Wow, just realized that we’ve just hit 400 episodes!
We’ll have to celebrate tomorrow! 
Today, we have the final installment of Donna Gates’ cultured vegetable demonstration. In this final part, she explains how to pack your fermented vegetables and what equipment to use (don’t worry, it’s not much!)
Take a look…
Your question of the day: How many people do you think will be eating fermented vegetables in a few years? OR What do you think of 3 part episodes?
Click here, scroll down to the bottom of the page and leave your comments now!
Here is the recipe!
Cultured Vegetables
2 Heads of Green Cabbage
2 Bunches of Kale
1-2 bunches of Parsley
2 Red Peppers
6 Carrots
Big handful of mint
2 lemons
Shred Cabbage and Carrots in food processor. Finely chop up Kale, Parsley, Peppers and Mint. Put all in big bowl, saving some of the herbs and stalks of kale for the brine.
Brine
Kale stalks
Handful of parsley
Handful of mint
Juice of 2 lemons
About 1 cup water
3 Ancient Earth Mineral Capsules (optional)
1 scoop EcoBloom (optional)
1 pack Culture Starter (optional)
Blend all in high speed blender, mix in the minerals, ecobloom and culture starter. Then poor over chopped veggies and mix well.
Place in airtight glass containers, store at room temp for 7 days.
Finally, here is where you can find out more information about Donna Gates… www.BodyEcology.com
Live Awesome!
Kev
7:19 pm on September 21st, 2009
just want to say – the sound was absolutely perfect on this show
– great show – Dede
8:21 pm on September 21st, 2009
We will be eating them regularly, found Donna’s Culture Starter at Natural Grocers and made some today, wish I would of had this last video.
9:02 pm on September 21st, 2009
“What do you think of 3 part episodes?”
If you find the topic interesting, then it’s great. But sometimes it gets boring because you don’t want to hear about the same topic 3 days in a row.
Although I’m somewhat interested in culturing vegetables, I felt these videos were too slow/long. I know it’s not your fault since you were just taping Donna’s process, but it felt very drawn out as an instructional recipe show. Perhaps it was her speaking style – if Kevin and Annemarie were talking, I could probably listen for 30 minutes!
I love the energy and balance of you both as a couple! =)
9:09 pm on September 21st, 2009
Thank you Kevin and Annmarie for getting information out to us on cultured vegetables. It was one of those Ask and you shall receive moments for me. This thorough series came right on the heels of my question in the Inner Circle.
Yeah!
Dawni
9:36 pm on September 21st, 2009
I am very glad to get this info on fermenting vegetables. I have lots of jars and a couple nice crocks from my mom that I am going to use.
I think 3 part episodes are great–the only thing I did not like about this one was that there was a weekend in the middle of it.
9:53 pm on September 21st, 2009
Great job! Thanks for posting the recipe. It was difficult to decipher from the video alone.
9:54 pm on September 21st, 2009
Thank you so much for the cultured vegetable demonstration. I’ve been wanting to try this for some time–now that I have SEEN it done, I feel more brave. I would like to have seen the whole thing in one go–but having it in 3 parts is the best you can do, so it’s fine by me. If I had seen the first two last week when they first came to my e-mail box and then the last one today I would have been a bit antsy waiting for the last part, but as it is I didn’t get around to any of them until today so it worked fine for me. (IOW, if you do 3 parters in the future please don’t put a weekend in the middle.
Now if I could just figure out how to get my daughter to EAT some cultured vegetables…
Connie
9:59 pm on September 21st, 2009
I thought it was great, very informative. I learned a lot from it and didn’t mind the 3 parts.
10:11 pm on September 21st, 2009
Connie,
I don’t know what foods your diet consumes but most kids in the US anyway tend to eat more of an acidic diet and aren’t used to eating much of the ’sour’ and ‘bitter’ tastes that come along with some really great healing whole foods.
When starting on fermented / sour foods, often times we recommend starting with Young Coconut Kefir for children. You can ‘enhance’ it with a drop or two of liquid stevia or some Lakanto if you are on a sugar free diet or you could mix it with her favorite fruit juice. Then every few days, cut back on her juice and increase the YCK (Young Coconut Kefir).
Then you can introduce the CVs (Cultured Veggies) to her. Of course, you can start her off on CVs if you prefer…some like to drizzle some organic, raw pumpkin seed oil, raw EVOO, raw coconut oil then sweeten it a bit with some sweetener whether it’s stevia or raw honey.
