sauerkraut newbie question

[WaturMama]

I attempted sauerkraut for the first time according to the recipe for "Quick Kraut" in Full Moon Feast. Basically I put the ingredients in a quart jar and put a smaller jar with water on top which me and my ds have been pushing on at least once a day for a little over a week.

There are 1/8-1/4 inch spots of white fuzzy stuff growing on the surface of the liquid. Does that mean I should throw out the whole thing?

[kallyn]

In Wild Fermentation, it says that sometimes mold appears on the surface of kraut but it's no big deal. Just skim off what you can - it's just a surface thing from contact with the air and the rest of the kraut is fine.

[Chamomile Girl]

There is a thread about this on the Wild Fermentation forum that basically says if you make kraut in a ball jar go ahead and use the lid instead of a more open air method. Supposedly it creates an anaerobic environment and in the end the kraut will taste much better. I'll see if I can find the exact post...

A-ha found it.

The mold you have now can just be skimmed off and the kraut is fine, but in the future lids might be easier.

[WaturMama]

Thanks so much and yay!