Just Fired Up My Lacto-Factory - 7.5lbs Sauerkraut - In A 3 gallon Crock!

Yakima 728
Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum

Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
Schlenkerla

Schlenkerla

Supporting Member
HBT Supporter
Joined
Apr 18, 2006
Messages
16,779
Reaction score
5,910
I made red sauerkraut last year only to ruin it by topping off a 1 gallon jar with an improper concentration of saline due to run-off. So, I decide to get a real sauerkraut crock from
Ohio Stoneware

As you read this, you will see I made a point of repeatedly calling attention to the amount of salt and how it extracts water. Too much is bad taste wise, too little it won't leach out the water adequately.

I have the 3 gallon crock, with weights, and lid that has a water groove to act as an air lock. This is their catalog.
- Ohio Pottery.

I'll show you what I did tonight. - This is a video that I reviewed before getting started. It has some with basic instructions for making kraut. - Its not mine. [ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mcj3O10Mstw[/ame]

The intent is use this for a lacto source for my next Schnellsauer - Berliner Weisse (Fast Sour Berliner Weisse.) I have yogurt maker that's a great device for stepping up lacto starters. Oh and I can use it all summer to throw on brats!!!!:rockin:

Here goes...
 
Important - The salt concentration must be adjusted to your total cabbage weight!

Recipe Started with;

- 2 Large Heads of white cabbage. Totaling 7.5 lbs

- 4 Granny Smith Apple's

- 4.5 tablespoons of Pickling Salt. (0.6 tablespoons per pound) 3 tablespoons per 5 pounds.

You you need knives, a chopping block and a potato masher and a popcorn bowl and a small bowl with the salt. I used very small one that holds a tablespoon.

View attachment 1491537360202.jpg
 
I cut off the stem and tossed it, then removed the green leafy outer pieces, set a side for later and tossed the brown pieces

I sliced the cabbage in half, cored the root, then sliced it thin strands or julienne.

I used a large popcorn bowl and added one quarter head and started applying salt and tossing by hand. Then did another quarter and re-salted and tossed some more. You'll notice it will start getting juicy from the addition of salt.

Then I added one diced apple and added it to the 1/2 head and re-salted.

Remember - 1 tablespoon salt per half head (A ratio of 0.6 tablespoons per pound of cabbage).

The application of pickling salt will make it get watery. It leaches out water and lactic acid containing lactobacillus.

As you'll see I did this four times, one tablespoon of salt for each half head of cabbage. Packed every time I had a 1/2 head and an apple tossed in the salt.

View attachment 1491537941918.jpg
 
Chop another half head and pack. Then repeat with all four half heads and the four Granny Smith Apple's and the four tablespoons of pickling salt.

When that's done and packed it will be getting juicier as the salt brings out more of the water in the cabbage.

Grab the outer leaves you set aside. Set these outer leaves so as to cover the chopped and packed kraut. Press them down and get them to the edge of the crock. This is to stop the small pieces from floating. The water that is being leached out will eventually cover the leaves and the stones.

View attachment 1491538424840.jpg
 
Man, that is a nice crock! I also make kraut but have been making do with Mason jars and air locks. I need to put crock that on my Xmas list.

I often eat at a German place, and they told me their kraut only ages 11 days. It's better than mine... wish I knew the rest of their technique. It stays crisp and doesn't get that translucent look.

My fermentation book suggests 2% (by weight) salt but I find that a bit too salty.... 1.5% was not salty enough when I tried it. Next time I guess it is 1.75%.

Thanks for posting!
 
Schlenkerla said:
Comments and questions welcome.
Click to expand...

My folks have been making krout for a few years. They make 100lb at a time using buckets to ferment but insteat of an airlock they place a bag over/in the bucket and fill that with water. They do this once a year with cabbage directly from a local farmer.

