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  • RecipesWe love to create delicious recipes with gut health in mind. By using our recipes, you can easily create any dish knowing that it’s good for gut health! Our recipe blog also includes Vegan Recipes, Vegetarian Recipes, Gluten Free Recipes, and Paleo Recipes.
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using my hads to show the tightly packed layers of a fresh raw red cabbage
Sauerkraut & Kimchi

Fermented Beet and Red Cabbage Sauerkraut

This fermented beet and red cabbage sauerkraut recipe is the best way to make fermented beets and cabbage. Beet sauerkraut is ready to eat in three weeks.

Prep: 15 Minutes
Total: 15 Minutes
Jump to Recipe Rate Recipe
Recipe Index | Ferment | Sauerkraut & Kimchi

Fermented Beet and Red Cabbage Sauerkraut

This fermented beet and red cabbage sauerkraut recipe is the best way to make fermented beets and cabbage. Beet sauerkraut is ready to eat in three weeks.

using my hads to show the tightly packed layers of a fresh raw red cabbage

Red Cabbage Sauerkraut with Fermented Beet

Homemade sauerkraut is the best fermented food to make if you’re new to fermenting vegetables at home. This red cabbage sauerkraut is particularly easy for a first fermentation project since cabbage ferments exceptionally well.

Cabbage’s water content and microbial species richness make it optimal for wild fermentation! 

This recipe teaches you how to make probiotic red cabbage and beet sauerkraut in a mason jar.

hands using a knife to cut raw red cabbage into slices
hands placing shredded cabbage into a large mixing bowl.
a woman mixing red cabbage in a large bowl for fermenting.
hands placing a fermentation weight into a Ball Mason jar of ginger beet cabage.

Can you make sauerkraut with red cabbage?

I love ginger beet sauerkraut. It’s especially great for fall, aka cold and flu season. With just a few simple ingredients and a few weeks of fermentation, you can craft a nutrient-dense, probiotic, flavorful sauerkraut.

Using red cabbage to make sauerkraut is the best. It’s a slightly sweeter cabbage and contains tons of beneficial nutrients, and purple cabbage has more vitamin C, carotenoids, and flavonoid antioxidants, such as anthocyanins and kaempferol, than green cabbage.

Beets are another great source of nutrients, and they’re packed with potassium, betaine, magnesium, and folate. And let’s not forget about ginger! Phenolic compounds in ginger are known to help relieve gastrointestinal irritations and aid in digestion.

All these nutritional benefits combined with the natural probiotics from wild fermentation make ginger beet sauerkraut a superfood.

I add a bit of water to all my cabbage fermentation recipes, and water is still drawn out of the cabbage when salt is added. However, having water as a part of this recipe accounts for seasonal changes in produce hydration levels. So no matter where you are in the world or what your cabbage is like, you should be able to keep everything submerged in the brine and succeed with this recipe.

Fermenting Red Cabbage Sauerkraut

To master fermentation, you’ll need to use weight measurements for your fermentation ingredients, which means you need a kitchen scale. To select the best probiotic bacteria (the beneficial ones) in your ferments, you must weigh salt to create a specific salt concentration.

Weighing salt is the only way to create a salt concentration that will select only probiotic microbes to thrive. You can read more about why you must weigh your salt & how to calculate salt concentration here.

Using a gram scale to determine a 2.25% salt solution.
Using a gram scale to determine a 2.25% salt solution.
Using a gram scale to determine a 2.25% salt solution.

In this recipe, we are adding 2.5% salt (that means we are adding 2.5% of the cabbage + water weight in salt → i.e. 2.5% x 800 grams = 20 grams.

So we are adding 20 grams of salt to give us a 2.44% total salt concentration. 

using a mason jar lid to sprinkle salt across shredded cabbage
using a ball mason jar to pour salt over the mixture of salt and shredded cabbage and ginger
using my hands to mix the sauerkraut, beets and ginger.
hands mixing and stuffing a jar of ginger beet sauerkraut.
using the large mixing bowl to pour the red cabbage sauerkraut brine into the mason jar of sauerkraut.
Using my fist (because it's small) to press the fermented beet sauerkraut down into the mason jar.

