Sauerkraut Puree?

October 7, 2022 3:46 AM

I tried to make sauerkraut for the first time, but didn’t have a sharp knife or mandoline, so used a dull cheesegrater that turned the cabbage into a puree practically. Is that going to be a problem for fermentation?

I followed the rest of the steps, am using a jar weight and an airlock. Is this likely to turn out okay? There is quite a lot of water that was released right away, and I feel like I read somewhere that too much liquid might cause problems. Is this true? Should I pour out some liquid? I already ordered a mandoline, so this won’t be a problem in future.

posted by asimplemouse to Food & Drink (9 answers total)

The biggest problem will likely be the gross texture of the final product, not food safety or fermentation itself. Keep smelling and tasting it and if you notice any non-fermenty smells or mold growth throw it out, but otherwise keep going.
posted by derrinyet at 4:01 AM on October 7, 2022 [1 favorite]

Fermentation is optimal at about a 3.5-5% salt solution. If you added, say, 50g of salt and you feel like what was released was substantially over a liter-liter and a half of liquid, add more salt.
posted by derrinyet at 4:03 AM on October 7, 2022

It will likely ferment quicker than regular cut or shredded cabbage, so keep a close eye on it. If you don't like the texture now, you probably won't like it later. But it would probably work fine in cooked applications or half and half with fresh shredded cabbage to improve the texture.
posted by carrioncomfort at 4:28 AM on October 7, 2022 [4 favorites]

Seconding it should be fine but go faster. As for texture, idk I like most all pickles and I like most all pickle relishes, I would eat that on a sandwich. Good luck!
posted by SaltySalticid at 4:48 AM on October 7, 2022

Response by poster: So I don’t mind the texture and can think of lots of applications for a sauerkraut paste basically. Question: I used 1TB of salt for a quart jar of cabbage and its liquid and the glass weight. Think I should add more salt? Thanks all!
posted by asimplemouse at 4:49 AM on October 7, 2022

IMO lactofermentation really needs measuring by weight. You want between 2% and 3% salt by weight. Less than that and the fermentation is likely to spoil. On the other hand, 5% salt is going to result in a very salty sauerkraut. It’s hard to know how to advise you if we don’t know the weight of your cabbage (how big was the head and what variety?) and the weight of the salt (1 tbsp of table salt weighs a good bit more than 1 tbsp of kosher salt). That said, 1 tbsp for only a quart of shredded cabbage seems like a lot of salt.
posted by slkinsey at 5:00 AM on October 7, 2022

I think you need twice as much salt. 1 tbs = 17g; 1 US quart =~ 1 litre = 1000g: so you're currently at 1.7% salt while derrinyet recommends 3.5%.
posted by BobTheScientist at 5:03 AM on October 7, 2022

On the other hand, 5% salt is going to result in a very salty sauerkraut.

I use 5% as my standard ratio for all kinds of fermentation, though it might be a little high for sauerkraut since there you're using the expressed water directly (rather than dissolving it in water and adding into vegetables that have their own water which is released and dilutes the solution through osmosis). The taste is never salty because the bacteria convert all the salt into tangy brine (unless you stop short of full-sour, which is okay if you prefer that flavor but I never do).

And yes, definitely measure by weight and not volume.
posted by derrinyet at 5:15 AM on October 7, 2022

I just started pickling some cabbage, using a similar fermentation method.

While by itself it may be unappetizing, it'll probably work wonderfully as a soup ingredient. Just lessen the salt in the soup recipe, as the sauerkraut will be salty.
posted by spinifex23 at 9:15 AM on October 7, 2022