It is important to distinguish the good bacteria vs the bad bacteria in our gastrointestinal tract. While the bad bacteria can cause several diseases and health issues, the good one fights hard to create balance in our bodies. This bacterial community – microbiome – shapes the immune system and protects against pathogens.

It’s been only recently when scientist have proven that there is a constant exchange of signals between the skin and the gut. That means that our intestinal health can be directly connected with the appearance of our skin.

There are studies showing that the majority of people with common skin issues like psoriasis, rosacea, eczema and acne also have problems with their digestive tract. 

Higher levels of inflammation in our bodies flair up on our skin, it’s a direct projection of what’s going on inside of us. If your lifestyle is stressful and diet unbalanced, inflammatory molecules escape from your gut and enter the bloodstream.

There are obviously treatments and products that we can use to soothe our skin issues and restore the skin microbiome. But we should also think about the fact that there is a direct link between our diet, lifestyle and healthy looking skin.

There are some natural ways how to keep our guts healthy and harmonised like:

• Drinking plenty of water
• Avoiding processed food which cases inflammation
• Trying to reduce stress (good sleep and exercise help)
• Reducing alcohol
• Plant based diet and snacks (Dulse Jerky)
• Balanced diet
• Probiotics supplements
• Adding some fermented products into our diet

Good bacteria in fermented products improve digestion. The good bacteria in these products also help synthesise and produce vitamins necessary for the immune system.

Our Seakraut is a mixture of Organic locally sourced red and white cabbage, a mixture of berries, herbs and several types of seaweeds. The seaweed we add into the mixture is sustainably collected from the Dorset coastline. It adds some umami flavour into our sauerkraut but also enriches the mixture for essential minerals, vitamins and proteins.

You can read more and purchase our variation for sauerkraut here or you can make your own.

We decided to share a recipe so anyone can try their own variation of sauerkraut. We love seaweed and its properties but why not try some herbs, spices or ingredients which resonate with you?

Recipe:

This is a simple kraut recipe and one that can adapted and modified to your liking.

• 5kg red and white cabbage (We went for a 1:1 ratio here but it is very adaptable)
• 100g salt (good rule of thumb is to go for 2% salt ratio to the cabbage since we used seaweed then we dipped just below the 2% salt ratio)
• 2 tablespoons caraway seeds
• 2 tablespoons of juniper berries 
• 20g dried seaweed flakes

Method:

1. Begin the process by getting out a large clean tub - plastic is usually the easiest to work with as its light. The bigger the better so you have plenty of room to mix your cabbage with the rest of the ingredients. Also get out the crock that you will be putting your cabbage into, and make sure it is sterilized. We have a small crock that we put into the oven to heat-sterilise and dry. There are various different ways to sterilize your crock. See online.
2. Cut up the cabbages into smaller chunks and grate them/cut them into thin slices. We used a cheese grater but there are various options out there to slice up your cabbages. This is the time consuming stage. After each section has been cut up, put it into the large tub to free up your chopping board station.
3. Once all the cabbage has been grated/sliced, mix all the other ingredients by scattering them on top of the cabbage. Then with both your hands, work all the ingredients into each other for 5-10 minutes.
4. Once you are able to easily squeeze juice from one hand full of the cabbage mixture, and you can hear the cabbage start to sing, then you are ready to place it into your crock. Make sure the crock is dry and clean.
5. Carefully put the cabbage mixture into the crock with your hands, or use a funnel. Use a Pounder or equivalent tool to push the sauerkraut mixture down into the crock so the liquid bubbles up. It's important to squish the kraut into the crock so it’s all nice and snug. Finally make sure to leave a few inches of space between the top of the crock and the cabbage level, so the weights can be put inside and on top of the cabbage.
6. Put the lid on and store the crock in a cool part of your house that is not too hot nor too cold. The temperature is important for the bacteria to get to work. Fill the rim of your crock with water so air can escape but not enter into the crock. Keep an eye on the water level throughout its fermentation by checking every couple of days. Fill up the water level if necessary.
7. Leave for 3-4 weeks to ferment. Temperature will affect the speed at which it ferments, but 3 weeks is usually a good duration in the spring/summer months.