My question is how you store the finished product? My folks can it but I think by doing that you loose all of the health benefits of a raw fermented vegetable.
 
timdillon36 said:
My folks have been making krout for a few years. They make 100lb at a time using buckets to ferment but insteat of an airlock they place a bag over/in the bucket and fill that with water. They do this once a year with cabbage directly from a local farmer.

My question is how you store the finished product? My folks can it but I think by doing that you loose all of the health benefits of a raw fermented vegetable.
Click to expand...

I will put it mason jars, tightly packed so the juices are level with the kraut. If necessary top off with brine. I will not cook this as one does with canning.

I have recipe that you mix some of this with cooked bacon and onions. Never tried it but sounds like it would be good. I'd do that or cook polish sausage and add this to crock. That's the only cooking I'd do to it. Think it either case it's likely that one might kill the probiotic lactobacillus.
 
Schlenkerla said:
I will put it mason jars, tightly packed so the juices are level with the kraut. If necessary top off with brine. I will not cook this as one does with canning.

I have recipe that you mix some of this with cooked bacon and onions. Never tried it but sounds like it would be good. I'd do that or cook polish sausage and add this to crock. That's the only cooking I'd do to it. Think it either case it's likely that one might kill the probiotic lactobacillus.
Click to expand...

I store mine in mason jars in the fridge when they are done, and eat it warm/cold and don't heat it. I love it- and now you've reopened my obsession!

I really want one of those crocks now. I've been using a jar/brine/airlock set up for pickles, kimchee, sauerkraut, carrots, hot peppers, etc, and I love the look and convenience of those crocks.
 
Horseflesh said:
Man, that is a nice crock! I also make kraut but have been making do with Mason jars and air locks. I need to put crock that on my Xmas list.

I often eat at a German place, and they told me their kraut only ages 11 days. It's better than mine... wish I knew the rest of their technique. It stays crisp and doesn't get that translucent look.

My fermentation book suggests 2% (by weight) salt but I find that a bit too salty.... 1.5% was not salty enough when I tried it. Next time I guess it is 1.75%.

Thanks for posting!
Click to expand...

Its quite heavy duty too.

I got mine off of a Xmas gift card from Williams Sonoma. It came from the place I posted above. I paid extra as a result getting from a secondary party. I held onto the gift card for two years. Needed to use it before I lost the damn thing.

I'm gonna check what 0.6 tablespoons is per pound. I was ticked off when I over salted the last batch.

The instructions in the video for brine is 1.5 tablespoons per quart of water. Not sure what % that would be.

11 Days. I have looked at several websites and they suggested tasting it to see when it's done. The crock instructions also suggesting buttermilk or yogurt whey. My guess that would speed things up a bit. I should check the recipe for the ferment duration with added dairy lactobacillus.
 
Yooper said:
I store mine in mason jars in the fridge when they are done, and eat it warm/cold and don't heat it. I love it- and now you've reopened my obsession!

I really want one of those crocks now. I've been using a jar/brine/airlock set up for pickles, kimchee, sauerkraut, carrots, hot peppers, etc, and I love the look and convenience of those crocks.
Click to expand...

Its really nice and heavy. You won't want to move it much. I like the weights and lid. I have ample space for the liquid to rise.

Really over packed my first batch and lost a lot of brine due to spill over during the ferment. This won't happen with this bad boy and I don't need to be too concerned about stuff getting in it with the air lock rim.

How long do you normally ferment yours?
 
This is great. I really like that crock, and it looks like you have some delicious sauerkraut coming your way.

Do you think you'll wait the full 6 weeks before trying to capture a culture for your beer?
 
burninator said:
This is great. I really like that crock, and it looks like you have some delicious sauerkraut coming your way.

Do you think you'll wait the full 6 weeks before trying to capture a culture for your beer?
Click to expand...

