Author Topic: Homemade sauerkraut for the win  (Read 4594 times)

Hedge_87

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Homemade sauerkraut for the win
« on: July 28, 2015, 07:06:06 PM »
Just worked up the courage to try my first batch of sauerkraut and it was delicious. It fermented for 22 days (I think not 100% sure though). I've been wanting to try some lacto fermenting and after reading entirely to much about it, I gave it a shoot.

I also tried to pickle some cucumbers and peppers but they didn't turn out. The peppers are edible but I only had enough for a pint jar and I used a whole oak leaf to keep them crunchy. I love the texture (really crisp) and the spice, but they have a woody off flavor which makes me think I over did the oak leaf. The cucumbers however turned cloudy after 4 days fermenting and I was scared to try them so they ended up being compost.

Has anybody else  tried pickling yellow squash or zucchini?  We are picking several a day and can't eat, freeze, and give it away fast enough! Our poor cucumbers are just not doing good. Any we pick we've been slicing and eating fresh in salads.

laughing_paddler

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Re: Homemade sauerkraut for the win
« Reply #1 on: July 28, 2015, 07:24:19 PM »
I've got some pickles going on the countertop this minute (right next to the monarch caterpillar I'm raising!)

Cloudiness is normal for lacto-pickles, so they may have been fine (mine usually cloud up after about 3-4 days, which means... its working, mwah hahahah!). I've not tried oak leaves as tannin-providers, but use wild grape leaves I grab/forage from the alleys in my neighborhood (image search "wild grape leaves" to get a feel for how they look).

I suppose you read some stuff by Sandor Katz? I think I read in his "Art of Fermentation" book that squashes get slimy, so I've not tried them. I have added some shredded beets to my kraut and the pink/purple color was awesome.

norcalmike

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Re: Homemade sauerkraut for the win
« Reply #2 on: July 28, 2015, 07:36:26 PM »
just made my first batches a couple months ago. i only went 8 days.
still flavorful but too crunchy. next time ill be more patient.

Rosy

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Re: Homemade sauerkraut for the win
« Reply #3 on: July 29, 2015, 06:41:13 AM »
@Hedge87 Recipe for the sauerkraut, please:) I've always wanted to try it for myself - my mom would go on a sauerkraut diet every year for a week, she said it was cleansing too.

I vaguely remember my grandma in Germany making some in a huge earthenware container. She just set it in a dark corner in the stairway.
Did you do yours in glass jars?

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mrsggrowsveg

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Re: Homemade sauerkraut for the win
« Reply #5 on: July 29, 2015, 07:04:29 AM »
Hello fellow Kansan!

I have been making my own sauerkraut for a while now.  Lately, my favorite variation is jalapeno garlic sauerkraut.  It tastes amazing on tacos.  I have done pickled squash before, but didn't really like the results.  I think we will try dehydrating what we cannot eat this year.  I like to pickle peppers with carrots.  The carrots pick up a nice heat from the peppers.  I also ferment a lot of beverages like Kombucha and Ginger Ale.

swick

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Re: Homemade sauerkraut for the win
« Reply #6 on: July 29, 2015, 08:40:58 AM »
Hubby was complaining we were out of kimchi as soon as he polished off the jar. it has been a long ten days as he bemoans the lack of it. Which amuses me, as I have only made it once before and it is definitely not something he grew up with.

He woke up this morning going "it Kraut day!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

It's be my first Kraut and second batch of kimchi and he is super happy!

Love the idea of a garlic jalapeno kraut, mrsgrowveg!

Carolina on My Mind

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Re: Homemade sauerkraut for the win
« Reply #7 on: July 29, 2015, 10:31:51 AM »
I made my first-ever sauerkraut this year too, a small batch in a quart jar.  It sat on the counter for a few weeks, and then I was kind of afraid to eat it, so I just shoved it in the fridge.  This was back in March or so.  Last week I finally worked up the nerve to taste it, and it was really good!  I'm looking forward to making more, including the garlic-jalapeno version in this thread -- that sounds delish.

Rosy

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Hedge_87

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Re: Homemade sauerkraut for the win
« Reply #9 on: July 29, 2015, 04:28:37 PM »
@Hedge87 Recipe for the sauerkraut, please:) I've always wanted to try it for myself - my mom would go on a sauerkraut diet every year for a week, she said it was cleansing too.

I vaguely remember my grandma in Germany making some in a huge earthenware container. She just set it in a dark corner in the stairway.
Did you do yours in glass jars?

i used two table spoons of sea salt for one head of cabbage. i just chopped it up into our biggest mixing bowl and added the salt. I then stored and squeezed it with my hands until it became really watery. I then packed it in an old crock (from a crockpot that quit working a while back that I just knew it would come in handy for something lol). I then used one of my pyrex glass bowls that fit perfectly into the crock and weighted it down with a quart mason jar full of water. when it was done fermenting I scooped it into mason jars to put in the fridge.

Hello fellow Kansan!

I have been making my own sauerkraut for a while now.  Lately, my favorite variation is jalapeno garlic sauerkraut.  It tastes amazing on tacos.  I have done pickled squash before, but didn't really like the results.  I think we will try dehydrating what we cannot eat this year.  I like to pickle peppers with carrots.  The carrots pick up a nice heat from the peppers.  I also ferment a lot of beverages like Kombucha and Ginger Ale.

