One of the most common questions we receive is "How long should I let my ___________ ferment? How will I know when it is done?". There are are many things to consider when determining the answers to these questions. Never fear! We have the answers.
1) Always follow a recipe. Good recipes will give an ideal fermentation period in days specific to the vegetables and salinity of the brine it contains.
2) Allow your ferment to go for 7 days untouched. After a day or two, you will start to see bubbles, and the brine will become cloudy. This is the beneficial bacteria doing their job!
3) Taste your ferment on day 7 with a clean fork.Within 1 week it should start to taste sour.If youlike it, it is done. If not let it continue to ferment. Pack the vegetables back down until the liquid rises above them.Let your ferment longer if you like amore sourtaste and a softer texture.
For maximum digestive and nutritive benefits, allow your veggies to ferment for 21 days and eat them raw.
4) Finished ferments should have a pH reading of 4.5 or lower. Use pH test strips or a digital pH meter to test your ferments, if desired.
Once the kraut is fermented to your desired taste and texture, you can put it in the refrigerator to arrest its progress.
Over to You
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FAQs
When you taste it, it should still have a bit of sweetness to it and a pleasant amount of acidity. If you want it to be more acidic, then keep fermenting it longer. If it tastes sour enough, then you're ready to bottle.
How can you tell if fermentation is complete? ›
The surest way to establish whether or not a fermentation is complete is by measuring the specific gravity. You can do this using either a hydrometer or a refractometer.
How do you know if fermentation has stopped? ›
If there are still bubbles in the airlock after 14 days let it sit for another few days, or at least until there is no bubbling for at least a minute or two. Once there is no activity in the airlock, fermentation is complete.
When should I stop fermenting? ›
A successful fermentation will naturally come to an end when your wine is completely dry and there is no more residual sugar for the yeast to feast on. That's great, if you want a dry wine.
Is fermentation done when bubbling stops? ›
The airlock isn't always the best way to determine fermentation activity. So, if you find that it isn't bubbling, it doesn't mean that it isn't fermenting. If you open the lid and check for visible signs of fermentation, you should see a foam developing across the surface (called Krausen).
Can you ferment for too long? ›
Overfermentation is a phenomenon which is a result of fermentation that lasted too long or had too much culture in it. Read on to get more insight on it and some tips on how to avoid it. Time is Important! Usually overfermentation happens when we leave the culture to ferment longer than recommended.
What does bad fermentation look like? ›
Big patches of different color are a major indicator of spoilage. Obvious surface scum or growths. Anything that looks like it's growing on the surface of your ferment isn't a good sign; it can indicate unwelcome bacterial or fungal growth and should generally be considered unsafe. Unpleasant smell.
How do I know if I am ready for second fermentation? ›
The best way to tell if it's done is to taste it. But if you're curious about kombucha and pH, you can read my post about it here. So whenever your brew tastes right to you, you're ready to move on to the next step: bottling a.k.a. 2nd fermentation.
How long does it take for fermentation to finish? ›
Here's a chart with all of the guidelines we've covered here:
| Ale | Lager |
|---|
| Dark | 1 week primary | 2-3 months primary |
| 3-4 weeks secondary | 9 months secondary |
| High Alcohol | 2 weeks primary | 2-3 months primary |
| 9-12+ months secondary | 9-12+ months secondary |
4 more rowsOct 25, 2019
In lacto-fermentation, air is the enemy! Although it is tempting, you should not open the jar during the fermentation of your vegetables. If you do, you expose your vegetables to all sorts of moulds, yeast, and other microorganisms.
The most common reason a batch of fermented vegetables goes wrong is that oxygen is present in the first few days of fermentation, the most critical period of the ferment.
How to end fermentation? ›
The answer is chill it down very cold (near freezing) to stop the fermentation. Sterile filter it to remove any yeast cells.
How do I know when my dough is done fermenting? ›
How Do I Know When Bulk Fermentation Is Done?
- Look For an Elastic, Strong Dough. ...
- The Dough Should Have Risen and Have Domed edges. ...
- Consider the Dough Temperature. ...
- Use Your Intuition and Baking Experience.
The dough will have a “crêpey” feel and look to it (see photo of the dough below), instead of being smooth and shiny. Fragile dough, tears easily can have a “rough” stippled look to it. Over-fermented dough will often smell unpleasantly sour.
How do you know if fermentation has occurred? ›
These signs may include bubbles from carbon dioxide, a cloudiness in the brine or the color fading from the vegetables. If you REALLY don't think something is fermenting, taste it after a couple days (not hours).
