Steven Luscher

Comment Threads

• IvyMike commented on Making sauerkraut is easy
  > It's so easy and fun to make sauerkraut that there's really no good excuse to buy it from a store. Having seen the process, I'm going to have to respectfully disagree....
• jswanljung commented on Making sauerkraut is easy
  Okay, I did an informal and totally unscientific survey of readers at the Swedish food site I co-run, many of whom make their own fermented vegetables (it's traditional over here). None of them would eat sauerkraut if mold grew on it during fermentation. They were horrified by picture number 5. There's bloom and there's bloom. Kahm is harmless (and is a yeast), mold is potentially toxic. And that's mold. I know what kahm looks like. I don't think Mark is in any grave danger, but common sense says don't eat moldy food unless you know it's safe (cheese, for instance)....
• jmullan commented on Making sauerkraut is easy
  Some very good friends of mine wrote a two part guide to the making and subsequent canning of sauerkraut. The start of the process: http://blueyonderletters.blogspot.com/2008/11/fear-no-mold.html The finishing move (I would insert a Mortal Kombat "FATALITY" joke here if I were less circumspect): http://blueyonderletters.blogspot.com/2008/11/break-out-bratwurst.html I would like to say that the mold had leached hallucinogenic compounds into the kraut before it was "skimmed" away, but sadly we did not trip balls after consuming the kraut. In fact, it was crunchy, slightly sweet, and generally delicious....
• Deidzoeb commented on Making sauerkraut is easy
  Great to see all these recipes and variations. I hope people don't get the impression that expensive crocks are necessary. For weighting down smaller containers, a sealed baggie full of water or brine is great because it kinda flows into place wherever there might be a gap. Filling the baggie with salted water of the right proportion works well because it's a place to store some if you need to add more brine later, and no harm done to the kraut if the baggie leaks. And until the local library gets Wild Fermentation, see if they have The Joy of...
• absimiliard commented on Making sauerkraut is easy
  Mmmmmm sauerkraut. I love sauerkraut. I used to do home-brewing fairly regularly. I was a mead maker, and my specialty was raspberry mead made with the raspberries from my back-yard. So I'm moderately familiar with the fermentation process from that. I've never brewed sauerkraut though. I think maybe this summer I will, my wife and I just joined a community farm vegetable share to increase the amount of veggies we eat, eat more seasonally, and hopefully force us to try new vegetables and recipes we normally wouldn't. She doesn't generally like sauerkraut, but maybe she will if we make it...