Supplies You’ll Need to Ferment Beet and Red Cabbage Sauerkraut

A kitchen scale top down showing the dual scale platforms and digital measurement screen

Kitchenaid Dual Platform Scale

A blue package of unrefined sea salt with a wave image on it

Unrefined Sea Salt

a yellow, orange, blue and green plastic lid product image

Regular Mouth Rust Proof Mason Jar Lids

an empty Ball mason jar showing label

32 Oz Mason Jars

Glass fermentation weights product picture

Wide Mouth Fermentation Weights

Plastic pH Test Strips (pH 0-14)

Plastic pH Test Strips (pH 0-14)

Red Cabbage Sauerkraut Fermentation Timeline

We tracked our kraut throughout the fermentation process. By checking the progress of microbial stages using microscopy, we have provided you with this handy timeline! If you follow our recipe and directions, your timeline of sauerkraut fermentation should approximately match ours!

24 – 48 hours: All contents in the jar should be submerged beneath the brine. At this time, Gram-negative bacteria and opportunistic pathogens are present, and these microorganisms utilize oxygen and will use up all the oxygen in the liquid.

48 hours – 10 days: After 48 hours, you should see lots of bubbles produced. This is when the ferment enters stage two of vegetable fermentation, Leuconostoc bacteria begin to thrive, and all Gram negative organisms die off.

10-14 days: The bubbles in the brine will decrease as the ferment leaves stage two and enters stage three. The ferment will become cloudy, the color will change, and a pleasant sour smell will develop. Lactobacillus species begin to thrive in this period.

14 – 21 days: Lactobacillus comprise most or all of the microbial population. Leuconostoc bacteria die-off. Lactobacillus spp. produce copious amounts of lactic acid and make the fermented cabbage smell even more pleasantly sour. This is the time in which the vegetable mixture becomes preserved.

What Temperature Should I Keep My Red Cabbage Sauerkraut At?

Keep your fermenting cabbage at a temperature between 70-80 degrees F. Keep out of direct sunlight

How Long Should I Ferment Beet Sauerkraut?

After 3-4 weeks, remove the fermentation weight, smell, and taste test. Your fermented cabbage should smell pleasantly sour and taste tart, lightly salty, and cabbagey.  

Do I Need to Refrigerate Beet Kraut?

After fermenting for 3-4 weeks, remove the weight and place a regular mason jar lid on the jar and refrigerate. Consume within six months for full probiotic benefits.

using my hands to place a fermentation weight into the jar of red cabbage sauerkraut.
using my thumbs to press the fermentation weight into the jar of red cabbage sauerkraut.
a closed jar of fermented beets and cabbage sauerkraut.

Homemade Beet and Red Cabbage Sauerkraut Tips

During the first few days of fermentation: carbon dioxide and bubbles will be produced. Sometimes jars will become full of liquid, which can seep out. 

  • Remove the lid and tamper everything back down using a gloved hand, tamper, or spoon. Ensure everything, including the weight, is submerged below the brine. Rinse off the lid if it is dirty.

Always Trust your sense of smell: Fermented cabbage should smell pleasantly sour and like strong cabbage. Never eat anything that smells repulsive or yeasty. 

Never eat anything with mold growing on it: You should not encounter this problem by following directions. 

Taste test at three weeks: If you prefer the sauerkraut to be more tart and sour, let it ferment for four weeks. 

Print
using my hads to show the tightly packed layers of a fresh raw red cabbage
Sauerkraut & Kimchi

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5 from 7 reviews

Fermented Beet and Red Cabbage Sauerkraut with Ginger

The fermented beet and red cabbage sauerkraut recipe is the best way to make fermented beets and cabbage. This beet sauerkraut is great for beginners and is ready to eat in three weeks.

