Kraut, coleslaw and cabbage salad season is upon us (or nearly past if you live in Austin like me). I’ve meant to share my tips for shredding a whole head of cabbage without a kraut slicer for a long time. 

1. Peel off any wayward leaves, ones that don’t cling to the head. Slice your cabbage in half like so.

2. Remove the cores from both halves.

4. Flip the halves over and begin to cut them with a sharp 8”-chef’s knife. Go as slowly as you need to here, there’s no ‘Chopped’ camera nor timer to race. Make slow, even cuts with your knife to produce finely shredded strips. The first few cuts will be toughest to keep thin since they’re at an angle. Give them an extra few slices separately if you want all the shreds to be evenly thin.

Use cutting action that’s like a paper slicer. The tip of your knife shouldn’t come off the board. If you can’t make this happen then move the cabbage and board closer to you or move your set-up to a shorter work space so you can slice down on the cabbage with more control.

Check out my super-small batch fermented sauerkraut recipe on Edible Austin’s website. (I usually double or triple it since we breeze through a pint of kraut in just a few days, and it keeps indefinitely in the fridge once fermented.)