That recipe says two weeks to ferment. I usually figure about 10-14 days for fermentation & all my ferments are all vegetable. So that’s a typical ferment time Ttrock. I’ve never used a starter for fermentation, the lacto-bacillus are everywhere.
This is interesting - I’m going to try some kvass. I wonder what it tastes like.
K, that’s what i was thinking for the timeline- i covered my jug with a dbl layer cheesecloth like info my kombucha so it can “breathe”, hoping that it’s ok cuz now I’m in philly til thurs late pm.
I have tried a homemade kvass from a russian coworker in the past and hers was hard core funky and salty. She would just sip a small portion- maybe 2oz- after a meal. Hoping mine isn’t overly salty and just funky enough to have a nice savory sipping thing that also makes my tummy happy…
You can always try a vegetable starter like Caldwells to help promote the good bugs taking off
I just cover the sauerkraut crocks with a towel. A kitchen towel for the little ones & a bath towel for the big ones.
Ooh, thanks! Just looked them up and added to my amazon cart!
So worth it! Really tasty results.
Aaannnddd started new batch of white kimchi this weekend- last project for a while! (Well at least til my new scoby comes and i can restart my booch)
Store bought vegan kimchi is stupid, like $11 for a jar of the mother in law’s brand that i can find in a store near me in nyc so I couldn’t bring myself to buy it again when ingredients for a huge new batch myself totaled maybe $15.
I definitely should have cut the veg for stuffing between leaves thinner but lost my cut proof glove and cut some by hand and some by mandolin. Whatever, it all ends up tasty in the end.
Usually done in a few days but my apt is cold when i am gone so we will see. Hopefully i come home to a funky smelling apartment! 
That looks good! I’m not vegan but out of curiosity, what makes regular kimchi not vegan? I’m just wondering. I want to try to make kimchi soon. I’m a total newbie as I’ve never made it, so forgive my ignorance 
Not Ttrock obv, but regular kimchi has dried shrimp or anchovy sauce which is left out of vegan kimchi. I know this because I have a shellfish allergy so label-reading is a way of life for me.
What gretchen said, always fishy stuff in it so not even vegetarian.
The brand mother in law makes great vegan kimchi, but yeah it’s $$ for little jars and i looooovvveee the stuff!
Thanks for the info. I knew the answer was something easy but I couldn’t think of what it was. So I’ve decided to to try this after being inspired by this thread.
What size mason jars do you think I should buy? Forgive my newbie questions. I was looking at 32 or 64oz jars and wanted to try some sight variations on heat and ingredients so I’m not really sure. If I should start small or just go big front the start.
Roughly how many cabbages will fit into each size? I realize there are variables like the cabbage size and how hard you pack it, but just a ball park is what I’m looking for. This should be a fun experiment 
thanks all
Not mason jars!
kimchi needs a serious airtight container… there’s a reason many korean households have a separate fridge for kimchi ;)) This kind with the snap lid works well, no fragrant fridge problems!
I would say make one small-er batch kimchi to start, the maangchi site has several recipes- note her recipes tend to be spicy! The videos i find very helpful too. Note the quantity though, one of the kimchi recipes is with 10lbs of nappa cabbage (!!) so to start i would do 1/4 batch of that one, or another with about 3lbs cabbage size which still makes a lot.
You can use these for mason jars:
Or these:
In my experience, Maangchi’s recipes work well as long as you don’t substitute anything.
White kimchi is “done”! You can see all the happy little bubbles , there’s a little fizz to the broth. And it’s certainly fragrant! I cut it into smaller pieces and packed up into containers, will certainly be sharing with friends too.
The fermented green beans also came out nicely, took almost two weeks to get to a slightly funky yet still firm/tender texture. Very snackable.
This was the jar with radish slices in the bottom so the color dulled a bit
About what temperature is your apartment when you are away for the work week?
What are the seed looking things at the bottom of the green beans?
Kim-chi looks fab!
Not really sure, no thermometer inside, probably very low 60s…
the green beans had fennel seeds, black peppercorns and some dill that ended up floating. I can taste more fennel than dill in the finished green beans.
Thanks! During the winter I keep my place in the low 60s during the day and had wondered if it would be a workable temperature for fermentation.
I’m going to try kimchi maybe Sunday. I keep my place rather cool and around 60. I like it cool so I will report back. My Korean chili should be here tomorrow and I plan to pick up cabbage tomorrow or Sunday so wish me luck. This thread inspired me to try it. This will be my first attempt at kimchi
Fermentation happens at temperatures between 32 & 212 degrees. Colder = slower & hotter = faster. Temperatures in the 60s are pretty much ideal.
Very workable! Only issue i have had is my kombucha can take for-ev-er in the winter, so i bought a “seedling mat” which is like a very low level heating pad that i turn on for a few hours or overnight and then off which helps keep the temp in the 70s.
