Can I use less salt for fermenting veggies?

[Plummeting]

I just made my first batches of sauerkraut and ginger carrots, following the directions from NT. They both taste way too salty for me. I love sauerkraut and my grandparents always made it themselves when I was a kid, but I really don't think it was that salty. Can I reduce the amount of salt a little bit?

BTW, I am sooo excited because DD loved the kraut. I was afraid she wouldn't because it is kind of a tangy taste for a two-year-old, but she liked it a lot. I brought the jar into the room and scooped some out and we sat on the floor eating it. I thought we were done and closed the jar to go put it away, but she pulled it over, opened it back up and stuck her fork right in. Yea!

[yitlan]

Most people agree the ginger carrots recipe is off and should be one teaspoon vs one tablespoon of salt. As for the kraut, I never measure my salt, so you could start stepping down the salt til you find your liking. And in Wild Fermentation, there are some notes on salt free kraut, but I can't find my copy to help you right now!

[tboroson]

You have to be careful with stepping down the salt, since the salt is what is keeping the food from going moldy, and drawing out the liquid from the vegetables that creates the brine. Many of the recipes may well be able to be less salty, but I'd hesitate to say across the board, "Sure, cut it all in half" or anything like that.

One thing I recall, I've read that traditionally, saurkraut was frequently rinsed and squeezed before serving. That made it taste much more like fresh cabbage. That's a reasonable option for any fermented food. The enzymes and such are in the food moreso than in the brine, so I don't think you'd be wasting much by doing that.

[cobluegirl]

Originally Posted by tboroson

One thing I recall, I've read that traditionally, saurkraut was frequently rinsed and squeezed before serving. That made it taste much more like fresh cabbage. That's a reasonable option for any fermented food. The enzymes and such are in the food moreso than in the brine, so I don't think you'd be wasting much by doing that.

hmmm that is a good thought...

[provocativa]

2 more things- make sure you're using grey salt, or as high a grade sea salt as you can get, and it will mellow (get less salty) as it ages in the jar.

[JaneS]

Are you using whey or just salt?

[Plummeting]

Whey and salt.

[JaneS]

Then I think reducing salt is just fine as you already have a headstart from the probiotics in the whey. The larger amount of salt in whey free recipes is designed to create a bacteriostatic solution to prevent putrefactive organisms from taking hold before the good guys can get started from their natural presence in the veggies (which btw is why so important to use organic as pesticides/herbicides probably wipe out all nascent good guys on surface).