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Hello /ck/. Has anyone ever made sauerkraut before? I'm considering making a batch for the first time and looking for tips & tricks from those in the know.
Add cabbage, add salt, massage, press it down, repeat until your jar is full.
The only real secret is to not forget to scum the pond.
No, literally nobody on this entire food & cooking board has ever made sauerkraut before. What a stupid fucking question.
Leave and never come back, you absolute autistic cunt.
>>7806484
dude why the aggresiveness.
>>7806496
Probably because nobody replied to his home made sauerkraut thread 2 weeks ago.
>>7806494
Gross smelling, bubbly scum will form at the top, which you are going to want to spoon off occasionally. I'd suggest just making a habit of doing it every day, but that's because I've slacked off in the past and it became gross and smelly, which just made me slack off more, and then I threw it out, and it turned out that everything under the top little layer of scum was delicious sauerkraut.
Also forgot to mention, you want to put a plate or something with a weight on top to keep all the cabbage submerged in the brine (the liquid that the salt pulls out of the cabbage). That's really all there is to it. If you want to add extra spices or whatever you do it on the stove.
>>7806508
Hmm. Everything i read so far failed to mention this. I'll be on the lookout. Thanks.
>>7806477
I make my own. There's nothing to it...
I buy cabbage from the store and have yet to have 1 head of cabbage that didn't fit into a 1 quart canning jar.
I shred the cabbage with a mandolin and weight it, then add 2.5 - 3% of kosher salt to the cabbage and mix it in by hand.
I take a mason hammer and wrap it in foil and plastic wrap, than use it to beat the shit out of the cabbage to get as much moisture out as possible. Then wait a while for the salt to extract more of the liquid.
After about 20 minutes or so I'll hammer the cabbage again, and then start dividing it into my quart jars. When done, I'll divide the remaining liquid into the quart jars.
If needed, I'll top up the jars with a brine made from 1 1/2 tbs salt per quart of water, then I'll take a plastic sandwich bag and press the cabbage down below the brine, and fill the bag with enough water to keep the cabbage weighted down below the brine.
I'll eat it as soon as 4 days later, as long as it's turned the typical golden brown color.
Had some tonight with a pork loin I roasted.
>>7806477
fucking slavs can make this shit, you don't need advice.
Shred cabbage with sickle, hammer it down pot with hammer, fill pot with salty tears of oppression, add beets to make it communist-red.
There you go, you made sauerkraut.
>>7806549
Why are you so mad? I'm sure I could manage with no knowledge, but its a good conversation starter and a way of sharing methods or personal variations.
You seem to be the one taking it face value or in an 'autistic' way to use your own buzzword.
>>7806573
i thought ur post was neat homie
Is sauerkraut only cabagge and brine?
>>7807759
Cabbage, salt, and time, as the brine is created from the cabbage itself.
By crushing the cabbage, you extract moisture from it, which in turn mixes with the salt you add to create the brine.
Other veggies, like say cukes, or carrots, would need a brine prepared for them in order to ferment properly.
>>7806477
Heavy clove usage
>>7806477
Don't do it. It's extremely easy to breed the wrong bacteria, which can make your dick fall off. Please be careful!
This guy shows you how to do it the old fashion way, which is also pretty much the modern way
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ITpr3e_Ld3U
Get an air lock, rubber bung, pour cap threaded for a wide mouth Mason jar, and a wide mouth quart Mason jar.
Buy a cabbage.
Shred it.
Put in a large bowl, cover liberally with salt.
Smash cabbage and salt with hands until it gives up a shit ton of liquid.
Add carroway seeds to taste.
Shove it all into the jar and press the cabbage so it sits below the fluid pressed out. If you don't have enough fluid, make some salt water and top it off.
Cap it, put the air lock on, fill air lock with water, leave it in a dry, warm, dark place for at least two weeks.
Done.
>>7809162
I assume you speak from personal experience.
>>7806477
I made it, first try , no problem. 3 tblespns salt, 5 lbs cabbage, one gallon jar.
Use a weight or something to hold the cabbage under the liquid and put the jar in a plate or pan to catch drips. Mine blew out water in the beginning so I boiled salt and water and added back to top off, that happened several times.