  • Prep: 15 Minutes
  • Total Time: 15 Minutes

Ingredients

  • 500 grams Red Cabbage
  • 100 grams Shredded Beets
  • 1 Tablespoon Fresh Grated Ginger
  • 20 grams Unrefined Sea Salt
  • 200 grams Filtered Water

Instructions

  1. Wash your fermentation equipment (jar, weight, and lid)
  2. Remove the outer leaves of your cabbage and lightly rinse the cabbage, beets, and ginger with cool water.
  3. Chop the cabbage and beets and grate the ginger.
  4. Place your kitchen scale on the counter. Turn it on and set it to weigh in grams.
  5. Measure out all of your ingredients using your kitchen scale.
  6. Mix all the ingredients, including the water, in a large bowl. Lightly massage the cabbage and break up any large pieces. 
  7. Pack it all, including the water, into a clean jar with a rust-proof lid. (a 32-ounce jar works best)
  8. Place a fermentation weight in the jar, making sure to submerge the cabbage pieces and weight fully into the liquid. If you don’t have quite enough liquid, place your glass fermentation weight in the jar and submerge as much as possible. Over the next 12 hours, the cabbage should release more liquid and you can press the fermentation weight down below the brine.
  9. Secure the lid (You do not need to tighten it all the way. Just secure the lid but leave it ever so slightly loose, so the gas doesn’t build up too much). You can keep the jar in a glass dish to catch any spills.
  10. Burping the jar: It should get bubbly in the first few days. If you have a tightly secured lid, you will need to burp the jar. You should also wash off the lid to keep it clean and re-adjust the fermentation weight whenever needed. Anytime the weight comes up out of the brine, with clean hands press hard on the weight to tamper everything back down into the liquid.
  11. Ferment at room temperature for 21-28 days, then remove the fermentation weight and refrigerate.
  12. If you try this recipe and love it, please leave a five-star review below!

Notes

  • See fermentation care instructions and timeline above this recipe.
  • Taring/zeroing the scale with a container on it subtracts the weight of the container, allowing you to weigh only what is added to the container. After taring/zeroing the scale, the scale should read 0.0 with the container on it.

Did you make this recipe?

Please leave a 5-star review below if you loved it! Tag @cultured.guru on Instagram

 

Nutrition information is auto-calculated and estimated as close as possible. We are not responsible for any errors. We have tested the recipe for accuracy, but your results may vary.

author avatar
Kaitlynn Fenley Author, Educator, Food Microbiologist
Kaitlynn is a food microbiologist and fermentation expert teaching people how to ferment foods and drinks at home.
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hey i’m kaitlynn, i’m a microbiologist and together with my husband jon we are cultured guru.

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  1. Stan Jones
    01|27|2020

    Good morning.
    Just discovered your site and am enjoying looking around. I have some red cabbage and beets to use up and I have a question regarding your recipe. All our batches of various krauts we’ve used 2-2.5% salt, based on the weight of the vegetables. We let the cabbage and veggies make their own brine and haven’t needed to add water. Your red cabbage recipe calls for approx 3.3% salt, based on ingredient weight. I’m wondering if we could simply use 3.3% salt and let the ingredients make their own brine. Thanks for your thoughts.
    Stan

    Reply
    1. Kaitlynn Fenley
      01|27|2020

      This recipe is a 2.44% total salt concentration. Looks like you used a severely inaccurate calculation to arrive at 3.3%. The mathematics of calculating salt concentration is fully explained in the body of this blog post. Water is also an ingredient that has to be weighed to calculate total salt concentration. 20 grams of salt/ 820 grams of total ingredients = 2.44%

      It is an option to allow the cabbage to make its own brine. However, if anyone who is using an old cabbage, an out of season cabbage, or a cabbage thats been in their fridge too long they will not have enough liquid to keep the contents submerged for the duration of the fermentation. Keeping vegetables submerged is of the most important in safe vegetable fermentation. Our recipe methods are designed for consistency amongst all of our blog readers, regardless of the state of their ingredients.

      Reply
    2. Dona
      05|20|2025

      I let my cabbage make its own brine. I never need to add water. I’m excited to try her recipes, but just knew I would not add any water.

      Reply
      1. Kaitlynn Fenley
        05|21|2025

        All my sauerkraut recipes are formulated with water to account for regional and seasonal variations in cabbage water density. Basically, it ensures enough brine and cuts down on problems, especially for beginners. You should follow the recipe as written.

        Reply
  2. Marie
    08|27|2020

    Hi! This looks really good. I was wondering if you use cooked or raw beets? Thanks!

    Reply
    1. Kaitlynn Fenley
      08|28|2020

      I used raw beets that had been frozen in this recipe.