When making your batches of CVs, think of what veggies are her favorite and add them to the blend. Carrots, beets, cucumbers, celery, ginger when added to a batch tend to taste a bit more mild.
You can offer her something like organic blue corn chips if you eat those or even some homemade raw veggie crackers or slices of cucumbers to ‘dip’ in the CVs. After you start eating them, some foods simply don’t taste good without them! I can no longer eat eggs without a huge helping of CVs and I LOVE making salad dressings out of them.
10:12 pm on September 21st, 2009
Connie, I meant to say I don’t know what foods your DAUGHTER consumes…
10:16 pm on September 21st, 2009
However many shows it takes to teach us things, it’s fine with me. This was so interesting. I don’t know if I feel brave enough to make it yet, but it’s on my list for the future.
400 shows!!! Hard to believe. I was just watching some of your old shows today and you looked different way back when. I’ve learned so much from you guys and will be forever grateful!
10:39 pm on September 21st, 2009
Awesome! Missed the first two-hope they are archived! Love you guys! You rock!!!
11:17 pm on September 21st, 2009
Donna Gates obviously knows a lot but I have to say honestly I felt like the shows dragged a bit.
11:25 pm on September 21st, 2009
It was a good show
but to be honest with you it dragged on and on and on… Danna Gates as wonderful as she is for a “under 10 minute segment” needs to get to the point a bit quicker with more energy and smiles.
11:43 pm on September 21st, 2009
Awesome show. A real course in cultured vegetables! Thank you very much Kevin, Annmarie and Donna.I don’t mind the 3 episodes mostly when it’s great information such as this one.I make my own sauerkraut and will definitively try with the brine.
1:15 am on September 22nd, 2009
Thanks for the show. I didn’t mind the three episodes or the weekend. Just happy to have the process clearly layed out. Gave me the confidence to try it.
I think Annemarie had asked Donna how long it lasts as well as how long to ferment and the answer didn’t make it on the segment. Any info on how long we can store the cultured veggies in the frig?
1:30 am on September 22nd, 2009
I loved these shows and
would love to learn so
much more about the
fermented foods and
Donna’s in depth programs.
3:13 am on September 22nd, 2009
I thought Donna was great and I didn’t find it slow as I was interested to hear everything she said, so I was impatient to see the third episode. Having just finished reading Donna’s Body Ecology book a few days ago, the timing was perfect. I’ve just started eating my fourth big batch of cultured veg (made with Donna’s bacteria culture) and I’m still experimenting with different ingredients.
Donna said something about constant temperature being important and the bacteria dying off – I’m not clear if she meant only during the fermentation period or during storage as well – I and most other people seem to store their fermented veg in the fridge after the first week or two – I thought this cold temperature just slows down the bacteria growth but now I’m concerned this may kill off the bacteria. Does anyone know about this?
4:24 am on September 22nd, 2009
Loved the contents of the show and how the whole process was shown
Thanks to Donna, her side-kick, Kev and Anne-Marie!
3 part series is wonderful, but I agree that having to wait over a weekend does disminish my enthusiasm a touch. I feel too anxious after the second show to not want the third show shortly after!
FV is growing and growing with interest, I believe. Slowly but surely more and more people are learning how good it is for us because of people like yourselves
xpeacex
4:38 am on September 22nd, 2009
I agree with some of the above comments about these vids dragging on. It was too boring for me, and as said I would have loved if you and Ann Marie would do your own vid on “fermenting”. I love both of your energies. Its contagious, I learn alot. I have to admit when I saw a part three vid from Donna, I skipped it altogether.
So fermenting is like pickling??????
I LOVE pickeled beets. My late mother used to make them when I was a kid. They had onions and pickling spices. I would love to make a raw version but don’t even know where to start. I do recall that to make a regular pickling brine you simmer vinegar, water, and sugar and pickling spices in a pot, then pour the ? hot mixture over the veg to cover it and keep in an air tight glass container for a few days till the pickling “takes”. My Mom used to make her own pickles which were also great. So any info anyone can give me on this would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks Kev!
5:30 am on September 22nd, 2009
I think it is Ok to keep episodes under the 10 minutes. But, Donna is really calming lady. It was great that she explained everything in detail but that vas huge change from what we used to here in Renegade Health. (e.g.. Kevin:“Good afternoon, everybody, this is Renegade Health Show!!! – just to color my statement)
I live in Europe and cultured vegetables / sauerkraut is great. I like it a lot and I did get idea from this show to mix and match veggies. Thank you for that!
