A week ago I started a batch of what will hopefully end up becoming yummy sauerkraut. From the get go I had issues with packing the cabbage and the first couple of days I ended up repacking due to various issues (I wasn't happy with the original packing job, and the second packing job overflowed).
Since then, the cabbage has been seemingly happy in it's cool dark location. The cabbage bubbled the first couple of days, but has since stopped (or at least I haven't seen any bubbles). My fear is that something went wrong and the batch will have to be discarded. I plan to check up on it and repack it this evening. Additionally, and I'm not sure if this is a good thing, but there hasn't been any scum floating on the top. From my understanding, scum can happen, but doesn't always happen. When it does happen, the amount can vary... so who knows really.
If nothing else, my last packing job has given me a good understanding of how to properly pack the cabbage for future batches.
Showing posts with label fermentation. Show all posts
Showing posts with label fermentation. Show all posts
Saturday, March 7, 2009
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
So that's why the house has been smelling weird today?
Seems my cabbage packing job last night was a little too good. Moments ago, I discovered that the towel that the crock was sitting on was covered in brine. Yeah, that's why the house has been smelling a bit off today. Note to self, covered the cabbage with two plates was only good in theory, as it didn't allow any gas to escape and thus caused a bubbly mess. On a brighter note, it's still bubbling, sauerkraut here we come!
Packing Cabbage for Dummies
So I repacked my stinky ol' fermenting cabbage last night and now feel like I fully understand the fine art of packing & weighting. When I originally packed it, I experimented with just having a bag on top, laying saran wrap over it and pressing it down to create a seal, and then eventually placing a small saucer in the middle and placing the bag over that. The saucer worked out well except that the crock was oval and the plate didn't cover it fully. Cabbage was floating to the top by the time the fermentation actually started, no good. So that's why I opted to repack it last night.
I made sure to pick up some cheese cloth from the store (my wife had advised earlier on that we didn't have but a foot of cloth at the house). Cheese cloth was the missing piece I needed. The cheese cloth can be laid over the cabbage and pushed down while still letting the brine through. I doubled the number of plates used as well, this covered more surface area and kept everybody right where I wanted them. From there I added the obligatory bag filled with water on top. I'm a dare devil, so I didn't double bag, nor did I fill it with brine in case it leaked! From there I draped the cheese cloth over the bag and then covered the whole thing with plastic wrap. I had read that people leave the cloth hanging outside of the container, but that just seemed like trouble since the cheese cloth can pull and retain moisture. I'd just rather the whole thing contained. After that, I covered it with a tea towel and stuck it under the built-in in the kitchen. And now we wait.
Speaking of waiting, my wife threw out another batch of sour dough starter she made. She keeps claiming that it should be "doing more" even after two weeks. I say it needs fed or it's just going to sit there. She's supposed to be purchasing a starter from King Arthur Flour soon, or as I called it "cheating"
I made sure to pick up some cheese cloth from the store (my wife had advised earlier on that we didn't have but a foot of cloth at the house). Cheese cloth was the missing piece I needed. The cheese cloth can be laid over the cabbage and pushed down while still letting the brine through. I doubled the number of plates used as well, this covered more surface area and kept everybody right where I wanted them. From there I added the obligatory bag filled with water on top. I'm a dare devil, so I didn't double bag, nor did I fill it with brine in case it leaked! From there I draped the cheese cloth over the bag and then covered the whole thing with plastic wrap. I had read that people leave the cloth hanging outside of the container, but that just seemed like trouble since the cheese cloth can pull and retain moisture. I'd just rather the whole thing contained. After that, I covered it with a tea towel and stuck it under the built-in in the kitchen. And now we wait.
Speaking of waiting, my wife threw out another batch of sour dough starter she made. She keeps claiming that it should be "doing more" even after two weeks. I say it needs fed or it's just going to sit there. She's supposed to be purchasing a starter from King Arthur Flour soon, or as I called it "cheating"
Monday, March 2, 2009
Operation Fermented Cabbage in Full Effect
I didn't want to write about it until I started to get some actual fermentation, but I started a batch of sauerkraut Saturday night. It's pretty easy to get started, the proportions are 5lbs of cabbage to 3-4 Tbsp of non-iodized salt (I also added caraway seeds). I used grocery store bought cabbage so I had to make some additional brine water to make sure the cabbage was fully submerged.
What really amazed me was how much water can be pulled out of the shredded and chopped cabbage by pounding it a bit. Apparently with very fresh cabbage you can pull enough water to full submerge it.
The hardest part for me was actually packing it in. I read multiple ways to do it and tried a few different ways on top of that. The issue is, you need to keep the cabbage under the water. If it's exposed to air it will rot. As of this morning, there are a few pieces of cabbage floating on the surface along with the bubbles. I plan to repack tonight and use cheese cloth to help keep the cabbage under the brine. Right now I simply have a plate in the middle with a baggie full of water on top of that. It keeps it weighted down, but since it's in a crock, there's exposed areas on both sides of the plate.
It's been a pretty exciting process thus far, it was great to wake up to bubbles all over the surface, especially considering I wasn't sure if I was doing it right. Only thing I need to do now is get some additional crocks, so that I can return the one I'm using to my wife's slow cooker (no pot roast until I do).
What really amazed me was how much water can be pulled out of the shredded and chopped cabbage by pounding it a bit. Apparently with very fresh cabbage you can pull enough water to full submerge it.
The hardest part for me was actually packing it in. I read multiple ways to do it and tried a few different ways on top of that. The issue is, you need to keep the cabbage under the water. If it's exposed to air it will rot. As of this morning, there are a few pieces of cabbage floating on the surface along with the bubbles. I plan to repack tonight and use cheese cloth to help keep the cabbage under the brine. Right now I simply have a plate in the middle with a baggie full of water on top of that. It keeps it weighted down, but since it's in a crock, there's exposed areas on both sides of the plate.
It's been a pretty exciting process thus far, it was great to wake up to bubbles all over the surface, especially considering I wasn't sure if I was doing it right. Only thing I need to do now is get some additional crocks, so that I can return the one I'm using to my wife's slow cooker (no pot roast until I do).
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