      Reply
  3. Jamie
    02|18|2021

    I just got a fermentation crock with a lid.ñ from a talented local potter. Can I use it for this recipe instead of a mason jar?

    Reply
    1. Kaitlynn Fenley
      02|18|2021

      Oh, that’s wonderful! I hope to buy myself a beautiful, custom ceramic crock one day! Yes, you can use it. Just note the volume and scale up the recipe as necessary. You can double or triple the recipe using the buttons on the recipe card. This recipe at 1x is for a 32-ounce jar. Oh, and you should still use a fermentation weight and keep everything submerged in the brine.

      Reply
      1. Jamie
        02|18|2021

        Thanks! Excited to try this recipe- is it ok if I don’t fill the crock as long as it stays submerged?

        Reply
        1. Kaitlynn Fenley
          02|18|2021

          Yes, that should be fine. If your crock has a water-seal top, use that as well, in tandem with submerging. 🙂

          Reply
  4. Lou Daigle
    03|26|2021

    We love this! I made 2 quarts and I mixed the ingredients gently in hopes that it would still have some crunch to it. I fermented them for the full 4 weeks and they turned out great …. crunchy and so flavorful!
    Kaitlynn, I don’t know how you managed to keep your white sweater so clean when you were making this. I wore a black tee shirt and I’m glad I did!
    Thanks so much for sharing this great recipe.

    Reply
    1. Kaitlynn Fenley
      03|29|2021

      So happy to hear you tried another recipe and loved it, Lou! Jon says that I have surgeon’s hands, so I guess my steady hands helped keep my sweater stain-free haha!

      Reply
  5. Justin
    04|07|2021

    Fantastic recipe, made it yesterday for my birthday. Only 20 days left to taste test. I am having issues with my cucumbers, which I make into sour pickles. Its 90° in the Philippines so fermentation happens rapidly. Although I end up with very sour pickle spears they are not crispy, even though I add in bay leaves (as well as peppercorns/coriander/mustard seed) and very fresh cucs. 3.5% salinity. Can you tell me what I’m doing wrong? Thanks!!

    Reply
    1. Kaitlynn Fenley
      04|08|2021

      Hey there,

      I responded to the question you left about pickles on our wild fermented dill pickle blog. Yes, a high temperature does speed up the fermentation timeline. Fermentation temperatures above 80-85° F can lead to vegetable softening. I also suggest a 3-4% total salt concentration (which is not the same thing as salinity).

      Reply
  6. Caroline Phelan
    08|11|2021

    This recipe sounds great I tried a kraut with similar ingredients recently and have wanted to recreate it since! Just wondering can this be done without a fermentation weight? I don’t have one and am very new to fermenting but wondering if I keep the veg fully submerged and the lid of my jar airtight will that work? Thanks in advance!

    Reply
    1. Kaitlynn Fenley
      08|11|2021

      It’s best to use a fermentation weight, but it is possible to still have good results without one. You must make sure everything is staying submerged for the duration of the fermentation process though. When it gets bubbly, you will have to check it very often to resubmerge everything with a clean utensil.

      Reply
  7. Steve Mitchener
    11|01|2021

    Hi, I followed your recipe exactly using 50% of all ingredients and added it to a 0.5 L (17 ounce) Kilner jar. With a weight added, the tightly packed food was submerged in the brine. The brine came up to the very top of the jar, meaning there was no air under the lid. Is this okay, or should I tip some away to allow for some air? Your blog indicated some bacteria use oxygen in the early stages of fermentation. Can this be extracted solely from the water? Thanks Steve. NB: I live in England and am very grateful you give metric measurements as I find the Imperial system quite baffling!

    Reply
    1. Kaitlynn Fenley
      11|01|2021

      Hello! yes, that sounds like the right amount of brine, and no need to tip some away. In the very beginning of fermentation, some microbes do use oxygen, but they’re using dissolved oxygen within the water… and that’s how the brine becomes anaerobic. Just make sure you place your jar in a glass baking dish or a bowl because when it gets bubbly some brine will seep out.

