Brussels Krauts

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Brussels Krauts

Postby JohnDulleck on Mon Sep 05, 2016 10:35 pm

Has anyone fermented Brussel Sprouts? I have heard of it being done but have never seen a recipe.

Can they be made the same as with cabbage, just salt and sprouts? Or are other ingredients needed?
For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Romans 6:23
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Re: Brussels Krauts

Postby Christopher Weeks on Tue Sep 06, 2016 8:18 am

I'm interested too. I love Brussels sprouts, and so it seemed natural to add them as a constituent of krautchi, but they never really softened for me. I keep meaning to get back to that.
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Re: Brussels Krauts

Postby Ninaluna on Tue Sep 06, 2016 9:17 am

JohnDulleck wrote:Can they be made the same as with cabbage, just salt and sprouts?

I'd imagine so, they are after all just tiny cabbages...arent they?

Might be fiddly to prepare?
I'm tempted to have a go with a small test amount, in which case I'll report back!
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Re: Brussels Krauts

Postby JohnDulleck on Tue Sep 06, 2016 9:38 am

I know I always thought of them as tiny cabbages, and they do resemble cabbages at that. But then I swa something similar to this photo in Whole Foods one time and was quite surprised!

Image

And, they are members of the cabbage family, but they sure don't grow in a way that I would expect of a cabbage.

@Christopher Weeks
As far as the leaves not softening, that was a concern of mine as well. Maybe allow the to ferment at room temperature for 2-3 weeks and then hide them in the fridge for a few months in hopes of some tenderizing taking place.

@Ninaluna
I would be very interested in hearing about any experiments you may try.
For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Romans 6:23
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Re: Brussels Krauts

Postby Tibor on Tue Sep 06, 2016 3:50 pm

I've never messed with Brussel sprouts but my first inclination is to cut them in half, add garlic, peppers, or whatever, top with a brine and let it sit for weeks and try it as you go until it gets tender enough. Brussel Sprouts seem much drier to me than cabbage, that's why I think a brine is the way to try . Possibly a saltier brine might help.....
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Re: Brussels Krauts

Postby Ninaluna on Tue Sep 06, 2016 4:23 pm

I was thinking slice them up thinly to separate the leaves out and then massage them with salt to draw out the water as per regular kraut?
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Re: Brussels Krauts

Postby JohnDulleck on Wed Sep 07, 2016 9:17 am

I was at the store yesterday and found Brussels Sprouts at a good price, so I bought enough to make a quart of fermented sprouts. I won't be able to start before the weekend, but I will post here after I have the ferment started to let you all know how it went.
For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Romans 6:23
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Re: Brussels Krauts

Postby JohnDulleck on Sat Sep 10, 2016 5:35 pm

I was busy this morning.

First, I started my Brussels Sprouts ferment. To prepare, I cut a bit off of the stem end and the put the sprout on the cut side and sliced 3-4 times, depending on the size of the sprout. I then packed them into a quart jar along with 2 cut cloves of garlic. I then mixed 2 teaspoons of sea salt in filtered water and poured over the sprouts along with about 1 ounce of brine from a previous ferment of sauerkraut.

I plan to ferment these at least 10 days before the first taste unless something seems to be going wrong.

I then started 2 quarts of standard red cabbage sauerkraut as well.

I am including a picture of the new home of this morning's effort. Sorry, the picture is a little dark, but so is their corner under a table.

Image
For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Romans 6:23
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Re: Brussels Krauts

Postby JohnDulleck on Sun Sep 11, 2016 12:06 pm

I find that in fermenting, there are a lot of surprises. My sauerkraut and Brussels Sprouts are both a day old, and since I started them both with a little brine from a previous ferment, I anticipated the need to burp them on the first day. And I also thought that since the sprouts were much more loosely packed than the kraut that it would be the kraut that would be under the most pressure and leak out, but nope! The two jars of kraut were quiet, but the sprouts were under a lot of pressure and pushed out a few tablespoons of brine when burped.

Looks like the sprouts are off to a good start!
For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Romans 6:23
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Re: Brussels Krauts

Postby JohnDulleck on Sun Sep 18, 2016 4:03 pm

So, I tasted the sprouts today. I first tried a whole one, and it was terrible! As I bit into it, it had the consistency of waterlogged wood.

But most of the jar was filled with 1/8 inch thick slices, and these were really good! It was nice and sour which I like, a bit chewy, but very different from sauerkraut, and an unusual flavor that I think any Brussels Sprout lover would enjoy.

Overall, I claim a success, and will definitely try again.
For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. Romans 6:23
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