Hello!

I think you are speaking my language talking jalapeņo garlic sauerkraut. I will give that a try next! Just what I need more stuff fermenting all around the house lol. How's your garden doing this year? We can hardly keep up with ours this year thanks to all the rain we've been getting.

mrsggrowsveg

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Re: Homemade sauerkraut for the win
« Reply #10 on: July 30, 2015, 06:46:42 AM »

[/quote]

Hello!

I think you are speaking my language talking jalapeņo garlic sauerkraut. I will give that a try next! Just what I need more stuff fermenting all around the house lol. How's your garden doing this year? We can hardly keep up with ours this year thanks to all the rain we've been getting.
[/quote]

The garden is going crazy.  We have been mulching like crazy to help control the weeds and weeding every weekend.  I am loving not having to do any watering :)

IntoTheCrevasse

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Re: Homemade sauerkraut for the win
« Reply #11 on: July 30, 2015, 07:57:04 AM »
My and my dude go through homemade sauerkraut like crazy! We make two half-gallon jars at a time (we make one stronger and one more mild). It's so satisfyingly cheap and delicious :) We often have it for breakfast and when the boy eats it he swears he doesn't need coffee that day. 

Carolina on My Mind

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Re: Homemade sauerkraut for the win
« Reply #12 on: July 30, 2015, 08:24:34 AM »
My and my dude go through homemade sauerkraut like crazy! We make two half-gallon jars at a time (we make one stronger and one more mild). It's so satisfyingly cheap and delicious :) We often have it for breakfast and when the boy eats it he swears he doesn't need coffee that day.

How do you make one stronger and one milder?  Is that a function of how long it ferments, or do you add spices to the stronger one?


Bob W

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Re: Homemade sauerkraut for the win
« Reply #13 on: July 30, 2015, 09:23:18 AM »
mmmmm,  sauerkraut!    Reminds me I need to make another batch.    And only 25 calories per cup. 

IntoTheCrevasse

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Re: Homemade sauerkraut for the win
« Reply #14 on: July 31, 2015, 07:22:37 AM »
My and my dude go through homemade sauerkraut like crazy! We make two half-gallon jars at a time (we make one stronger and one more mild). It's so satisfyingly cheap and delicious :) We often have it for breakfast and when the boy eats it he swears he doesn't need coffee that day.

How do you make one stronger and one milder?  Is that a function of how long it ferments, or do you add spices to the stronger one?

Exactly - the longer you ferment, the stronger the taste. We usually do a two-week jar and a three-week jar. The three week jar is zesty and amazing and punches you in the face! But I'm not always in the mood for it. The mild stuff is so easy to eat. I love having it for breakfast! I wanted to maximize the amount of days I would eat the kraut, because I wanted to increase my intake of fermented/cultured foods. Having the two batches really helps do that.

Carolina on My Mind

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Re: Homemade sauerkraut for the win
« Reply #15 on: July 31, 2015, 07:30:16 AM »
My and my dude go through homemade sauerkraut like crazy! We make two half-gallon jars at a time (we make one stronger and one more mild). It's so satisfyingly cheap and delicious :) We often have it for breakfast and when the boy eats it he swears he doesn't need coffee that day.

How do you make one stronger and one milder?  Is that a function of how long it ferments, or do you add spices to the stronger one?

Exactly - the longer you ferment, the stronger the taste. We usually do a two-week jar and a three-week jar. The three week jar is zesty and amazing and punches you in the face! But I'm not always in the mood for it. The mild stuff is so easy to eat. I love having it for breakfast! I wanted to maximize the amount of days I would eat the kraut, because I wanted to increase my intake of fermented/cultured foods. Having the two batches really helps do that.

Thanks for the info!  I'm going to experiment with longer ferments.

MishMash

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Re: Homemade sauerkraut for the win
« Reply #16 on: July 31, 2015, 07:48:25 AM »
For all you fermenters, how long till the bubbles appear?  I am making my first ever ferment, a ginger peach hot sauce and we are at about 18 hours and not a single bubble that I can see, wondering if I should add more whey, or if the wine I added per the recipe I found won't allow the ferment.

Rezdent

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Re: Homemade sauerkraut for the win
« Reply #17 on: July 31, 2015, 08:19:01 AM »
For all you fermenters, how long till the bubbles appear?  I am making my first ever ferment, a ginger peach hot sauce and we are at about 18 hours and not a single bubble that I can see, wondering if I should add more whey, or if the wine I added per the recipe I found won't allow the ferment.
Fermentation is dependent on temperature.  The warmer the room, the faster it happens.  Cooler temps and slower ferments usually produce better tasting products.  "Hot" Krauts don't seem as good IMO.

I make the bulk of my Krauts and Kimchi between November and May, bubbles may take up to three days to start showing.  During hot summer months, I can see bubbles within twenty-four hours, and I'll move them to a refrigerator as soon as they start in order to slow them down.
I haven't done your recipe, but if comes from a good source then I would suspect it's just slower than my recipes.
Oh, and you are dependent on lactobacilli that are naturally occurring in your place, and your number might be low right now. This seems to get better after you've fermented a while.  My very first one was slow, too.

 

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