5:32 am on September 22nd, 2009
Just to explain Europe part from my comment. It is common practice to make sauerkraut every fall.
I guess I had a lot on my mind when I posted comment.
7:07 am on September 22nd, 2009
THanks so much for the information. I have read Donna’s book and tried it, but it failed. Then i ordered another book and tried again, no luck. so it was great to see her in action and get more ideas.
it was awesome to get all the information right from the source. it may be slow, but i really appreciate knowing the information. now i am ready to try again.
did she use salt in the recipe? i thought i saw a bit used? however, thanks again for ALL the information. i don’t care how slow she talks. maybe she is just calm due to her diet and experience over time.
i also don’t care how many videos it took to get all the facts. the more facts we have, the better our chances of success will be with cultured veggies.
i think many more people will be making their own cultured veggies in the future since they need the bacteria from their own environment in their guts to help with their health.
thanks again
barbara
8:02 am on September 22nd, 2009
As for the 3 part series, it was a bit long and slow. You guys could have done it in 2, which would have been better.
I was happy for the lesson as I am trying to work up courage for another try at sauerkraut. I liked her sealing the jars.
It was very nice being introduced to Donna Gates. I am still learning the players in the raw food game.
Congratulations on the big 4-0-0.
8:46 am on September 22nd, 2009
People in general should be more grateful for the time & energy Ms. Donna Gates spent explaining the whole process. This lady is totally professional. anyway, thanks very much for your instructions & recommendations. I believe Fermented Vegetables are totally Amazing. Best regards to you all, Nick.
9:04 am on September 22nd, 2009
I know I will and many of my friends. thanks so much.
9:19 am on September 22nd, 2009
Donna was great! We liked how she explained everything is such detail. For us, the slower pace is better when learning something new – that way, we don’t have to re-watch the videoes to get the details we missed. But don’t get us wrong, we also love your energy! It would be a boring life if we were all alike. Thank you for the variety of topics you present – we are new to the raw lifestyle so everything is still incredibly exciting to us, especially to witness our transforming health. Wow!
11:17 am on September 22nd, 2009
Dear Kevin,ann-marie and support,
I think it’s a fair point the shows may have
seemed longer drawn out because the final
episode wasn’t shown until after the weekend
alternatively I can’t see why all the shows couldn’t have been shown together-as a monthly
special investigation or review.
What I have learned about Donna Gates work is
a revelation to me and this is I feel will be
a critical tool in my own recovery from mercury and heavy metal detoxification.
There are other videos on the youtube network of Donna gates in relation to her work with
childhood autism/add/adhd and depression and
I think a focus on that would have been more
informative and interesting
It’s not my wish to be supercritical I commend
you for bringing to light all these health
and healing modalities that I would otherwise
take years to unearth myself.
Keep up the good work.
11:24 am on September 22nd, 2009
Show was great to watch. Many more people need to watch this process for now and the future.
Thanks.
11:32 am on September 22nd, 2009
THe information on show #3 is exactly what I’ve been looking for. My previous method of a towel and a heavy object on top of a stainless steel container,let in too much air and the vegies would spoil.I look forward to trying glass canning jars with a sealable lid.
Thanks Renagades.
12:22 pm on September 22nd, 2009
Great show,
I would love to try this.
I do have a question, I live in SW Florida and I do not have Air conditioning in my home.
So all we have is Fans. So it would really be hard to get the temp. to be in the 70’s.
Have any Idea’s
Please let me know.
Thanks again for all your shows.
Rhonda D.
12:30 pm on September 22nd, 2009
More from Donna, Please! Please! Please!
12:37 pm on September 22nd, 2009
Thanks Kevin and Annmarie for these videos. I have taken Donna’s Certified Body Ecology coach training and I found them to be the most amazing learning experience in my life (and I’ve studied a lot about natural health!). I think Donna is ideally suited to teaching the wisdom of natural healing because of her gentle, flowing style that has a way of reconnecting you to nature.
I was afraid to make cultured vegetables at first too, but here’s what I’ve found:
I like to let them ferment on the counter for 1 week, although some people will let them ferment for 3 – 4 days.
In the refrigerator, they can last for months. Some people will have them for 8 months in the refrigerator. This is why people make a HUGE batch at once — then you have them for a long time with one batch.
Cultured vegetables and young coconut kefir have been a health secret for me. I use them to help digest my food, to energize me and if I have a craving for sweets or bread (which happens very little now that I follow Body Ecology).
I hope everyone tries this out — it’s great fun and even my husband likes to make them with me!
