Pickle.Recipe

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Sauerkraut (USDA home method)

Fermented cabbage - United States. Salt, temperature, duration and pH as published, with the sentence each came from.

Parameters

Salt
3 tablespoons of canning or pickling salt per 5 pounds of cabbage

Work with about 5 pounds of cabbage at a time.

USDA / NCHFP

Batch
25 lbs cabbage to 3/4 cup canning or pickling salt

25 lbs cabbage 3/4 cup canning or pickling salt

USDA / NCHFP

Top-up brine if the juice does not cover
1-1/2 tablespoons of salt per quart of water

If juice does not cover cabbage, add boiled and cooled brine (1-1/2 tablespoons of salt per quart of water).

USDA / NCHFP

Recommended fermentation temperature
70 to 75°F

For obtaining a good quality sauerkraut at home, the USDA recommendation is to store at 70° to 75°F while fermenting.

USDA / NCHFP

Below which it may not ferment
60°F

At temperatures lower than 60°F, kraut may not ferment.

USDA / NCHFP

Above which it may go soft
75°F

Above 75°F, kraut may become soft.

USDA / NCHFP

Time at 70 to 75 F
about 3 to 4 weeks

At temperatures between 70° and 75°F, kraut will be fully fermented in about 3 to 4 weeks; at 60° to 65°F, fermentation may take 5 to 6 weeks.

USDA / NCHFP

Time at 60 to 65 F
5 to 6 weeks

At temperatures between 70° and 75°F, kraut will be fully fermented in about 3 to 4 weeks; at 60° to 65°F, fermentation may take 5 to 6 weeks.

USDA / NCHFP

Start after harvest within
24 to 48 hours

Shred cabbage and start kraut between 24 and 48 hours after harvest.

USDA / NCHFP

Container depth above the cabbage
at least 4 or 5 inches

Be sure it is deep enough so that its rim is at least 4 or 5 inches above the cabbage.

USDA / NCHFP

How it is made, step by step - 10 steps, each one quoted from USDA/NCHFP Sauerkraut.

Substrate

Region

Method

Same substrate

Same region

Fields on this page come from USDA/NCHFP. Nothing here is inferred from one field to fill another. What each dataset is, and what it is not allowed to supply, is on methodology.