Skip to the content
Peabody TeachFor teachers and grown-ups

Sauerkraut: Cabbage, Salt, and Bacteria

7th grade nonfiction passage about fermented cabbage: 238 words, six questions, an answer key and vocabulary.

7th grade nonfiction fermented cabbage 238 words

Sauerkraut: Cabbage, Salt, and Bacteria

Sauerkraut is made from only two ingredients, shredded cabbage and salt, yet it turns tangy, sour, and crunchy after a few weeks. The change is not magic. It is the work of microbes, and it is a good example of how people use fermentation to make safe, lasting food.

First, the cook shreds the cabbage and mixes in salt, then squeezes and pounds it until juice comes out. The salt pulls water from the cabbage leaves, and that juice becomes a brine. The cabbage is packed into a crock or jar and pressed down until it is completely covered by the liquid. Keeping the cabbage under the brine is important, because it keeps out the air that spoilage molds need.

Cabbage leaves already carry a variety of bacteria. Among them are lactic acid bacteria, which do not need air to live. The salty, airless conditions are harsh for many other microbes but suit the lactic acid bacteria well. They feed on sugars in the cabbage and produce lactic acid. As the acid builds up, the mixture becomes more sour, which makes it hard for harmful bacteria to survive.

After a few days to several weeks, depending on the temperature, the sauerkraut is ready. The acid gives the flavor, and it also acts as a preservative, so the jar can be stored in a cool place for months. Many other foods are made this way, including pickles and kimchi.

Questions

  1. What are the two ingredients of sauerkraut? in the text

  2. How does the brine form? in the text

  3. Why must the cabbage stay under the brine? in the text

  4. What do lactic acid bacteria produce as they feed on sugars? in the text

  5. Why does sauerkraut taste sour? think about it

  6. How does the acid help the sauerkraut last for months? think about it

Words to know

fermentation
a change made when tiny living things eat sugar
brine
salty liquid used to cover food
crock
a heavy pot used for storing food
lactic acid
a sour acid made by certain bacteria
preservative
something that helps food last longer
Share

One passage, three levels

The same topic and facts written three ways, so a mixed class can read and talk about one text. Each group’s sheet shows only a shape; the key says which is which.

● Easier · 203 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 3.7

Sauerkraut has just two ingredients, shredded cabbage and salt. After a few weeks, it turns sour, tangy, and crunchy. This is not magic. Tiny microbes do the work. It is a good example of fermentation, a way to make food that lasts.

First, the cook shreds cabbage and mixes in salt. Then the cook squeezes and pounds it until juice comes out. The salt pulls water from the leaves, and the juice becomes a brine. The cabbage goes into a crock or jar. It is pressed down until the brine covers it. This is important, because it keeps out the air that spoilage molds need.

Cabbage leaves already have many bacteria on them. Some are lactic acid bacteria. They do not need air. Salt and no air are hard for many microbes, but they suit these bacteria. They eat sugars in the cabbage and make lactic acid. The acid makes it sour. It also makes it hard for harmful bacteria to live.

After a few days to a few weeks, the sauerkraut is ready. The acid gives the flavor. It also helps the food last, so a jar can be kept cool for months. Pickles and kimchi are made in a similar way.

▲ This passage · 238 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 7.6

Sauerkraut is made from only two ingredients, shredded cabbage and salt, yet it turns tangy, sour, and crunchy after a few weeks. The change is not magic. It is the work of microbes, and it is a good example of how people use fermentation to make safe, lasting food.

First, the cook shreds the cabbage and mixes in salt, then squeezes and pounds it until juice comes out. The salt pulls water from the cabbage leaves, and that juice becomes a brine. The cabbage is packed into a crock or jar and pressed down until it is completely covered by the liquid. Keeping the cabbage under the brine is important, because it keeps out the air that spoilage molds need.

Cabbage leaves already carry a variety of bacteria. Among them are lactic acid bacteria, which do not need air to live. The salty, airless conditions are harsh for many other microbes but suit the lactic acid bacteria well. They feed on sugars in the cabbage and produce lactic acid. As the acid builds up, the mixture becomes more sour, which makes it hard for harmful bacteria to survive.

After a few days to several weeks, depending on the temperature, the sauerkraut is ready. The acid gives the flavor, and it also acts as a preservative, so the jar can be stored in a cool place for months. Many other foods are made this way, including pickles and kimchi.

■ Harder · 245 words · Flesch-Kincaid grade 9.9

Sauerkraut is made from just two ingredients, shredded cabbage and salt, yet within a few weeks it becomes tangy, sour, and pleasantly crunchy. The transformation is not magic but the work of microbes, and it illustrates how people have long used fermentation to produce safe food that keeps for a very long time.

To begin, the cook shreds the cabbage, mixes in salt, and then squeezes and pounds the mixture until juice emerges. The salt draws water out of the cabbage leaves, and that liquid becomes a brine. The cabbage is packed into a crock or jar and pressed down until the brine covers it entirely. Keeping the cabbage beneath the surface matters a great deal, because it excludes the air that spoilage molds require.

Cabbage leaves already carry a wide variety of bacteria, among them the lactic acid bacteria, which do not need air in order to live. The salty, airless conditions are harsh for many other microbes but favor the lactic acid bacteria. These feed on the sugars in the cabbage and produce lactic acid. As the acid accumulates, the mixture grows more sour, and harmful bacteria find it increasingly difficult to survive.

After several days to several weeks, depending on the temperature, the sauerkraut is ready. The acid supplies the flavor and also serves as a preservative, so a jar can be stored in a cool place for months. Many other foods are produced in a similar way, including pickles and kimchi.

Download as one PDF

How to use it

  1. Press Read it big (or B) to put the text on the projector, or Full screen (F) to fill the whole screen.
  2. Ask the questions one at a time and use Show answer when the class has decided. A shows or hides every answer.
  3. Print student copy for the class, or Print with answers for yourself.

Ideas for class

  • Before reading, put fermentation, brine, crock, lactic acid and preservative on the board with their meanings from the Words to know section and have students predict what the text will be about.
  • Read it aloud once while students follow along, then have them reread it alone or with a partner. At a calm 100 words a minute it takes about 2 minutes to read aloud.
  • Use the Read it big button (or B) to put the text on the projector, and Show answer on one question at a time so the class commits to an answer first.
  • Question 5 asks the reader to infer. Ask students to point to the words in the passage that led them to their answer.
  • Ask students to write one question the passage did not answer, then look for the answer in a book or on a classroom screen.
  • Print the student copy for independent work and keep the answer-key copy for yourself.

Related

Questions

What reading level is "Sauerkraut: Cabbage, Salt, and Bacteria"?

It was written for 7th grade. It has 238 words and works out to a Flesch-Kincaid grade level of about 7.5. That is a formula's estimate from sentence length and syllables, and it is not a Lexile or a guided reading level, so check it against your students.

What do the questions ask?

There are six. 4 ask for something the text says directly and 2 ask the reader to work something out from clues. Each has an answer in the key, and the answers are written as a teacher would accept them, not as the only possible wording.

How long does it take to read?

About 2 minutes read aloud at 100 words a minute. For a one-minute fluency check, paste it into the fluency timer and use the word count.

Can I print it?

Yes. Print student copy gives the passage, the questions with lines to write on, and the word meanings. Print with answers gives the same page with the answers filled in. Both are made in your browser.

Is this passage from a published book?

No. It was written for Peabody Teach, so there is no book to buy and no login to read it.

Nothing you do here is sent to us. No sign-in, no ads.