Question about ditching the brine in home fermentation

I know most fermentation guides push for a brine with veggies like kraut, but I've had better luck skipping it entirely. Last year, I messed up a batch by adding too much water, so I tried just massaging salt into cabbage until it got juicy. It fermented just fine without any extra liquid. The result was crunchier and had a more intense flavor than my old brine-based tries. I've repeated this with radishes and green beans, and each time it's worked perfectly. People act like you need that extra step, but in my experience, it's not necessary. Sometimes simpler methods get overlooked because they're not traditional. If you're tired of measuring water and salt, give the dry method a shot.

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3 Comments

jennifer_rivera7mo ago

Are we not supposed to tell the fermentation police about this? Because ditching the brine sounds like heresy, but honestly your crunchy results are a pretty good argument. Guess the rulebook needs an update.

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alicehernandez7mo ago

Note that the salt draws out liquid to form a brine.

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elizabethg857mo ago

Look, if the fermentation police show up, I'm blaming you guys. All this rule breaking is making me feel like a real rebel in my own kitchen. Though I have to admit, the crunch you get from skipping the brine is a pretty good reason to risk a visit from the food safety squad. Guess we're just out here writing the new, crunchy rulebook one jar at a time.

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