Second Batch of Kraut - Underway!!

[Pablo]

4.2 kilos of chopped cabbage in a 2 gallon crock IS possible.

Phew. I will say there is something oddly rewarding chopping $19 worth of clean nice organic cabbage. Yeah no kidding. Why I went to hippie co-op yah never know.

2% salt this time. 2.5% was just a har salty. Generous mustard and caraway seeds.

 

[Eddie]

Sounds good to me

 

[Pablo]

 

[Pablo]

 

[Jdeere562]

Sounds good, Pablo. Would love to try homemade kraut, but never have.
By chance passing thru Iowa soon?

 

[vavavroom]

Here is my pickling spice mix. For kraut, I'd add caraway seed and skip the thyme, ginger, cardamom, and allspice.

bay leaves
dried juniper berries
cloves
coriander
lovage
thyme
dried ginger
dried celery root
peppercorns
dried carrot
mustard seed
dried onion
cardamom
dried parsley
allspice

 

[Kira]

Not too long ago we passed on a huge sauerkraut press.
It was 6X the volume of yours, Pablo.

 

[gman2304]

My mother used a large crock ( 9 kids ) for her kraut. Salt and water..KISS was her mantra! My wife does the same but cans hers in qt jars. Had kraut and ‘weenies’ Pinto beans and corn bread last week, good stuff!

 

[Pablo]

Not too long ago we passed on a huge sauerkraut press.
It was 6X the volume of yours, Pablo.

12 gallon CROCK alone would be heavy. 12 gallon crock full of kraut would weigh 140 pounds or so!!!

 

[Snagglefoot]

I recall my mom had a large clean field rock she would set on top to compress the cabbage down below the fluid level. That’s about all I know.

 

[VolvoZ]

Wow. Never made own kraut before. Now i can’t stop thinking about making the next batch of smoked kielbasa!

 

[74DartSport]

My sister in law is Korean. One day my brother in law called and said,”get over here and get this out of my refrigerator!” She made kimchi and it was incredible.

 

[Pablo]

I recall my mom had a large clean field rock she would set on top to compress the cabbage down below the fluid level. That’s about all I know.

My rock is currently in the dishwasher

 

[Kira]

12 gallon crock full of kraut would weigh 140 pounds or so!!!

Looked so good....just thinking about loading it was daunting.

It was the "moving out" sale people dream of.
An accomplished family, headed by a Mom who sewed, potted, printed and made agricultural bounty -cooking/serving...not just vegetable crafting had a husband who sold his wood shop, garden machinery, car tools and hardware, sporting equipment and law library.
Don't forget the tasteful lawn and garden decor.

The money I saved......

 

[Pablo]

Looked so good....just thinking about loading it was daunting.

It was the "moving out" sale people dream of.
An accomplished family, headed by a Mom who sewed, potted, printed and made agricultural bounty -cooking/serving...not just vegetable crafting had a husband who sold his wood shop, garden machinery, car tools and hardware, sporting equipment and law library.
Don't forget the tasteful lawn and garden decor.

The money I saved......

I think with a large crock, you just never move it.

Kraut volume starts big and maybe end up with a 1/3 of starting volume. I think this 2 gallon crock will be just fine for the two of us.

I used to love kimchi and may make some, but go really light on the red flame pepper. Simply cannot handle hot anymore.

My wife made some garlic dill pickles in the fall that we cracked into just this week. OMG. So nice and sharp and mellow and tasty. There are some Korean pickles that are not hot at all, but very tasty may try those this year.

 

[ripcord]

This thread is a big crock of...

slaw.

I'd try this but my bratwurst consumption would go through the roof.

 

[Pablo]

I must say the brine level looks perfect

 

[wlk]

My ex-wife tried it this way a few times and had something off as it always molded.
I found a new recipe the other day I want to try and use in jars. It uses a mild brine to cover the cabbage, sounded good.
Maybe I can use baggies instead of jars. Idk but trying is fun I guess.

 

[Pablo]

My ex-wife tried it this way a few times and had something off as it always molded.
I found a new recipe the other day I want to try and use in jars. It uses a mild brine to cover the cabbage, sounded good.
Maybe I can use baggies instead of jars. Idk but trying is fun I guess.

Probably cabbage wasn’t great or did salt by volume or too warm

I would not use a brine as cabbage has plenty of water

Plastic doesn’t sound good to me

Anyway sometimes fermentation goes awry

 

[wlk]

Probably cabbage wasn’t great or did salt by volume or too warm

I would not use a brine as cabbage has plenty of water

Plastic doesn’t sound good to me

Anyway sometimes fermentation goes awry

Could have been. I love kraut and will try the jar method first and baggies for giggles. I love cooking and trying new things