Remove any leathery outer leaves from your cabbage head and discard.

Place the cabbage on a large cutting board.

Using a sharp chef's knife, carefully cut into quarters, then thinly slice it into 1/8 inch thick shaved slices.

Transfer your sliced cabbage to an extra large bowl.

Sprinkle with the sea salt and using your clean hands massage the cabbage until it starts to wilt and release plenty of liquid. This may take about 10 minutes or so.

Stir in fennel seeds and peppercorns.

Use a clean 2-QT canning jar and firmly pack in the cabbage.

Make sure you tightly press it into the jar to have as little air bubbles as possible.

Weigh the cabbage down using a small plate, topped with a weight that fit the mouth of your jar (I use one or two 3.5 oz cans).

The liquid released by the cabbage must now cover it by 1-2 inches.

If it's not covered, then you’ll need to make some extra brine, and allow it to fully cool.

Here's how to make the extra brine, if needed: In a saucepan combine 1.5 Tbsps canning salt per 1-QT of water. Boil over high heat stirring until your salt is fully dissolved.

Remove from the heat and allow your brine to cool completely before adding it to jar.

Loosely cover the jar, to allow the gas produced by the fermenting cabbage to escape.

Alternately, you can cover the opening with a clean, heavy towel.

Leave the cabbage to ferment, undisturbed, between 70° and 75° degree room temperature for 3-4 weeks, or until bubbling stops.

Cabbage must be kept submerged below the surface of the fermenting liquid throughout fermentation. Check your crock 2-3 times each week; skim and remove any scum that may form on top of liquid. This is normal, just clean it up.

Once your cabbage is done, transfer to individual glass containers or jars and keep refrigerated for up to 3 months.

Enjoy!