      The metric system is the only way to go, especially for fermentation! I hate customary and imperial units haha

      Reply
      1. Steve Mitchener
        11|03|2021

        Many thanks for your response. Greatly appreciated! Another question if I may? Fermented vegetables such as sauerkraut and kimchi have gut-friendly probiotic bacteria. I understand these will pass naturally into our microbiome when the food is consumed raw. Are these bacteria destroyed if the food is subsequently heated, which you might do if serving a hot meal? Many thanks. Steve

        Reply
  8. Steve Mitchener
    11|25|2021

    This was my first attempt at fermenting anything … and I am delighted with the result. After 25 days, I have a quite sour, crunchy, fresh Kraut with overtones of ginger. I am very grateful for Kaitlynn’s blog and her responsiveness to my question. Many thanks.

    Reply
  9. Briana
    12|29|2021

    Do you have to use previously frozen beets?

    Reply
    1. Kaitlynn Fenley
      01|02|2022

      no, you can use fresh beets.

      Reply
      1. Kathy Alexander
        12|09|2024

        Did you freeze your beets raw or were they sliced/blanched or processed in some way?

        Reply
        1. Kaitlynn Fenley
          12|10|2024

          they may have been blanched! I’ve used organic frozen beets from the store, not sure how they process those.

          Reply
  10. Liz A.
    04|04|2022

    Hi Kaitlynn- questions for you. I love a kraut from Wildbrine that is similar to this recipe but they also included pear with the beets and red cabbage. I would love to make my own version but am wondering if I add some pear to this recipe can I keep the amount of other ingredients the same? Or would I keep the weight of the beets and pear together to 100 grams? If not, what would be your suggestion on how many grams of pear to add?

    Newer to fermenting so I appreciate any advice!

    Reply
    1. Kaitlynn Fenley
      04|11|2022

      Hi there!

      You want to keep the weight of the beets and pears together at 100 grams.

      Reply
    2. JBethmann
      04|29|2022

      I hopped on this site loving that same Wildbrine kraut and am so thankful for your Q and Kaitlynn’s answer 🙂

      Reply
    3. Vica
      11|07|2023

      Also looking for this Wildbrine recipe! Thanks!!!!

      Reply
  11. Rebecca
    06|02|2022

    Hi! Is it possible to leave the beets out or to substitute for an equal weight of additional cabbage? Thanks in advance!

    Reply
    1. Kaitlynn Fenley
      06|04|2022

      absolutely!

      Reply
  12. Marilyn
    06|17|2022

    JBETHMANN, me, too! I just love that WildBrine Kraut. Sprouts quit carrying it, & the other 2 stores that carry it don’t always have it in stock. It is the yummiest!

    Reply
  13. SMP
    08|01|2022

    The way I make kraut, I don’t know until the end how much water I’ll need. I wonder if making a 2.5 concentration of brine, I can just add as much brine/water as needed once my jar is packed with cabbage. Of course, I would have used the proper amount of salt for the cabbage earlier. Your web site is a game changer and quite possibly a life saver! thank you so much.

    Reply
    1. Kaitlynn Fenley
      08|01|2022

      My recipes are tested to fit a quart mason jar. But yes that should work! as long as you account for salt with the cabbage weight too.

      Reply
  14. Cecile
    09|29|2022

    Do you just use a regular canning lid?
    Also, would I be able to reuse the plastic jar from Wildbrine to make the kraut?

    Reply
    1. Kaitlynn Fenley
      09|30|2022

      There is a list of recommended equipment above the recipe card in the blog post. I do not suggest fermenting in plastic.

      Reply
  15. Brett
    03|04|2023

    The first time I made this I just made one quart. It was so good that it didn’t last long. Just started a half gallon jar. Great recipe and so different from regular sauerkraut.

    Reply
  16. David Kapral
    03|11|2023

    In step 16 it is suggested that one “place a standard mason jar lid” on the soon to be fermenting cabbage. Would it not be better to use a pickle pipe airlock during primary fermentation and then replace that with a Ball Plastic leak proof lid when placing it into the refrigerator? A standard lid has no way to drive off gasses. One would have to manually burp the stuff otherwise.

    Reply
    1. Kaitlynn Fenley
      03|11|2023

      No, it would not be better. Solid lids with burping work best. Those silicone lids are awful and cause mold and issues for most people.

