Did I ruin my sauerkraut?

[neveryoumindthere]

I can't remember if you are supposed to leave it for 2 or 3 days at room temp, but either way, I couldn't resist and I opened the jar after 1.5 days to taste. Did I interrupt the process at all? If so, can I salvage it? or is it no big deal and I can just reseal and let it sit again until it's ready?

[cristeen]

It's fine. In fact, if I leave mine sealed, it won't ferment very quickly at all - I have to leave the lid off the jar to allow the organisms to colonize.

And you can't take the 2-3 days as gospel. Taste it. You should be able to tell when it's fermented. When you first make it, it tastes like super salty cabbage. As it ferments, the saltiness goes away and is replaced by a "pickled" flavor. When it reaches a balance of salt/pickle that you like, that's when you pop it in the fridge.

[neveryoumindthere]

Hmm..I vaguely remember my parents leaving the lids off for a couple days...but not sure.

So, do you literally just pop the veggies, salt/water mixture in a jar and leave the top off and let it sit on the counter? if so, for how long? I thought I'd read that the organisms we want won't thrive in the presence of oxygen (or maybe I just made that up.LOL)

[cristeen]

Originally Posted by neveryoumindthere

So, do you literally just pop the veggies, salt/water mixture in a jar and leave the top off and let it sit on the counter? if so, for how long?

Yup.

Around here nothing's fermenting right now, it's too cold. I've had ferments on my counter for months with no activity. I cover the jar with a piece of muslin to deter insects, but other than that, yes, it's uncovered.

And how long it takes is completely going to be dependent on many things, including the temperature. That's why I recommended tasting it periodically.

[staceychev]

Wow... we leave our sauerkraut crock on top of our fridge for weeks in the wintertime! (Covered with a dishtowel.) We learned that we like the longer ferments.