I'm not sure. I have a bunch of beer projects going. I have my first nitro beer fermenting, I plan to make a big chocolate banana beer that needs to age a several months and it's a traditional April brew. I need to make another Berliner for spring

However, I just picked up some new pale malt, red wheat, and chocolate wheat with a pack of T58. I could do the fast sour with dunkelweisen then boil and pitch T58. I've been wanting to do a funky/dirty brown for a while.

I might just do that next.
 
Horseflesh said:
I often eat at a German place, and they told me their kraut only ages 11 days. It's better than mine... wish I knew the rest of their technique. It stays crisp and doesn't get that translucent look.!
Click to expand...

To answer your 11 day question the mfgr instructions said that fermentation can be 8-10 days at 64-68F. You need to add whey, buttermilk, or dry white wine to speed up the process.

I could see using Spätlese or a Riesling in this if you chose wine.

This is the link to down load the instructions. There's typos in this make a mental note of that. It said some of the recipes are translated from German. They rounded the recipes quantities since they were metric.

http://nebula.wsimg.com/a6868c6ef0b...E47DABC53F34B3546&disposition=0&alloworigin=1
 
timdillon36 said:
My folks have been making krout for a few years. They make 100lb at a time using buckets to ferment but insteat of an airlock they place a bag over/in the bucket and fill that with water. They do this once a year with cabbage directly from a local farmer.

My question is how you store the finished product? My folks can it but I think by doing that you loose all of the health benefits of a raw fermented vegetable.
Click to expand...

I ferment in Fido jars (they burp, so no need for air locks). I've stored in the Fido jars for ~6 months in my basement after fermentation hit the sourness I like. I've had no issues, probably because limited oxygen gets into the jars and low PH environment. Works for pickles as well
 
If anyone is curious here's the kraut recipe from the above link. I will definitely try this soon with a splash of wine.

O46hPBO.png
 
Thanks for posting a link to Ohio stoneware. I happen to have one of their preserving crocks and need a lid and the weights. I used to use this to make Sauerkraut as well and would like to resume making this again.
 
Stormbringer said:
Thanks for posting a link to Ohio stoneware. I happen to have one of their preserving crocks and need a lid and the weights. I used to use this to make Sauerkraut as well and would like to resume making this again.
Click to expand...

I think this is the case for people who run across these by accident. Usually at a grandparents home. They like the crock , but don't have the lid and stones. Probably because the lid broke and the stones are lost. Quite possibly cheese cloth was used to watch the fermentation.

My sister has one of these crocks and had no idea about the lid and stones or that they where even used. She thought it was a big pickle jar. Right now she has sand in it and some dried plants in it as a decoration in the house.

I didn't know you could get these separately.

Looks like they sell the traditional moonshine jugs too! Could be repurposed for a homebrew growler.

Wow - They even have beer growlers.
 
Schlenkerla said:
Its really nice and heavy. You won't want to move it much. I like the weights and lid. I have ample space for the liquid to rise.

Really over packed my first batch and lost a lot of brine due to spill over during the ferment. This won't happen with this bad boy and I don't need to be too concerned about stuff getting in it with the air lock rim.

How long do you normally ferment yours?
Click to expand...

I saw that they don't have the nice lid and things for the smaller fermentation crocks. I think that 3 gallon size is just a bit too big from my desire to have it sit on the counter.

I ferment mine till it's done- we're really at the mercy of mother nature. Here at my house in the UP, it's pretty darn cold (coconut oil is hard, all year 'round). In Texas, I've had it ready in less than 5 days (72-75 degrees).

I really like my kimchee tart and hot, so sometimes let that go longer than kraut. Pickles are about 10 days. I made some awesome IPA pickles, with 1/2 of a habanero in them and some garlic.
 
Yooper said:
I saw that they don't have the nice lid and things for the smaller fermentation crocks. I think that 3 gallon size is just a bit too big from my desire to have it sit on the counter.

I ferment mine till it's done- we're really at the mercy of mother nature. Here at my house in the UP, it's pretty darn cold (coconut oil is hard, all year 'round). In Texas, I've had it ready in less than 5 days (72-75 degrees).