      Reply
  17. Rachel
    03|22|2023

    After day 24-28 hours I did not notice any bubbles but I opened the jar to push down the weight. Did I mess it up? Am I only supposed to open the jar when it is bubbly? I also wanted to ask if it is okay if tiny pieces are floating at the surface? I used the weight to submerge all the ingredients that I could but I noticed a few tiny floaty pieces around 24 hour mark which is why I opened the jar to remove the small pieces. Did I mess up the process by opening the jar without it being bubbly? I hope these questions make sense.

    Reply
    1. Kaitlynn Fenley
      03|23|2023

      You didn’t mess it up. It’s perfectly fine to open up the jar and adjust the weight, even if it’s not bubbling yet. You’re doing great!

      Reply
      1. Heather
        09|15|2023

        I’m excited to taste this in a few weeks! I am concerned about be lack of space I have in the top of my jar compared to yours in the picture. Everything is submerged, but my jar is filled to the top with the weight. Do I need 1-2 inches of space at the top? Should I scoop some out to make space?

        Reply
  18. Arlene
    09|04|2023

    Hi
    I just made one jar of this! Thank you for your specific instructions. I’ve made something similar last year and it wasn’t good, went bad and what I realize is that you weigh EVERYTHING and others just say ONE CABBAGE well, what does that mean !?!? How much weight? How many cups? UGH! So thank you! I want to make another jar but without beets which means I sub that for more cabbage but can I add fresh garlic and a spicy pepper, if so how much is safe?

    Reply
    1. Kaitlynn Fenley
      09|07|2023

      you can sub the weight of the beets for some garlic and spicy pepper!

      Reply
  19. Rebecca
    05|29|2024

    Excellent recipe with lots of helpful information! I have 2 questions:
    1. Can I make this recipe with 600g beets and no cabbage? If not, what ratio can I use to increase the ratio of beets?
    2. I made the recipe as is, and the liquid level bubbled over for the first couple of days, but then depleted to about halfway up the jar, so the top half is not submerged in brine. What can be done to salvage this/prevent this from happening?

    Reply
    1. Kaitlynn Fenley
      05|30|2024

      I wouldn’t do only beets. They usually have way more sugar than other vegetables, so it makes the fermentation process less reliable. At most I would try half beets half cabbage. The cabbage helps balance out the microbiome so fermentation goes well.

      Any time it’s super bubbly and you lose a little brine, you can open up the jar and tamper everything back down with a clean utensil. tampering it back down should make the brine level come back up and cover the cabbage.

      Reply
  20. Amy
    09|22|2024

    Hello there! I just came across your website when I was looking for a red cabbage and beet sauerkraut recipe. I have never fermented before, and I am looking forward to giving this a try!
    I was wondering if I can add red onion and garlic to this as well? Thank you!

    Amy S.

    Reply
    1. Kaitlynn Fenley
      09|23|2024

      sure. If you’re only adding a little bit, you can just add in the onion and garlic without needing to adjust the recipe. If you’re adding a substantial amount of garlic and onion, replace a bit of the cabbage weight with the same weight of garlic and onion.

      Reply
  21. Kate
    09|24|2024

    Hi Kaitlynn, thank you so much for all the knowledge you shared on the website and all the wonderful recipes. I have tried few other recipes with success and loved. I tried this fermented red cabbage and beet a week or so ago and maybe I packed it too full, I had a lot of leftover brine but didn’t keep it. Few days after I started, the brine seeped out and the top part of the cabbage and beet turned black and brine level were only half way up the jars. I made more brine according to the salt and water ratio and fill the jars and took out the weight. Few days later now and they dry out again. I use screw on lids but did not screw on tight. I do live in dry climate and wonder if I should keep filling with brine water and if the cabbage is still good. They were dry for at least a few days and the top turned black. Smell fine to me. 😁 I made three jars and half way through…. It would be very wasteful to throw them all away but I don’t want to get sick from spoiled food either. Thank you!

    Reply
    1. Kaitlynn Fenley
      10|15|2024

      You should not be adding in more brine as you go because the fresh brine is oxygenated and will keep decreasing the acidity of the sauerkraut. If something like this happens you should open up the jar and tamper everything back down to get the brine level to come up again.

