Brined vegetables, the general method
The other half of the pair, for vegetables too dry to make their own brine. The number to hold on to is twelve percent: the bulletin says a brine that falls below it stops being a fermentation and starts being a spoilage.
4 steps, every one quoted from FAO Bulletin 134 5.6.3. The step labels are this site's; the sentences under them are not.
Salt, at a batch you might actually make
15 to 20 % salt in water, of the weight of the finished brine.
| Water | Salt at 15% | Salt at 20% |
|---|---|---|
| 1 kg | 176 g | 250 g |
| 2 kg | 353 g | 500 g |
| 5 kg | 882 g | 1250 g |
The arithmetic, at 2 kg
Percent by weight of the finished brine.
salt / (salt + water) = percent / 100
salt = water x percent / (100 - percent)
= 2.000 kg x 15.00% / (100 - 15)
= 352.9 g
Finished brine: 2.353 kg, of which 15.00% is salt.This is a percentage by weight of the finished brine, which is what a salinity meter reads and is not the same as grams per 100 mL of water. The calculator gives both.
Every number the source states
- Covering brine
- 15 to 20% salt in water
- Brine must not fall below
- 12% salt in water
- Salometer range for a classical succession
- 12.5 to 20°SAL
- Above which the succession changes
- up to about 40°SAL
- Above which lactic fermentation stops
- about 60°SAL
A brine solution is prepared by dissolving salt in water (a 15 to 20% salt solution).
It is crucial that the salt concentration does not fall below 12%, otherwise conditions do not allow for fermentation.
Most vegetables can be fermented at 12.5° to 20° salometer salt.
At higher salt levels of up to about 40° salometer, the sequence is skewed towards the development of a homofermentation, dominated by Lactobacillus plantarum.
At the highest concentrations of salt (about 60° salometer) the lactic fermentation ceases to function and if any acid is detected during brine storage it is acetic acid, presumably produced by acid-forming yeasts which are still active at this concentration of salt (Vaughn, 1985).
Method
Numbered for your place in the list. Every sentence below is the source's own, verified against the page it came from when this table was last built from the sources.
Mix the brine
A brine solution is prepared by dissolving salt in water (a 15 to 20% salt solution).
Immerse
The vegetable is immersed in the brine and allowed to ferment.
Expect it to weaken
The strong brine solution draws sugar and water out of the vegetable, which decreases the salt concentration.
Hold it above twelve percent
It is crucial that the salt concentration does not fall below 12%, otherwise conditions do not allow for fermentation. To achieve this, extra salt is added periodically to the brine mixture.
What else the source says
- When to use brine rather than dry salt
- Brine is used for vegetables which inherently contain less moisture.
- A field test for a ten percent brine
- As a general guide, a fresh egg floats in a 10% brine solution (Kordylas, 1990).
- What happens as the salt goes up
- Most vegetables can be fermented at 12.5° to 20° salometer salt.
Before you make this
This site is a reference and not a food safety authority. It reports what named sources published and does not certify that any preparation is safe. The safety page sets out what the sources themselves say about acidity, about surface growth and about when to throw something away, and equipment lists the instruments the numbers above cannot be checked without.
The full record for this pickle, including every source consulted and the ones that disagree, is on its tradition page.
Other brined recipes
- Fermented dill pickles, USDA home method
- Green mango pickle
- Lime pickle, brined
- Black olives
- Green olives, Spanish style
- Kanji
- Kimchi
- Brined cucumber pickles
Method and asides from FAO 134 Battcock, M. and Azam-Ali, S. (1998) Fermented fruits and vegetables: A global perspective. FAO Agricultural Services Bulletin No. 134. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, Rome. Numbers from the same source, extracted separately and listed on methodology.