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Fermented Brussel Sprouts — 14 Comments

  1. Am curious if anyone has used frozen/thawed brussell sprouts in any fermentation recipe. Before freezing the brussel sprouts, I imagine the preparer rinsed them, possibly removing some beneficial bacteria. Otherwise they have no additives.

    • I’ve never tried, but I wouldn’t worry about any rinsing as the microbes would very likely withstand that. I’d be more concerned about whether they were irradiated. If so, they would be labeled as such.

  2. I have had Brussel Sprout Kimchi doing it’s thing for over a month. They are hard as rocks still and hard for this Senior to eat, even tho delicious. I have Xmas presents instead of a personal stash. I cut them in halves. Next time maybe shred them? I’m bummed! I know I can cook them, but probiotic effort will be out the door. Dang!

    • Hi Andi, sorry to hear the Brussel Sprout Kimchi (from that other recipe) didn’t soften enough for you, but I’ve got a great solution! You can always drain the brine now, throw them through your food processor (or chop them up by hand) and then re-combine with the brine and continue the fermentation. The sequence in which you do things doesn’t always matter in fermentation.

  3. New to fermenting veggies. I don’t see where you add water to your jars when packing for fermenting. Does it make all the liquid on its own from the sweating? Most recipes call for a brine to be poured over.

    • All the liquid necessary is generally released from the vegetables. The salt helps break down the cell walls to release the liquid and the pressure placed on top helps as well.

  4. If they have not produced enough liquid while sweating away, do you recommend not adding any additional liquid?
    Your site and your recipes are phenomenal. Thank you and good work!

    • I’ll add liquid if necessary, but most times when placed under pressure, enough liquid will be released, Sometimes can take up to 12 hours. When adding liquid, either add a brine of 1 Tablespoon salt to 1 cup water, or simply add water, but be sure to mix thoroughly as you’ll want to be sure to distribute your salt in the recipe thoroughly.

  5. To make the Brussels Sprouts “chew-able”, has anyone tried blanching them before fermentation? One could always use a commercial home culture packet to restore culturing bacteria killed by blanching.
    Mt wife said they are so crunchy she can’t even chew them.
    HELP!!

    • Hey James, cutting the brussel sprouts into halves or quarters will help the fermentation to penetrate further. The longer it sits, the more tender they will get as well. They’ll get more tart too, but that’s still pretty yummy. I wouldn’t blanch them personally, but I suppose adding a culturing bacteria may work if you do. Do let us know if you try that.

  6. Good day to you all. I made this recipe and there isn’t a lot of liquid in the container…a quart ball jar with only about an inch of liquid. Should I add water or will it be ok?

    Thanks for the help and this great site!

    -Nick

    • Hey Nick, you’ll want to compress the brussel sprouts a bit in the jar, perhaps with a glass weight or a sealed baggie filled with water. The liquid should hopefully rise up to cover the ingredients when under pressure. If it doesn’t best to add some water and likely a little extra salt to the water as well. Hope that helps.

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