There are lots of good free resources on how to tell if your cultured veggies are good on the Body Ecology site for anyone who still has questions: http://www.bodyecology.com/07/02/01/making_cultured_vegetables.php
12:41 pm on September 22nd, 2009
Wow! Some people who
have commented don’t
understand what Donna
is bringing to the public.
She’s got so much great
information and I think
she tries not to bombard
people with everything
she knows. I think that
she constantly is working
to make things simple
for the people who might
other wise feel over-
whelmed and not even
try to make changes
in their diet.
Many of the people
who come to this site
are people who have
already made huge
changes and so the
information that
Donna is giving over
seems small and slow.
But their is a power
to what she is doing
you need to have a
deeper understanding
of the power which
she is not explaining
so much in these videos.
1:03 pm on September 22nd, 2009
Thank you for putting together these episodes! I feel much more confident in trying to culture vegetables using the canning jar method rather than in a large vessel with no lid. I liked the idea Gina had mentioned on day 1 or 2 of making fermented tomatillos for salsa.
I agree that Donna Gates had great information to share and I learned a great deal but three episodes were a wee bit much. Maybe three days in a row without a weekend break may have made a difference – obviously with all the editing you had to do this could have been a special week long series.
The purpose of culturing vegetables in the past was more to preserve food for future consumption. Hopefully now more people will want to consume them for health benefits.
1:17 pm on September 22nd, 2009
Kevin & Annmarie … Yes, I’d be up for your try of another 3-part show. That said, it does depend on the topic and presenter.
It is obvious to me that Donna provides a valuable instruction and knowledge base … I appreciate her. Yet, I would not sit through another one of her presentations. Her style is too laborious for me. I’d like to see someone who has learned from her, but has some zip and sass. You know, watching Donna made me realize how much I miss Tanja from Freshtopia … I could watch a 5-part (and more) series with her!
Thank you both for this valuable information!
2:42 pm on September 22nd, 2009
I think that people who are representing a healthy lifestyle should not have had their face lifted or botox, etc. We should be able to see the real results of people who represent a healthy live style.
3:36 pm on September 22nd, 2009
My colon hydrotherapist has just told me that the stomach acids kill the bacteria unless they are enteric? coated capsules so all of the bacteria in the veggies doesn’t reach the intestines. She suggests doing colon implants with probiotics, but that’s another subject.
4:24 pm on September 22nd, 2009
Sound quality soooo much better! Guess I found it lots more interesting when I could hear what she was saying. I’m going to look for the starter, etc at my local healthfood store and make some good vegetables! Thank you Donna.
As far as how many people will be eating fermented vegetables? Where I live, not many since they still believe that organic food is too expensive and still travel the fastfood lanes!
4:25 pm on September 22nd, 2009
Great 3 part episode. All three gals were great! I think everyone will be eating fermented vegetables.
5:39 pm on September 22nd, 2009
Thank you for a wonderful 3-part demo. I have contemplated getting Donna’s starter and trying to culture veggies for a while, but didn’t want to get one of those big crocks. Nice to know I can use jars. I made cultured
cabbage once in a glass bowl with a weight on top etc, but didn’t really like doing it that way. I will definitly get some culture starter and jars and try again! Thanks again Annmarie for all you and Kevin have taught me.
And a big thanks to Donna for sharing her expertise.
6:35 pm on September 22nd, 2009
3 parts is great!
A weekend in the middle is less great.
Donna Gates is calm and thorough – people are just not used to that pace on your shows.
I am also from Europe. We ferment all the time.
A tip I’d like to add: We always ferment with just salt, as it kills the wrong kind of bacteria, so that only the right kind (lactobacteria) will grow in the culture.
So if you don’t use any of the optional saterters it could be a good idea to add salt (or seaweed) to the brine to be on the safe side.
7:52 pm on September 22nd, 2009
Hi Guys,
Thanks for the topic. it was very interesting to me as i know nothing about cultured vegetables and have never tried them. I was wondering about alternative ways to ferment though without using the ’starter’ that was mentioned as i live in Australia and not sure what is available here. I remember Donna saying something about just using salt? or what about how to do it using a probiotic capsule.
She didn’t answer the question about storage and as someone said above, does storing it in the fridge kill the bacteria. How do you know how long to ferment to get the optimal benefits.
In regards to it being in 3 parts I didn’t mind it as it was good to keep the shows to under 10 mins but i didn’t like the weekend break before the 3rd installment. I had many questions but wanted to wait till i saw them all and now i can’t remember what other questions i had. Anyway, maybe Ann Marie can show us how she does it in a Wednesday video and use alternative/ easier options. Thanks and have a great day.
