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fermenting New ferment. Tossed one of my old ones.

Sooooo.....
 
I had a ferment going with strawberries. I ended up chucking it out. It smelled....dangerous. I had another one going with it that I made an airlock for ( strawberry had no airlock ) that has been moved into the frige. You can see them here: http://thehotpepper.com/topic/51379-my-first-fruit-ferment/
 
So on to today. I'm making sauces for Christmas but I also need some for myself hehehehehehe!
 
The players: 1/2 sweet onion medium size, 1/2 of a large carrot, 1 tbs minced garlic ( I know, I know not fresh ), 5 jalapenos, 5 serranos, 6 small sweet peppers, 7 supers (Scorpions, maybe a 7 pot cant remember), 1 tbs sea salt, 2tbs of brine I had in the frige, 1 cup bottle water ( wasnt going to use water but my blender sucks and wouldnt blend everything ), 
 
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Thanks for looking everybody! Any questions, comments or concerns are greatly appreciated!
 
It looks good sirex.  Should be pretty damn hot when its finished.  Without knowing the weighs of everything involved I can't say if that's enough salt or not, but the airlock will definitely help.  Best of luck and I look forward to seeing your finished sauce!
 
It was just a little over a pound and a couple ounces. So I took three percent of a lb and came up with ~14 g. Through my rigorous Google foo I have learned that a tablespoon of salt is roughly around that.:)

Still need to find some sort of weight to hold down the mash though
 
sirex said:
Salty I have heard all about the cabbage leaf. I hear it also imparts some good LAB as well. Unfortunately I don't use or ferment enough to warrant the head of cabbage and it will go bad.
I also heard that collard leaves work as well. It's an easy enough plant to grow in Florida and it lasts for a couple years. Just a thought ;)
 
And by the way, that batch looks nice. I'm a little wary of mixing reds and greens because it's too easy to end up with a brown mash. Visually not too appealing IMO but you pulled it off nicely. A very delicious looking verde type sauce in the making :party:
 
sirex said:
I did see that in the other thread. Is metal safe to put in there?
I don't see why not? I just don't know.
Collard greens you say Hawaii? Hmmmm got to look at that. Thanks!
The metal part is coated with nonstick surface I would think that would be safe and if you only plan on doing a limited number of ferments at a time, would pay for itself quickly as opposed to buying cabbage.
Though Hawaiianero had a great idea as well. Just a little longer wait to put in play :)
CHEERS
 
I would have tossed that ferment too.Always better to be safe,then having to go to the ER.I seen someone using lids from all types of stuff.They just cut a slit from the outside to the middle.I wouldn't use any metals in the ferment process,acids will start to break it down.The can goods we buy in store have a liner coating to stop this from happening.Whatever you use make sure it is food safe.I plan on doing my first ferment really soon.I will most likely use a lid from a butter bowl are something food comes in.
 
I've seen some people use a ziplock bag with water in it as a weight. Looks like it works OK. Never tried it myself. Can play it a little safer by putting brine in the bag in case it springs a leak.
 
Hawaiianero said:
I've seen some people use a ziplock bag with water in it as a weight. Looks like it works OK. Never tried it myself. Can play it a little safer by putting brine in the bag in case it springs a leak.
 
IIRC that's what he was using the first time around and it didn't work out so well H, though no idea if it was brine in the bag.  I'm a cabbage leaf guy all the way though.  Even when I'm not making sauerkraut, home made coleslaw or added into soups or egg rolls or stuffed or - just so many uses for the humble and cheap cabbage...    
 
In an anaerobic environment, with an airlock, you do not need to submerge the solids below the brine.
 
But, remember, it must remain sealed -- do not open the container.
 
Oxygen is NOT a ferments friend.
 
I think you've got a good one going here, just don't open it until you're ready to process.
 
Looks good!
 
Im glad to see my pie plate link moving around...ha
 
I don't have one so I was just showing it in the other thread. I don't know how the metal would hold up to the PH of the ferment or the salt in the brine for that matter.
 
DownRiver said:
In an anaerobic environment, with an airlock, you do not need to submerge the solids below the brine.
 
But, remember, it must remain sealed -- do not open the container.
 
Oxygen is NOT a ferments friend.
 
I think you've got a good one going here, just don't open it until you're ready to process.
 
This is true.  I have several ferments that are not completely submerged but have evacuated enough O2 that there's no growth or molding going on.  Just a slight darkening of the mash at the top.  
 
Mash looks like it might end up boiling over if you don't keep a good eye on it. I just tap the bottom of the jars with my fist to settle the mash down. I am currently experimenting with the ziplock bag on top of the mash but the cabbage leaves is probably a better idea.
 
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