Making sauerkraut and other fermented veggies

[Marianne]

Here's the link that gave good info on fermenting cabbage and other veggies:

http://www.wildfermentation.com/making-sauerkraut-2/#comment-9018

I have mine in the frig now. I do not like one that I used cabbage, carrots and onions in a salt brine ONLY because I don't like the onions in it. I didn't think I used too much onion, but that's all I can taste. It also started turning soft really fast! The day before it was really crisp. I should have put it in the frig then. But in the spirit of waste not/want not, I drained, rinsed and then added it to a veggie/bean salad that had a vinegar/oil and sugar type dressing. Ended up being okay in the end.

The jury is still out on the whey one....I used red cabbage and an apple. I think I'd rather have the salt brine. I can still drain the liquid off and add salt brine to it. That's one thing that's great about this stuff, you can usually adjust it to your tastes.

 

[so lucky]

My most recent batch of kraut went soft. I was wondering what did it. Do you think it just fermented too long at room temp? It is very sour, not at all salty. Still edible, but sure not as good as the crunchy stuff. It sat in the basement for a month, then in the fridge for a month, before I jarred it up and started eating it. What do you think the optimum time is, at, say, 68 to 70 degrees?

 

[hqueen13]

I really wish I could find the link that I had recently that had a recipe for making kraut right in jars, as well as fermenting other things. I liked the concept because the batches were much smaller and each one could be flavored individually, which would be good to do until we can figure out what flavors we like.

 

[Marianne]

I don't have enough experience to advise! I read on several sites of putting a grape leaf in with the cabbage to make it really crunchy. Wrong time of year around here for that. You could probably drain the liquid and add salt brine to taste. My very first batch of kraut was so soft and sour that I gave it to the hens. They wouldn't eat it either.

This batch was ready to go in the fridge after a couple of days. I think it was getting soft by day three or four. Next time I'll mark the date I started it. BUT the carrots I grated into it were past their prime, that could have had something to do with it, too.

The purple cabbage batch is a lot crisper. I made both batches the same morning. I was checking mine every day.

I have a vague recollection of my grandmother just slicing the cabbage and salting it before it went to the cellar. I don't remember her squeezing it the way this guy tells you. I know she left hers in the cellar for a long time. My friend remembers sneaking down into the cellar, taking off the lid and grabbing a handful of kraut to eat.

 

[hqueen13]

My very first batch of kraut was so soft and sour that I gave it to the hens. They wouldn't eat it either.

Ok, now that MUST have been bad!!! LOL