8:09 pm on September 22nd, 2009
The audio quality was better on this last one, & I did have a bit of difficulty hearing the first two. Kevin’s & Annmarie’s lively enthusiasm is hard to beat, but you have to learn to listen to the message, no matter who is giving it. I thoroughly enjoyed Donna Gates and say “Bring it on!” for some more info, & multiple parts are okay with me!
8:38 pm on September 22nd, 2009
I couldn’t wait for part 3 and have some jars nicely fermenting already. Didn’t use a culture starter as I can’t find a veggie one here in Australia. If anyone knows where I can get some, please pass on the info. I could only find yoghurt starter that had milk products (and sugar & salt) included.
I found part 3 to be the most informative in the way Donna warned us what is normal and what’s not. I found her presenting slow but methodical which some of us need. Yes it is in direct contrast to Kevin’s way of presenting.
9:19 pm on September 22nd, 2009
People in Russia are keeping their fermented vegetables in the cold places like underground storages in the country sides or in refregerators in the city. I do not get it how fermented vegetables can be kept at room temperature. I guess I need to try her recipe.
12:17 am on September 23rd, 2009
Great 3 part show. I’ve been wanting to know about preparing cultured vegetable and now I can start. Thanks Esther
4:23 am on September 23rd, 2009
I have made 4 large batches of fermented veg now and always ferment in big jars and transfer to smaller jars when I am ready to eat it. I was worried the first time and did a fair amount of research. A few people are asking if it’s OK not using the culture – well, my first batch was made without the culture and I also forgot to add any salt (which helps prevent the bad bacteria, so I was worried and checked it with my pH meter to make sure it was the correct pH level of 4 – the bad bacteria need a higher pH level – it worked fine, but since then I’ve used the Body Ecology starter which I shipped to Qatar from the US. I was worried about how it would be affected by shipping to a very hot climate and I was assured it would not be damaged – it does make it a little more expensive of course. I also have temperature problems to consider, living in a desert country. I checked this out also with a well know raw food chef – it is OK if it ferments in a warm environment (not hot tho), but it will ferment quicker. Having said that, my last batch was left fermenting for two weeks and was perfect, so it’s just a matter of personal preference. Hope some of this is useful.
10:15 am on September 23rd, 2009
I wanted to answer a few questions that were asked above about whether putting the cultured veggies in the fridge kills bacteria…Actually, it just makes them more active. So they are VERY active when they are out and when you put them in the fridge, they essentially calm down. This means that they won’t get sour as quickly.
When I was first experimenting with my cultured vegetables, I opened the jar and tried them at 4 days, then left them a little longer (sealing them up tight again). The get more sour the longer you leave them out to ferment. You’ll find out what you like and do it that way.
I live in the Caribbean in the winters, where it’s very warm. At first, I was worried that making cultured veggies in such a warm climate would not work well or that bugs would be attracted to it. In fact, it was easy to make them there. No issues with the temperature or bugs. They did ferment faster, which was great.
I don’t know if Donna mentioned this — but someone said something in the comments about probiotics in capsules dying in the stomach acid. That’s true. Very few good bacteria live through stomach acid (Bacillus subtilis is one). That’s why Donna always recommends fermented foods and drinks. 2 reasons: (1) Donna’s starters are made with FIRST GENERATION probiotics. That means they are the strongest and hardiest. Most probiotic capsules are made with later generation probiotics (that’s how they have all of those millions of CFUs). And (2) Your body recognizes fermented foods and drinks as food, so the probiotics can go through your digestive system as food, surviving stomach acid and reaching your intestines.
I like using whole foods as my source of probiotics — the cultured veggies make just about any meal taste great and a little tip…if you like raw energy soup, they can make a bland recipe taste DELICIOUS!
10:18 am on September 23rd, 2009
Oops, I meant putting the cultured veggies in the fridge makes the good bacteria LESS active in that they won’t keep making your veggies get more and more sour. Once you decide you like how sour they’ve become, just put them in the fridge and enjoy.
12:52 pm on September 23rd, 2009
Just want to add that I did not find these videos boring at all–don’t know why anyone would gripe about that. Tell Donna she did a great job!
