[Ag-eq] Sauerkraut success

[Jewel]

Tracy!  I am so pleased that your sauerkraut turned out so well;  not that I intend to make it, but 
does it require a particular * type of cabbage?  If my memory serves me right, sauerkraut was 
believed to be, and probably was, a scurvy preventative on the early sailing ships, so it would need 
to keep for a very long time.
I wonder if any of the early explorers:  Captain Cook, Cartier etc ever attempted to make a 
sauerkraut alternative from seaweed?  I would think that it could gbe done and would be, highly, 
nutritious!

      Jewel


--------------------------------------------------
From: "Tracy Carcione" <carcione at access.net>
Sent: Friday, October 18, 2013 6:51 AM
To: "Agricultural and Equestrean Division List" <ag-eq at nfbnet.org>
Subject: [Ag-eq] Sauerkraut success

Today, I uncovered the sauerkraut I was making and had some for lunch, and
it was good!
I was a bit nervous about the project, but really it couldn't have been
easier.  The hardest part was shredding the cabbage fairly evenly, and that
wasn't even that hard.  It wasn't perfect, but it was obviously good enough.
Then I mixed it up well with the salt, put it in the crock, packed it down
as firmly as I could with the "pickle stomper", covered that with a couple
whole cabbage leaves, and covered the lot with a food storage bag about half
full of brine.  The bag weighed down the cabbage, so it stayed under the
brine, and created a water-balloon seal to keep air out.  Then I covered the
crock with a clean cloth, and set it on the counter for about 5 weeks.  I
didn't do any of the scum removal people mentioned.  My instructions said to
leave it alone, and so I did.  I guess the seal kept scum from forming,
maybe.  The instructions said to wait until the kraut stopped bubbling, and
then it would be done.  I was able to hear the little bubbles popping, and
yesterday I didn't hear them anymore, so I uncovered the kraut and had a
taste.  Good stuff!  And full of vitamins and such, too.
The kraut is supposed to keep for 3 or 4 months tightly covered in the
fridge, so I found a big jar, filled it up, closed the lid, and stuck it in
the fridge. I should be able to eat it up in a few months, if not before.
Oh, and the crock didn't smell bad at all.  It smelled like kraut, very
close up, but not overpowering, and, thank Goodness, not the fate worse than
death Jewel described. I think the water-balloon seal sealed in the smell,
to a large degree.
Thanks to everyone for their advice and encouragement.
Tracy


_______________________________________________
Ag-eq mailing list
Ag-eq at nfbnet.org
http://nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/ag-eq_nfbnet.org
To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info for Ag-eq:
http://nfbnet.org/mailman/options/ag-eq_nfbnet.org/jewelblanch%40kinect.co.nz