I left lid loose a little and put a big paper bag over to keep light out.
>>7806554
>fill the bag with enough water to keep the cabbage weighted down below the brine.
protip: fill the bag with the same brine you're using with the cabbage. that way, if the bag starts to leak, it won't fuck with the salt to water ratio.
>>7811402
That's a good tip.
I'm curious as to why some people call for letting it age for so long when mine goes brown and acquires that "sourish" taste in like 3-4 days.
Maybe it has to do with the size of the fermentation vessel? I use quart jars, which I guess is far different than using something like a 5 gallon bucket.
Regardless, I start eating mine as soon as 4 days after jarring it, and it's delicious.
>>7806477
So, here's an update. I ended up putting it a large jar (with a bung type lid); the volume of cabbage + brine probably only goes to about a third of the way up the container.
I used an uncut outer cabbage leaf to hold down the chopped cabbage, bit concerned as this barrier leaf does touch the surface in parts. I did add a bit of saltwater to try and submerge but i didn't want to add too much.
>>7809320
From what I've read an airlock isn't necessary but works perfectly fine. I also didn't sterilise the container either, just washed it normally. My theory is the high salt concentration will exclude any pathogenic bacteria from proliferating.
Will keep the thread updated if its still alive
>>7811324
>tblespns
>>7811687
>I'm curious as to why some people call for letting it age for so long when mine goes brown and acquires that "sourish" taste in like 3-4 days.
Depends on how much and what kind of yeast/bacteria was on the cabbage, temperature, salt, etc. It's pretty finicky.
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>>7811324
>tblespns
>>7806508
i've made sauerkraut since forever and i don't do that. I just throw out the top 2cm or so of cabbage along with the scum before i eat it.
Protip: a teaspoon of vinegar in each jar will keep the cabbage nice and white and not add any flavor to the kraut.
Alright....we've covered making the shit, now lets see how you prepare it to eat.
My go to recipe:
1-1/2 quart kraut
3 x slices chopped bacon
1 chopped onion
1-3 chopped apples (size dependant)
1 cup white wine
caraway seed to taste
water as needed
Chop and cook bacon in a pan till desired consistency, drain excess fat. Add chopped onion and chopped apple and cooked to desired consistency, (I usually brown mine). Add kraut, wine, caraway seed, and as much water as needed to keep it moist. Bring to boil and then let it simmer for 30 mins to an hour making sure to top up with water as needed.
I enjoy this with pork dishes, and a side of kartoffelsalat.
>>7806508
>Gross smelling, bubbly scum will form at the top, which you are going to want to spoon off occasionally.
I mix my sauerkraut every 8 hours or so, this way nothing ever forms on the top. It helps to get the air bubbles out too.
>>7811992
I always pack it down super tight to that it's almost a solid block that takes up most of the container, and can't really be mixed.
>>7806477
good eats S07E21
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/sauerkraut-recipe.html
>>7806477
make sure you sanatize everything before starting. Just boil it all in a large bot for 5 mins.
dont boil the cabage though.
My second batch of sauerkraut ended with a thickened brine. Was it safe to eat? I trashed everything.
So I can stir it to avoid the dead leaves at top? Werent you supposed to not open the container before day 8 or 9?
I'm in the middle of my first batch. I'm using an airlock that lets air out but not in. For some reason the batch is creating a vacuum of sorts most nights sucking the floating airlock down. Anyone have any idea why this is happening? A search says temp differences but the temp is pretty consistent within 3 degrees.
>>7811687
Look up fermentation stages. 3-4 days doesn't even finish off the first of three. Flavors develop further, new beneficial bacteria grow, pH changes more and protects the kraut for longer storage and more bioavailable vitamins form.
>>7814234
/shrug
Fermentation time will depend on the amount of material that needs to ferment, the size of the container, and temps, too, and it's pretty warm in my house.
I find that as soon as it's gone from the green color it was when first placed in the jar, to the golden brown color it gets within about 4 days, it's good to go. It tastes great and has that characteristic sour taste, but very mild, and the aroma is pleasant as well.
To each their own.
>>7814305
Not arguing, just informing. Its safe to eat at any stage. Some will go as far as 20 weeks from discussions I have had.
