)

This is probably the most novel way to use pickled cabbage. Stop cringing and listen up. Mixed into a kiwi smoothie, fermented cabbage provides a delicious, tangy and easy way to convince fussy eaters to have some of the probiotic goodness raw. In fact, when I first served it to my husband he didn’t even flinch… and he is still none the wiser.

Recipe: in a high-powered blender, blend together for 30-60 seconds: ⅓ cup sauerkraut, ½ cup tightly packed iceberg lettuce, ½ cup kale leaves, 1 kiwifruit, peeled, ¼ orange, peeled, 1 teaspoon macadamia oil, 1½ cups chilled filtered water and ½ cup ice cubes. Serves 1-2.

The recipe comes from my eBook, 40+ Quick and Healthy Smoothies. The eBook is packed with nutrient-dense smoothies with dairy-free, gluten-free, nut-free and added sugar-free options. No soy, wheat or eggs. Loads of ingredient spotlights, tips for prepping, storing and making your smoothies even more healthy and delish. You can  download the Smoothie eBook here for $15 (or subscribe and pay only $10.50 plus save 30% off all my other eBooks).

Sauerkraut Kiwi Smoothie Recipe

2. Sauerkraut Slaw

Served alongside a good schnitzel or pan-fried fish, the sauerkraut slaw requires only 5 simple ingredients. It’s light on the calories but never on taste.

Recipe: Frankly you can enjoy it straight out of the jar, it’s so good! The actual Slaw recipe and clean, real food dressing to go with it is on pages 154 and 44 of The Wholesome Cook book. You can also make it into this veggie-packed Super Slaw with a whole lotta more good for you ingredients!

3. Sauerkraut Soup // Kapuśniak

Another one of my childhood favourites, is the sauerkraut potato and bacon soup. Sounds pretty good already, doesn’t it?? And it’s simple to prepare too.

Recipe: cook 2 large peeled potatoes separately as the acid in the kraut may prevent them from going soft if cooked together. Then add them to the soup made up of 500g sauerkraut, 2 cups water, 2 bay leaves, 3 all spice seeds and 100g diced bacon, simmer together for 30 minutes. Serves 4.

4. Sauerkraut Hunter’s Stew // Bigos

Back in the day, Bigos was cooked to help use up leftovers from hunting and household scraps. Today it is a much more formal dish, with quality smoked goods, red wine and lemon rind added for flavour – ingredients once perceived as luxuries. In whatever incarnation, it is one of Poland’s most liked and famous national dishes.

Recipe: Sauerkraut Hunter’s Stew // Bigos

5. Sauerkraut Dumplings

Lightly stir-fried sauerkraut, mixed with aromatic porcini mushrooms, or any other actually, wrapped in thin pastry parcel. The dough is a breeze to makeThey are best enjoyed boiled then fried. What’s not to like?

RELATED:  For a gluten-free dumpling skin recipe, check out my debut cookbook, The Wholesome Cook which features 180 refined sugar-free recipes, wholefood kitchen tips, shopping lists and healthy living guides including tips for dealing with fussy eaters and eating the best food for your body.

Recipe: Sauerkraut and Porcini Dumplings

6. Sauerkraut Pancakes

Mixed into a savoury batter, the pancakes are great on their own but work just as well as a side to hearty goulash, creamy mushroom sauce or roasted pork with gravy.

Recipe: Mix together 250g sauerkraut, 1 cup milk, 1 cup plain flour, 1 egg and some smoked hot paprika. Spoon mixture into a lightly oiled frypan and cook on both sides, until golden brown. Makes about 12 pancakes.

Sauerkraut recipe ideas

Other tasty and easy uses for Sauerkraut

Nori Rolls: One of my favourite ways of enjoying fermented cabbage, aside of course from eating it straight out of the jar, is in Rice-free Nori Rolls. Sauerkraut lends a similar tang of flavour as pickled ginger would to regular sushi.

Meatballs: You can also add 1 cup of sauerkraut to about 500g meatball mince.

Burgers: this is obvious if you like the Reuben, but sauerkraut goes really well on burgers. Or try adding some kraut to the patties themselves. For more sauerkraut resources and information on its healing properties visit Kraut Look.

49 comments

Tammi January 27, 2012 at 12:06 pm

Mmmm love sauerkraut. Prefer Rotkol, though.

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Kristin Nicholas January 27, 2012 at 12:17 pm

These look great. Love sauerkraut and never thought of any of these. Thx. Happy Australia Day – probably over by now!