      Reply
  22. Anneli
    10|04|2024

    Hi! I love your blog, and have tried the traditional sauerkraut and it was delicious. I Just made a big batch of this red cabbage recipe a few days ago and now i have noticed there is some Brown ish foam on top of the ferment. Should i remove it, and is the ferment still safe to eat?

    Reply
    1. Kaitlynn Fenley
      10|15|2024

      you can scoop the foam off. The brownish color is from the breakdown of the purple color compounds.

      Reply
  23. Fiona
    10|26|2024

    Delicious recipe!! I had a majority of the brine bubble out in the first week. Enough still to cover the kraut- but not any extra.

    Is it ok to add more water now that it is in the fridge?

    Reply
  24. Georgie
    11|23|2024

    Question please. Day three of the fermentation, mixture is bubbling nicely. But it’s so salty! Measured everything precisely with commercial kitchen scales, but in all my previous kimchi and kraut making I’ve soaked the cabbage in brine then rinsed before placing in the pot. Will the salty taste fade during fermentation?

    Reply
    1. Kaitlynn Fenley
      11|24|2024

      It should be a little less salty than seawater, and a little less salty but similar to brined olives.

      Reply
  25. Abby
    03|14|2025

    I loved your Bavarian style kraut so much! This is my first time trying this recipe. After a few days some liquid has overflowed from my jar and the cabbage at the top has started to look brown, like it’s oxidizing. I just pressed the weight back down so it would be under the brine again. Is browning at the top a problem?

    Reply
    1. Kaitlynn Fenley
      03|14|2025

      The brown color is just from it rising up out the brine. Super common with purple cabbage. Should be fine. You can scoop the brown bits out. Test the pH at the end with a pH strip if you have any concerns!

      Reply
  26. Elizabeth
    03|22|2025

    I just made this recipe and carefully measured everything. The brine doesn’t cover the cabbage though. Should I make and add more brine?

    Reply
    1. Kaitlynn Fenley
      03|23|2025

      no, more water will be drawn out of the cabbage over the next few hours. Just open up the jar and press down hard on the weight and the brine level should come up.

      Reply
    2. Dave
      05|12|2025

      This one was REALLY bubbly and pushed out about 1/3 cp of liquid by day 3. I tamped it down to get everything submerged again, should I add more liquid of any sort?

      Reply
  27. Paula
    06|12|2025

    Thank you for providing such good info and great images. Beautiful.

    Reply
  28. Gwyneth
    06|13|2025

    Hello!
    I made the fermented beet and red cabbage sauerkraut on May 31 and it seemed to be doing well for a while but then the liquid in the top quarter of both jars has turned a displeasing brown colour. As well, the cabbage at the top is turning a brownish colour as well. Everything is submerged.
    Is this normal? Or is this showing something is off?
    Thanks for your thoughts and thank you for all of your wonderful recipes!

    Gwyn 🙂

    Reply
    1. Kaitlynn Fenley
      06|13|2025

      this is normal with purple cabbage! It’s the anthocyanins oxidizing at the top a little. Not harmful. I usually just scoop out any brown bits.

      Reply
      1. Gwyneth
        06|17|2025

        Ok wonderful, this is great news! Do you wait until it’s done fermenting to scoop the brown bits out? Or do you do that beforehand? And the brown kraut juice, do you discard this as well? Thank you so much!

        Reply

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🫐Google “blueberry sauerkraut”🫐 you’ll 🫐Google “blueberry sauerkraut”🫐 you’ll find this recipe, I’m Cultured Guru, and my recipe is either the first or second one (usually first 😘)!

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overripe, yellow or slicing cucumbers? You can sti overripe, yellow or slicing cucumbers? You can still ferment them! 🥒 Just make relish instead of pickles. 

Get my kimchi relish recipe from the recipe index on my website. 

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Seriously, it’s the first one. Google “ferment Seriously, it’s the first one. Google “fermented peppers” to get my recipe 🌶️✨

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I make hot sauce a few different ways, but here’s the easiest:

Just strain the brine into a separate jar/bowl, throw the fermented peppers in a blender. Blend on high and add a bit of the strained brine into the blender little by little until it’s the consistency you want. Maybe add a splash of ACV to balance out the flavor. Store sauce in an airtight container and keep refrigerated.

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