Anyone Make Their Own Sauerkraut

[sawbill]

I need some advice on this stuff. We made some this September and canned it a week ago. Sure looks like its still working as many of the jars are leaking even after removing some. When I take the lids off I can see it still bubbling.
Any ideas how to get past this problem?

[jaycee]

It should have stopped working/fermenting after 6 weeks , to answer you question is pretty hard as there are too many variables , too little salt, too much salt , temperature it was stored at , and your method of canning ?


I made 50 lbs. of it on nov. 12- 2015, and packaged some by freezing in 2lb. lots in freezer bags , and canned some in 2 quart sealers on dec. 28 -2015, it is very tasty, and I had just made some sauerkraut soup a couple of days ago that we finished off today , m,m good, also we have been eating it with ribs and some roasted pigtails . excellent meals .

If I remember correctly, didn't you make this at your friends house ? maybe it was some thing that he did ?

[fishgurru]

we made sauerkraut too and was canning it at about 7 weeks hate to say but i think your's has fermented. The lenght of time its been working is too long i wpuld taste it and if it tastes terrible i would serously throw it out.

[sawbill]

Yeah, we made it at a friends house as he's been doing the recipe handed down by his dad.
One thing he did do this time while putting it up in jars was to jam down the sauerkraut as hard as he could to get rid of the air. We topped off the remaining space, 1/2 inch with water then put the lids on.
Almost every jar leaked within a few hours so I removed some of the kraut then replaced the water leaving about 1/4 inch space this time. But, its still working and still leaking.

[sawbill]

FG, It smells ok and I've been tasting it and the only complaint I have is that's it a bit flat, not as tart as I expected.

[Roe+]

FG, It smells ok and I've been tasting it and the only complaint I have is that's it a bit flat, not as tart as I expected.

Guess what sawbill, I make sauerkraut as well! I ferment mine in a crock for about 2 weeks, then bring it to a simmer, turn off the heat and tamp it into sterilized jars. Heating the sauerkraut kills the biological action and stops it from working. If you don't do this you either have to freeze it or refrigerate it where it will only last 6-8 weeks. Then I add the juice from the sauerkraut to the jars filling them to 1/2 inch from the top. Next your put on the lids and put the rings on snug, do not tighten.
The next step is to place the jars into a water bath ( a large pot or canner with boiling water covering over the jars) and leave the jars in the water; 15 minutes for pint jars (500 ml), 20 minutes for quart jars (1 litre). When complete, remove the jars and set them on a cutting board to cool. The lids should pop during cooling and become indented, now the jars are sealed and you can tighten the lids.

Here's what mine looks like.



I add grated carrot and onion to mine, that's why it's orange.

Roe+

[sawbill]

Thanks Mike. I'll make sure my wife reads this as she'll understand the process more than I will.
Just as an aside, when we made ours we filled the crock about 3/4 full of sauerkraut then topped the rest of the space off with a water filled plastic garbage bag. This seals everything completely off from the air and eliminates any smell throughout the house--and there's no skimming to be done.

[johny]

Maybe you had the kraut at a temperature too low.
If that was the case, fermentation by Lactobacili would have been so slow that it is still not completed.

I make kraut from cabbage grown in the garden. It usually stops bubbling within 2 months and then I just transfer to standard mason jars for storage.

Use 1 tsp salt for each pound of cabbage. No other ingredients!!! You didn't add sugar, right?

Do you have a way to test pH?
When my kraut is finished fermenting, the pH is close to 3.5
I keep the fermenter crock pot in the kitchen. Room temperature averages 60F.


Again, if it is still bubbling, there is still fermentable carbohydrates and the pH is not low enough to have killed off the Lactobacilli. The only way I can think this happens is having the pot at a very low temperature.

[Roe+]

Thanks Mike. I'll make sure my wife reads this as she'll understand the process more than I will.
Just as an aside, when we made ours we filled the crock about 3/4 full of sauerkraut then topped the rest of the space off with a water filled plastic garbage bag. This seals everything completely off from the air and eliminates any smell throughout the house--and there's no skimming to be done.

I fill mine about 3/4 full and add 1 cup of water so I make sure I have enough liquid when I bottle it. I use a an inverted round Corning ware lid with a glass 1 gallon jug filled with water to weigh it down then cover with a clean white kitchen garbage bag.
I place my mixture in the crock in 1 lb. layers with 1tsp. of salt on each layer and tamp it down with a plastic spoon

Mixture; 3 medium onions
5 large carrots
2 large cabbages

Grate onions and carrots, place in a separate bowl and mix thoroughly.
In a separate bowl mix 12 oz. of grated cabbage and 4 oz. carrot/onion mixture then place in crock add 1 tsp. of pickling salt tamp with plastic or wooden spoon and repeat until crock is 3/4 full.

Do not use metal vessels or utensils. I use a porcelain coated pot for simmering the sauerkraut. I let my crock ferment on the kitchen counter and it is complete in 1 -2 weeks. It will stopping bubbling when fermentation is complete. Fresher cabbage works better, I get mine from the farmers market.

Roe+

[RHYBAK]

Have you thought of freezing it instead of jarring it?