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Chanel January 27, 2012 at 1:01 pm

I love sauerkraut, so it’s great to see these ideas for it! I’m guilty of eating it straight out of the jar with a fork, but I’d like to try making my own now :D

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Gaby January 27, 2012 at 1:31 pm

I always eat plain sauerkraut as a side, thanks for sharing these ideas to add it as an ingredient.

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Just A Smidgen January 27, 2012 at 2:41 pm

Lovely… so many recipes in one post! I just had Bigos last fall and it was so fragrant, I’m excited to try your recipe since I was unable to locate one online! xo Smidge

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Courtney January 27, 2012 at 2:59 pm

I do not think I’ve had sauerkraut since I was a kid! I need to give it a try again for sure.

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Anna @ the shady pine January 27, 2012 at 6:32 pm

I am loving all of these ideas but would love that stew….it looks delicious!

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Three-Cookies January 27, 2012 at 8:13 pm

Creative. And I haven’t even tried a Reuben yet.

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Maureen January 28, 2012 at 12:14 am

Aren’t you clever. Sauerkraut is for Reubens in our house. Until today and all those ideas :)

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sportsglutton January 28, 2012 at 3:03 am

Fantastic collection of sauerkraut recipes for a kraut lover like myself.

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Clare Cooks! January 28, 2012 at 3:44 am

I love sauerkraut! The soup and the dumplings look delicious.

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Lizzy (Good Things) January 28, 2012 at 3:48 pm

Wow, I haven’t seen sauerkraut since my parents were alive! Nice one.

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Jennifer (Delicieux) January 28, 2012 at 4:33 pm

Some great inspiration there!!! I didn’t know sauerkraut could be so versatile!

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Miss Kimbers @ Fruit Salad and Mixed Veg January 28, 2012 at 8:57 pm

Nothing like some sauerkraut. I just eat it plain and it’s still good:)
I tried making some but it did not work too well. The kraut expanded too much in the jar and I had to open the lid to release the pressure and kraut-ey juice came out and woah, it smelt so bad! I buy home made sauerkraut from a Polish shop- much better than mine!

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Bam's Kitchen January 29, 2012 at 2:39 pm

Actually I never really liked sauerkraut as a kid as it was cooked up plain or on a rueben sandwich. Boring….However, with all of these interesting ideas you might have changed my mind.

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rsmacaalay January 29, 2012 at 5:52 pm

I love that saurkraut hunter stew, I see my self enjoying a bowl of those.

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beti January 29, 2012 at 7:29 pm

everything looks extremely good but I think that the stew wins, great ideas!

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Chopinand @ ChopinandMysaucepan January 29, 2012 at 7:36 pm

Dear Martyna,

I never liked sauerkraut when I was a kid but I love it know and never quite understand what there was to dislike because it’s also similar to pickled vegetables like Korean kimchi, Chinese ham choy or Japanese pickled vegetables! Thanks for sharing all these beautiful recipes!!

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Sissi January 30, 2012 at 2:13 am

Excellent ideas for me beloved sauerkraut! The pancakes look delicious. Among the dishes I know bigos is my favourite and the dumplings of course!
I would never think of the sauerkraut salad as a slaw, but you are totally right to call it this way. (By the way, I must check what Reuben is ;-) )
I would add the Hungarian “Székely Gulyas” to this list. An excellent dish I have recently discovered.

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Sissi January 30, 2012 at 2:13 am

Sorry for the typo, I meant “MY beloved” of course ;-)

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sprint2thetable January 31, 2012 at 5:21 am

Such great ideas! I especially love the idea of sauerkraut pancakes. That would be a cool Super Bowl additions, as it sounds like it’d go perfectly with a beer! :)

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Kay aka Babygirl January 31, 2012 at 9:25 am

I actually LOVE Sauerkraut but never know what to do with it other than hot dogs or reubens. Love all these different variations I can try.. especially the dumplings.. delish!

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Nami | Just One Cookbook January 31, 2012 at 7:39 pm

OMG I’m all for Sauerkraut dumplings! What a fantastic idea! Well pancakes look good too, but I need to check out the dumplings first. This post was pretty interesting. Never expected this many delicious recipes using sauerkraut!

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Nate @ House of Annie January 31, 2012 at 8:26 pm

I love sauerkraut, and I think your dumpling idea is great!

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sara (Belly Rumbles) February 4, 2012 at 3:37 am

Funny, I have never thought of using it as an ingredient. Love the stuff! The dumpling idea is a great one.

