Loadingā¦
3
My sauerkraut brine level dropped and I spent a whole weekend fixing it
I started a big batch of sauerkraut in a 2-gallon crock last Friday. By Sunday, the brine had dropped below the cabbage, and I saw a tiny bit of mold starting. I spent the next two days, maybe 5 hours total, trying to make more brine, weighing it down with new weights, and checking it every few hours. I finally got it stable by using a zip-top bag filled with extra salt water as a weight. Has anyone else had this much trouble keeping everything submerged? What's your go-to method?
3 comments
Log in to join the discussion
Log In3 Comments
stella_lee5mo ago
Yeah that bag trick is solid, I do the same thing but with a ziplock full of brine so if it pops I'm not diluting anything. And hey @price.nora, the plate thing always lets stuff sneak around the edges on me too, drives me nuts. If you've got a narrow crock, try a small mason jar filled with brine as a weight, just screw the lid on tight first so it doesn't get funky. That's what I use after my last batch tried to grow a fuzz hat on day three.
6
price.nora7mo ago
Ugh, that brine drop panic is the worst. I feel your pain, spending a whole weekend babysitting a crock. Like @grantb92 said, a plate can work, but my cabbages always seem to float around the edges. My go-to is the bag trick too, but I use plain water in the bag, not extra brine. That way, if it leaks, it doesn't mess up the salt balance. It's the only thing that keeps everything truly drowned.
3
grantb927mo ago
My grandma always used a clean, heavy dinner plate that fit snugly inside the crock. I've found a glass pie plate works even better because you can see the brine level.
2