Ourganic Farms Find Success Through Family Recipe for Sauerkraut

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Brittany Kehl, who co-founded Ourganic Farms with her partner, Neal Zastrow, says their raw fermented sauerkraut became their signature product by accident. 

Kehl uses organic and permaculture farming methods to grow heirloom tomatoes, peppers, asparagus, cabbage and fruit trees on Zastrow’s family’s former dairy farm in Watertown. The couple also raises cattle and chickens. When Kehl first began selling her items at the Watertown Farmers Market four years ago, she didn’t have much to offer beyond asparagus, eggs and seedlings.

Zastrow then suggested to Kehl that she take some of their sauerkraut to the market. “Neal has been making sauerkraut for years from a family recipe that dates back to the 1800s. It’s all fermented in stone crocks,” Kehl says. “It flew off the table the first week we introduced it at the market.”

The couple soon expanded their line beyond their original recipe and developed other sauerkraut flavors: a Bavarian style caraway, Apple Cider & Fennel, and the one that became their biggest hit—Garlic & Cracked Pepper. 

“Garlic and black peppercorn are the most commonly used spices in the world,” Kehl says, and thus, those flavors pair well with many dishes. “The fermentation process transforms flavors and adds complexity.”

Sauerkraut and brats go hand-in-hand, but Kehl also suggests draining the sauerkraut and adding it to grilled cheese or any deli-style sandwich. It also makes a good salad topper. Some Ourganic Farms customers told her they drain it and use it to top pizza. 

“It’s more than a condiment. We often just plop it on our plates and use it as a side dish,” Kehl adds. While she doesn’t make any health claims, fermented foods such as sauerkraut, kimchi and pickles have gained popularity in recent years for their probiotic properties and acidic enzymes that help the body digest hard-to-break- down foods like red meat. 

Humans have fermented foods since ancient times for flavor and natural preservation. Kehl notes that just about any food can be fermented, and as her garden grows, so does the Ourganic Farms product line. She has added canned items such as jalapeno peppers. She grows much of the cabbage for the sauerkraut and also sells cabbage seedlings at farmers markets. Her heirloom tomatoes include German Pink, a beefsteak-style variety known for a sweeter, lower acidic flavor.

Kehl primarily grows indeterminate heirloom tomatoes, which are varieties that grow tall—six feet or higher—and produce through the first frost. (Determinant tomato plants tend to stay smaller and need little to no pruning.) She uses cattle panels as a trellis and trains the tomato vines to grow up the panels, which allows for better air and sun exposure.

Ourganic Farms has 29 fruit trees including peach, plum, apple and cherry. Kehl and Zastrow also raise cattle and chickens. They may add additional sauerkraut flavors including hotter products—Kehl says many customers have requested more heat—and will continue to build the vendor-customer relationships that foster in farmers market settings. “You can’t get that kind of personalized interaction through social media.”

This summer, Ourganic Farms will rotate between the Lake Mills and Menomonee Falls markets on Wednesdays. They’ll be at the Oconomowoc Summer Farmers Market each Saturday from 8 a.m. to noon, and they’ll also appear at the Beloit Farmers Market. Sauerkraut can be ordered online through ourganicfarmswi.com/buy-online and is available at local retailers in Watertown, Oconomowoc, Big Bend and Eagle. Kehl hopes to expand into Milwaukee retail markets in the near future.

“I started as a fluke, but often beautiful things happen unexpectedly,” Kehl concludes.