I really like my kimchee tart and hot, so sometimes let that go longer than kraut. Pickles are about 10 days. I made some awesome IPA pickles, with 1/2 of a habanero in them and some garlic.
Click to expand...

Yeah, it's not like you can have 3 gallon crock of kraut or a carboy of home brew on the counter top. Gotta have a place to squirrel it away like we do our fermentors.
 
I got a crock for Christmas (and a lump of coal). My first batch of kraut went moldy. Maybe not enough salt? I'll have to try again soon and it's almost time for the big batch of kimchi. My mouth it's watering thinking about it.
 
lschiavo said:
I got a crock for Christmas (and a lump of coal). My first batch of kraut went moldy. Maybe not enough salt? I'll have to try again soon and it's almost time for the big batch of kimchi. My mouth it's watering thinking about it.
Click to expand...

The instructions I posted call for 0.6 tablespoons per pound of cabbage.

The problem is like the same issue of priming beer with sugar. One really needs to the weight of the salt verses a volume. It's a packing density issue.
 
lschiavo said:
I got a crock for Christmas (and a lump of coal). My first batch of kraut went moldy. Maybe not enough salt? I'll have to try again soon and it's almost time for the big batch of kimchi. My mouth it's watering thinking about it.
Click to expand...

Horseflesh said:
My fermentation book suggests 2% (by weight) salt but I find that a bit too salty.... 1.5% was not salty enough when I tried it. Next time I guess it is 1.75%.
Click to expand...

This is right approach here.

9.07 grams per pound is 2.00%
7.94 grams per pound is 1.75%
6.80 grams per pound is 1.50%
 
I make my own also. Buckets in the basement, for me. I use a dinner plate and a bag of brine for my weight.

Tips:

  • If you have to make brine, use spring water, or distilled. Never chlorine-treated tap water.
  • Keep it all submerged. Oxygen is what causes mold.
  • Use canning or pickling salt. Never table salt.
  • A good "starter" for your initial ferment: http://caldwellbiofermentation.com/en/starter-culture.html
  • Save a bit of your leftover liquid from your ferment in a jar, and refrigerate. Use it as a starter for your next one.
  • A bit of added caraway seed makes the best damn sauerkraut ever.
 
Schlenkerla said:
The instructions I posted call for 0.6 tablespoons per pound of cabbage.

The problem is like the same issue of priming beer with sugar. One really needs to weight of the salt verses a volume. It's a packing density issue.
Click to expand...

I was thinking the same thing. A recipe based on weights would be better.
 
lschiavo said:
I was thinking the same thing. A recipe based on weights would be better.
Click to expand...

Erik (Tiber_Brew) always told me to do a 2 1/2% brine for the pickles, and for sauerkraut I do 2% (no brine)- that is 20 grams of salt per 1000 g cabbage.

Too much salt inhibits lacto, but not enough allows other microbes to grow. 2 1/2% is probably good for almost everything I can think of, but since I don't use brine for the cabbage, I use 2%. I pound the salt in pretty well, and then of course push it down tightly under the liquid it makes.
 
imasickboy said:
I make my own also. Buckets in the basement, for me. I use a dinner plate and a bag of brine for my weight.

Tips:

  • If you have to make brine, use spring water, or distilled. Never chlorine-treated tap water.
  • Keep it all submerged. Oxygen is what causes mold.
  • Use canning or pickling salt. Never table salt.
  • A good "starter" for your initial ferment: http://caldwellbiofermentation.com/en/starter-culture.html
  • Save a bit of your leftover liquid from your ferment in a jar, and refrigerate. Use it as a starter for your next one.
  • A bit of added caraway seed makes the best damn sauerkraut ever.
Click to expand...

Good tips but caraway seed is just rediculous;) I like mine straight up.
 

Latest posts

Back
Top