So, I let my sauerkraut sit just a little too long unattended and it rotted into a pile of brown, yeasty garbage. It would seem that my strategy of putting the crock somewhere where we couldn’t smell it completely backfired. Last year, the stench was my daily reminder to give it a little TLC. At least peek in there. Maybe rinse off the plate and the water jug weighing everything down. Without the near-constant assault on my senses, though, benign neglect quickly turned into something decidedly more malignant.
Sometime after the 20-day mark, all of the brine evaporated so that the cabbage was no longer submerged. Remember Rule #1 of sauerkraut: the brine needs to completely cover the cabbage at all times to protect it from spoilage. It must have been all the dry air. Last year’s sauerkraut didn’t have this problem, but water content varies from cabbage to cabbage. Had I been more consistent in my spot checks, I could have just added more salt water as needed. Oh well. You win some, you lose some. I’m starting a new batch this week and, this time, I won’t fuck it up.
And speaking of swearing, the Boston Globe reviewed my blog last week along with several others. The Globe’s been very generous with their attention lately, so I really hope they’re planning on staying in business!
All over the place is a compliment, right? :)
Posted by: andrea | February 25, 2009 at 11:18 PM
People should be hoping all newspapers stay in business, and not just for their own gratification. If they're gone, we're screwed.
Posted by: Sam | February 25, 2009 at 11:42 PM
Personally, I love your language. Makes me feel like I'm right at home with the F bombs. :)
Posted by: April in CT | February 26, 2009 at 12:41 PM
Kimchi is even easier to make. I'm gonna put some of mine on a hotdog! Fusion.
(SF Chronicle is threatening to fold if it can't extort slimy financial deals from the union.)
Posted by: cookiecrumb | February 26, 2009 at 03:31 PM
CC: I don't know why I didn't think of kimchi when I had all that bok choy over the summer. God. Guess I was a little distracted. (P.S. The newspaper situation is not good. Is that where you used to work?)
April in CT: I so rarely get to play the role of the bad girl, that it's almost exhilarating to have the Globe call me a potty-mouth.
Sam: Believe me, I know. I don't want to live in a world without journalists, either. Lord knows you can't trust people like me to bring you the actual news.
Andrea: They're just jealous of my loose word counts!
Posted by: Tammy | February 27, 2009 at 10:14 PM