1:31 pm on September 23rd, 2009
Very hard to uderstand what Donna was saying in all 3 parts. And sadly, I have to say, I have never heard of such a thing as fermented veggies, except of course Kraut. It sounds like such a wonder cure of any health problem! Will I do it? I don’t know, I like to think I will start one day, soon LOL
1:53 pm on September 23rd, 2009
Thank you so much. I have saved the 3 videos to my you tube account. Will definitely plan on making some. I’ll need to buy some canning jars and starter first.
On a separate not, I’m growing sprouts for the first time. Delicious and super healthy.
Thank you again and congratulations on your 400th show!
9:20 pm on September 23rd, 2009
I’m eating fermented foods regularly, learned a lot to improve my batches. I’m allergic to cabbage, especially, so I substitute Napa Cabbage or Chinese cabbage which is in the mustard family.
Thanks, Love to all,
Alena
3:20 am on September 24th, 2009
Bonjour Kevin & Anne-marie,
I enjoyed these 3 videos showing us how fermented food should be prepared. I started to prepare sauerkraut myself 2 months ago, after I learned from my friend/teammate Jon Kim his korean culinary habit: his grandma prepare each meals fermented food, which are delicious, healthy and very spicy for me. Now I know why Jon is good on the bike racing !
thank Kevin and Jon.
Dr. Jerome
2:43 pm on September 24th, 2009
I wanted to start the process last weekend, but had to wait for the third episode. The suspense was killing me. Now I will go to the store and get everything to make it this weekend. I thought the three episodes were fine, but then again it was something I was really interested in. If you had done another topic, say natural child birth, I wouldn’t have watched them. So I guess it just depends on the person and the topic.
Thanks though, great great stuff for me!
11:20 pm on September 24th, 2009
Don’t forget the salt!!!! It’s not in the recipe above, but it is very important.
12:19 am on September 25th, 2009
Note for all the Aussies looking for Body eccoloy’s vege starter culture. We can get it here: bodyecology@mariahunt.com.au
12:21 am on September 25th, 2009
oops sorry about the spelling – nightshift brain fade
12:37 pm on September 25th, 2009
I think these inteviews with Donna were awesome because she is an amazing source of knowledge and love for us thru all she shares freely on her site!! Thank you Kevin and Anna Marie for making this show.
Cultured vegetables is the way of the future – back to the beginning, actually.
Nice weekend to everyone,
Isabelle (Sweden)
1:13 am on September 26th, 2009
Thanks for the information. The three shows were fine.
If eating cultured veggies is as important as it seems, I hope that many more people will be eating them and making their own combinations.
I hope that when I do try this recipe I will like it enough to make it often.
Thanks again for the information.
3:20 am on September 27th, 2009
HI Kevin, thanks for the video ! The recipe is missing 2 important points. never use metal lids and the JARS NEED TO BE OPEN EVERYDAY TO RELEASE THEIR GAS, OTHERWISE THEY WILL EXPLODE. PLEASE SAY THAT ON YOUR SHOW. Cheers !
3:25 pm on September 30th, 2009
I think this last episode was fantastic! It answered a great deal of questions I had but couldn’t get answered elsewhere.
How many people will be eating fermented food two years from now? Not sure how many eat it even now, but I think that most will continue to not want to make it themselves and buy sauerkraut that was pasteurized thinking its good for them.
4:29 pm on October 1st, 2009
I tried a batch of this in quart and pint jars (that’s what I had) and they are constantly bubbling out the seals. Does anyone know if this is normal or if I have done something wrong?
11:46 am on October 5th, 2009
I printed off this recipe on 9/21 so that when I had the time I could try it (as is, without purchased probiotics). I finally got around to doing so last night–without re-watching these videos first. Shouldda done that… Now I am thinking I should do something else with the mixture before it spoils…
For one thing the recipe doesn’t mention the apple or salt, and I used neither. So I guess the microflora don’t have any food and the veggies will rot instead of ferment?
The thing that is really bothering me is the lack of liquid in my jars–there is maybe an inch and a half of liquid in them. In the video Donna mentioned making sure the veggies (and possibly even the cabbage leaves) are covered with liquid to make the batch juicier. I would prefer a juicier product but can live with a dryer one–I am just afraid the veggies will rot and not ferment with so little juice in the jars. Help!? Maybe I should empty one of the jars and juice it to pour over the others? I think I’ll do that…just to be on the safe side.
I am very grateful for the information on culturing vegetables because I do want to get my family started on them. I guess what I am asking for is a little more detail and clarity in the printed recipes. (If you happen to re-type it, please fix “poor”.)
And if anyone can ease my mind about the problems I mentioned, I would be very grateful. Thanks,
Connie