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10 Famous Marathoners | The Body N' Sole Blog February 20, 2012 at 12:23 pm

[…] Ways to use up leftover sauerkraut other than a Reuben sandwich. I could have assumed that a Reuben sandwich was an option. I’m expecting a little more from you, Google. […]

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Audra July 27, 2012 at 5:27 am

When my great-grandma makes the slaw, she uses honey instead of sugar, and lemon juice instead of half the oil. You also have to be sure you’re using sauerkraut without wine, and that you rinse it to get rid of the excess brine before adding the carrot.

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Martyna @ Wholesome Cook July 27, 2012 at 8:19 am

Hi Audra, you are right about the Kraut. It tastes better with Sauerkraut than Weinkraut. And I like the idea of using lemon juice and honey in it too. Thanks for sharing.

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Mary C. October 25, 2012 at 10:30 am

Thank you for these awesome ideas! I am going to try the pancakes tonight — cannot wait to try them.

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Priscilla March 11, 2013 at 6:33 am

My mother always fried up smoke sausage drained the grease except for a few tablespoons and then added the sauerkraut to the pan and fried all together till kraut turn a light brown from sucking up the grease and no liquid was left from the kraut.

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Margaret May 22, 2013 at 4:46 am

i’m looking for a recipe for sauerkraut combined with sour creme and green apples. anyone heard of
this mixture?

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Hawk June 13, 2013 at 8:19 pm

Please make your site faster…. terrible

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Jane Ownbey Nurse July 2, 2013 at 9:33 am

Does sauerkraut go with grilled lamb chops? Has anyone tried this as an alternative meat?

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Martyna @ Wholesome Cook July 2, 2013 at 8:02 pm

I can’t see why not? I would add a little cumin into the sauerkraut slaw or braise.

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sadia prettal October 5, 2013 at 9:43 pm

you sharing just 5 ideas all are delicious but i must say your all blog posting and dressing and food all work are awesome..Sounds really good.

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Nancy Norris November 13, 2013 at 12:18 am

I tried the pancakes and found them to be too wet. I should has drained the kraut well.

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Cabbage and Fennel Slaw with a Mustard Avocado Dressing | Wholesome Cook February 4, 2014 at 10:12 am

[…] think slaws are a side that sings next to so many dishes: fish goes well with a Sauerkraut Slaw, chicken, steak, burgers and slow cooked meat can benefit from a Super Slaw. They even make sense […]

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2014 Winter CSA Share #7, March 5th | Your CSA March 5, 2014 at 4:56 am

[…] 5+ Things to  Make With Sauerkraut […]

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Ross March 25, 2014 at 12:11 pm

Looking forward to trying these, it’s funny how a bowl or jar of sauerkraut in the fridge never seems to decrease no matter how many times you take a little out. Not convinces on the smoothy but that is more reason to try it.

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Mel @ The cook's notebook March 26, 2014 at 4:33 pm

I’m not at all sure about that smoothie!! But the other ideas look fabulous. Must try making my own as I never have.

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Kraut Cakes May 3, 2014 at 3:09 am

[…] Find the original recipe (and many other fabulous uses for sauerkraut!) here. […]

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Paul June 16, 2014 at 11:57 pm

That kiwi smash has me intrigued. I might just have to give it a shot!

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Kay September 8, 2014 at 2:26 pm

My krout recipe and pork chops in a small pressure cooker. Layer home made krout with pork chops, seasoning salt, and Tony Chachere’s seasoning. Relayer with krout on top and pork chops, and seasoning. Top with Krout. Pressure on 10 lbs for 20 minutes. Let pressure go down! Great with white navy beans, corn bread, and fried potatoes!

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[…] sauerkraut on hand, I tried this soup recipe and loved it! Now to eat sauerkraut more […]

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[…] 5+ Things to Make with Sauerkraut Other Than a Reuben … – Here are 5 6 sauerkraut recipes (plus a couple of extras) which are just as unique and delicious, as the Reuben, solving the dilemma of what to do with sauerkraut forever. […]

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[…] Sauerkraut: 5 things to make wih kraut besides a Reuben Sandwich […]

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[…] but with a sour kick. Martyna Angell, author of The Wholesome Cook has a great blog post naming six things to make with sauerkraut other than a reuben that includes several raw sauerkraut recipes for sauerkraut kiwi smoothies, sauerkraut slaw and […]

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[…] 5+ Things to Make with Sauerkraut Other Than a Reuben … – Here are 5 6 sauerkraut recipes (plus a couple of extras) which are just as unique and delicious, as the Reuben, solving the dilemma of what to do with sauerkraut … […]

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