dry kraut

[mariposa]

I just made my first batch of kraut, and when I took the plate off the top of the crock tonight, there was still liquid above the plate but it didn't smell too good. So, I decided to rinse that off (poured it off, really, because the plate fit pretty snugly inside the crock and nothing seemed to come out from under the plate). Underneath the plate, when I took it off, the kraut seemed pretty dry! Is that okay? I'm not really sure how it is supposed to smell! I used cabbage, ginger and salt. Can the kraut make me sick? I went ahead and put it into jars and in the fridge. If the kraut is okay, should I just make some salt water brine to keep it submerged while in the fridge? Thank you!