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jwangelin

Can sauerkraut be saved?

jwangelin
13 years ago

I made a mistake on my first batch of sauerkraut. I messed up and added too much salt. My smaller second batch with caraway seeds is so much better. Can I simply sample the water from each and add extra water to the original batch and match the salinity of the second?

Thanks in advance,

Jon

Comments (7)

  • digdirt2
    13 years ago

    Dump, squeeze and drain well, rinse and drain again well a couple of times with fresh water to remove as much of the excess salt as possible, put it back into the washed container with a fresh mix of brine that contains the correct amount of salt and let it finish fermenting.

    It will still be a bit more salty than the other batch as some of the sodium in already absorbed so no way to eliminate it all but you can add sugar to taste to the container to off-set the saltiness.

    Dave

  • gardendawgie
    13 years ago

    How much salt in the first batch and how much did you make. I suspect you dont really have too much salt. How do you know there is too much salt.

    Basically do not try to lower the salt. Eat it salty but throw into something like a soup. Have you tasted it. I bet the salty one will not taste salty when you eat it.

    How much salt did you use?

    If you do as digdirt suggests you might wind up with low acid food that can grow botulism. Do not change the brine unless you add vinegar as the new brine which will ruin the taste. but you can use 100% vinegar with no salt and no water.

    You give no information. You give only conclusions.

    Small batches of food should be throw out. too dangerous to fool around with food.

    Everyone who trys fermentation winds up throwing out batches. Do not feel bad. It is part of learning.

    What do you think is the correct amount of salt to use and what is too much. You never say.

  • digdirt2
    13 years ago

    If you do as digdirt suggests you might wind up with low acid food that can grow botulism.

    What do you base that claim on? You might want to review the USDA Guidelines on Fermentation and how it works.

    Dave

    Here is a link that might be useful: Preparing and Canning Fermented and Pickled Foods

  • gardendawgie
    13 years ago

    What if it already completed fermenting and you remove the acid brine and use salty water. that removes the acid. the salt will not keep it preserved. salt does not preserve at these levels. acid preserves and it must be more or less below pH 4.0 as the usual rule of thumb.

    This original poster gives no information. we dont know if he just started to ferment or if it has already completed fermentation. we dont know anything. all that is said are conclusions. it is not safe to just remove the acid and replace with water in all cases. and we have to include all cases because there is no information given.

  • annie1992
    13 years ago

    How do you know or why do you think you used too much salt?

    My kraut is always too salty for me to eat out of the jar without rinsing before consuming and I use the recommended amount of 3 tablespoons per 5 pounds of cabbage.

    If the kraut is properly fermented and ready to can or freeze, I'd go ahead and process it and then just rinse before using.

    Annie

  • solomani
    10 years ago

    Hi all,
    I made my first batch last week using the Perfect Pickler:
    http://www.perfectpickler.com/perfect-pickler-glass-jar-kit-1-liter/

    All went well but I find the kraut very salty. Can I wash the kraut before eating it to reduce the saltiness? And if so will this kill-off/reduce the probiotic benefit of eating it as that is the main reason I am eating it.

    Thanks in advance.

  • digdirt2
    10 years ago

    If this kraut is only one week old then it needs more fermenting time to approach the right balance of flavor and fermentation. The salty flavor will decline as more water is drawn from the cabbage and the probiotic levels will rise.

    Consider 3 weeks minimum fermentation.

    Dave

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