Good day. I started fermenting this and another jar on the 27th of June. I have not touched the jars, it’s just cabbage and some caraway seeds. All of the bulk matter is weighed down, small floaties at the top. This is my first sauerkraut and I would like to eat some soon.

Should I spoon out the floaties? Pour them out and add some vinegar? I want to move this to the fridge and have some bratwurst.

Any advice on post ferment prep and storage would be helpful. Thank you in advance.

Title says it all, making some lacto fermented pickles and on day 3 this blizzard appeared.

Nothing sitting on top, it was somewhat cloudy but with much finer particles yesterday.

Still smells good to me, but I thought I’d ask the experts before botulisming myself!

Hello everyone,

I made many preparations in the last days (sauerkraut, lemons , enoki and king oyster mushrooms, watermelon, garlic sprout...) but almost all of them developed Kham yeast In few days. Where I live is hot now(30-35° C) and I'm keeping my ferments in the basement which is a little bit colder. Any suggestion to avoid this? Should I use more salt in this season? (I usually do 3% on total weight water + veg / only veg) or should I use something to boost the initial acidity? Or what else?

Thank you!

I made some fermented garlic honey, about three months ago, and I’ve been using the honey to cook, but I just left the garlic sitting in there so I was wondering if I could use the garlic and how long could I leave it in though honey for.

It's my first fermentation and I'm using about 3% solution for three tiny pickles. First shot nothing fancy, hoping to get some tang after 3-5 days.

Should I be worried about using a metal condiment dish as my weight? It's those things they bring you ketchup in at a diner. I'm guessing it's food safe and with a short 3-5 day fermentation, things will be just fine. Otherwise I'd likely avoid metal.

Thoughts?

I've been aging my kimchi for about 4 months now. It was fine last week, but tonight I noticed the brine has turned a cola-brown and it doesn't smell like kimchi anymore. Tbh, it smells like Doritos. No mold on top, but the jar hissed when I opened it, which is a first and rightly concerning. Do you think it's no longer safe to eat?

1. https://revolutionfermentation.com/en/

They have gear, recipes, and even books.

2. https://pickledplanet.com/fermented-foods-sauerkraut-and-pickles

Excellent source of sauerkraut and other fermented vegetables.

3. https://aliveferments.com/fermented-sauces/

These are fermented chili sauces. I understand 2 of these sites are more toward vegan, but those who aren't I figured you might be interested anyway. Anyone that knows any other awesome sites like these, I'm open for suggestions!

Two questions: do you think onions will mess with the flavors ? I used them to prevent floating beans at the top. Also should I burp the ferment or is it better to leave it closed for 1-3 days ?

Hey y'all,

I made some saurkraut quite some time ago. I fermented it for about a month then have been storing it in the fridge for 2. I feel like as long as there is no mold on it and it smells like kraut it should be good. That being said, it smells pretty sour, has a bit more white "dust" accumulating in the lower liquid, and the top quarter seems to have dried out a bit....no longer saturated in liquid. No mold though. Is that still good to eat?

How long does saurkraut usually last?

Do I need to keep the weights in the jar after done fermenting?

Is there kraut that has gone too sour?

Thanks!

Hey All, I’m a professional chef that has been learning to ferment for about a year now and this is the first time I have encountered kahm yeast. The ferment is heirloom tomatoes, habaneros, and koji. I used a 2% salt ratio. This is also the first time I have used koji in a ferment so I am not sure if the white film is from the koji or if it is yeast. Any help would be appreciated! Thanks!

Hello Fermentation people,

I had that simple question, would replacing sugar with xilithol still works for a naturally fermented lemonade (basically sugar+lemon)?

Hi! First time cheong-er here. A few weeks ago I decided to make blueberry cheong. My first two batches (left) are further along than my second two (right). For the one's on the left I can see that a syrup has definitely started to form and the blueberries are presently being bathed in it. But at the same time I see a solid mass of undissolved sugar at the bottom of the jar. Is that normal at this stage? Will it dissolve on its own or do I have to intervene?

https://preview.redd.it/q9o4x62924dd1.jpg?width=963&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=23dc76eb1a32ca7447427bbea0e8a40039fddd4d

I want to create a safe and healthy environment for fermentation don't want mould or any of the nasty stuff what are the resources where I can learn

I use pickle pipes and 750ml shoulderless mason jars. I rarely make brine, i just salt the veggies and bruise them so they're in their own brine. I pack tightly and fill the jars quite full, leaving just enough room for the weight. So the liquid is right to the top, no air space.

For the first few days when the ferment is madly active, it sprays a lot of brine out of the pickle pipes. It slows down a bit after a few days but still there is some liquid escaping. While it's fermenting, there is always liquid up to the top of the jar but when it's refrigerated, there is no longer a safe amount of liquid. The top of the kraut is dry. I'd say I'm probably losing about 30% of the brine during fermentation.

I've been managing it by stealing excess brine from wet-brine ferments, but that changes the colour and taste of my kraut (sometimes deliciously though).

What should I do differently?

Would airlock lids still allow brine to escape?

Can I use a fresh 2% salt brine for the topup?

Can I use unpasteurized ACV?

Should I add more brine to the jar for storage in the fridge? Or it should be okay? Not sure why there is less brine now. Maybe they're just floating.

I see a lot of people here fermenting sauerkraut with brine, and I wonder why?
The traditional way of making sauerkraut I‘m familiar with in Germany where I live, is cutting up the cabbage very thinly (usually a mandoline or similar is used), then pounded with 2-5 % salt (to total weight, depending on one‘s taste, and ambient temperature as not to invite Kahm yeast) so that the cabbage releases its liquid and the cells and fibers are broken up really well, thereby it‘s also tightly packed into the vessel. If a liquid is added, sometimes a little white wine is added for the aroma.
So, I‘m really curious: why do so many people I see on here use brine for sauerkraut?

I’ve just done my 6 month check on my miso (pretty traditional recipe and technique) and it still has the slight metallic/acetone/alcohol smell and taste to it. Is this something I should be concerned about? It doesn’t have any kind of visible mold or anything and the umami funk is definitely progressing.

Is this to be expected or am I doing something wrong?

Some black tea with local spring water, homemade booch, local milk, sauerkraut, and homemade goats milk yogurt with some maple syrup mmmmmmmm

I removed it last night and the pickles underneath taste great. But I woke to see it formed again on top. It jiggles when the jar is moved.

It’s not really fuzzy but more like a leathery skin texture. Not sure if I should dump this.

Was trying to make Vinegar from overriped bananas and some sugar and this is my first time. Willthe acidity of the vinegar on the final result or acetic bacteria eventually get rid of them,idk what to do.