Although I will be reporting how the jars do in the fridge, I do consider this my Final Report.

Let me remind you why I did Sauerkraut Survivor in the first place- there was a lot of hullabaloo over which jars are safe for fermenting and which are not. There was a blogger or two who insisted the Pickl-It was the only safe jar to use - using mason jars was akin to eating junk food. Then there were those who insisted mason jars were safe and never got mold in them. And those who admitted to getting mold regularly, but skimming and tossing was not harmful.

Who to believe? The only way for me personally to know, was to do an experiment myself.

Before starting the line-up of 18 jars, I wrote The Science Behind Sauerkraut Fermentation which is based on my crash-course research when I was on a mission to find the truth. I learned a lot in those two weeks of research! I was convinced oxygen was the enemy - but how much was too much? I had to find out - and Sauerkraut Survivor was born.

The day before we packed the jars, we tested the seals. We proved mason jar lids do create a tight seal after all - and so does a lowly salsa jar. We also learned the Fido (with gasket that acts as an airlock) and Pickl-It (Fido with an extra airlock) do allow for excess CO2 to be released if needed via the gasket.

Day 1 shows what all the jars looked like after the jars were packed. Baseline pH, glucose, and brine samples were taken. 24 hours later photos and samples were taken and recorded. Day 3 showed the beginning of the gaseous stage, which continued though days 4, 5 and 6. CO2 was dying down by Day 7. I had to purge some jars on Day 10, as they were getting moldy, or brine was no longer covering the top due to the pressure from tight seals and brine pushing out the test ports. Day 14 shows the second stage of the ferment. Day 21 shows by the drop in pH, glucose numbers, and brine samples that we are just about done. I transferred some jars to the fridge on Day 23 since the brine was starting to fall back down in the cabbage where the cracks were from the heaving (gaseous stage) and I didn’t want them spoiling. And, finally, you have the Day 28 results for when I opened the Harsch and Fido for the first time ever, and the Pickl-It for the first time since Day 7.

My goal in this experiment was to see which jars kept out mold and yeast. Did I really need an expensive jar to do the trick? Or was there a more affordable way?

After this experience there are jars I am comfortable with using, after having tested them, and jars I wouldn’t use. And then there are jars I would use if I had to, IF.

I also confirmed this: the longer you leave your sauerkraut out, the more LABs you get. Putting them in the fridge on Day 3 is a popular method, but one I don’t intend to follow. The pH hasn’t dropped enough to keep spoilage away, and the first stage bacteria have barely begun. Continue reading →