#homesteading
Got a project started & a project finished today.
Remember to always temper your jars, we lost 3 quarts of sauerkraut due to heat shock. Good news is we have 4 jars that survived & a half gallon in the fridge that we will eat fresh.
New jar is going to be hot sauce! This is something new we’re trying. 
Great work. I've never made kraut but I planted some late cabbage and may be able to give it a go later in the fall. How does heat shock happen?
It only happens if you water bath can your product. It can happen with anything you water bath can, jellies, kraut, pickles etc. basically the bottom breaks off your jar. That jar is now done and all your product is lost to the bath. It’s always heartbreaking.
You should put something in the bottom of the pot to prevent this from happening! Best is a rack or grill that fits in the bottom- they are sold specially for this to keep the jars about 1” from the bottom of the pot so there’s no direct contact with the heat source.
Oh, we had that in there. Not our 1st rodeo… lol. As soon as the can got put in the water my husband heard a crack, then he put in the rest of them by the time I came out with the last jars there was sauerkraut floating in the water. It was a rookie failure, we got complacent & didn’t properly heat temper our jars.
Please donate unusable food to Nostr's Food Fight Extravaganza
