I like it but definitely we NEED a I'm Smok'n It thread.

Rajun Gardener wrote: ↑Sat Dec 21, 2019 2:14 pm
I can change Recipes to "All things food" and list sub forums to include recipes and the canning/preserving topics.

I think it would better organized if we list it that way and include all food related topics in one area that's easy to find. Ex. If you were looking for the smoking meat section, it would be listed as a sub forum that can be found easy vs looking through other forums hoping you end up in the right place.

Let me know and we'll figure it out as a group.

Yes, All Things Food make sense to me, with subdivisions as needed.

Rajun Gardener wrote: ↑Sat Dec 21, 2019 2:14 pm A decision we need to make is how many forums and sub forums we want and what style we want.

I made two types we can look at. Check the way What's in the Workshop is set up with all subforums and a General discussion topic.

Compare that to the Recipes and Preserving/canning threads.

I can change Recipes to "All things food" and list sub forums to include recipes and the canning/preserving topics.

I think it would better organized if we list it that way and include all food related topics in one area that's easy to find. Ex. If you were looking for the smoking meat section, it would be listed as a sub forum that can be found easy vs looking through other forums hoping you end up in the right place.

Let me know and we'll figure it out as a group.

I just got up from reading a book and a little groggy but I like it so far.
Thank you

So when and or if will the old fermenting food thing and the old cheap eaten thing get transferred to the new one?

worth1 wrote: ↑Sun Dec 22, 2019 1:55 pm So when and or if will the old fermenting food thing and the old cheap eaten thing get transferred to the new one?

I moved those, do you want them all under one catagory with sub forums under the main topics?

I can make the changes to give everyone a chance to see how it looks and if we don't like it change it.

Thanks.
I would like other peoples input too.

By the way I like it and is the way most program files are set up.
Plus you can easily add more sub forums as time move along at the main menu or where ever you want.

Did you see the sub forums are now listed under the main forum? I just found that button!!

Do you like that style, it should be easier to find too. Thoughts?

Yep I just did.

This is the same way I had my files set up at work up north.
Starting with what pad then in that file what skid and then worker orders and or inspections all in separate files following a ladder pattern so to speak.
I got made fun of by one or two guys but I could have my paperwork done and over with before they found all the convoluted shortcuts on the desk top.
I have all of it on a flash drive to this day.

In my opinion the more you can compress the main page the better.
You're doing a wonderful job.

I'm gonna do the whole forum that way, it's so much easier to scroll to a topic and click a sub topic from the main page without hunting.
I also added Curing & Smoking to the Preserving topic and BBQ/Grilling/Smoking to the cooking section. I figure both are about the same but curing & smoke to preserve is more technical. WhatCha think?

I like it.
I hope others chime in.

I just sliced some ripe and green Juliet and ripe or half ripe sun gold tomatoes in half and some giant elephant garlic and put them in a used Best Maid relish jar.
Added a shot of my ferment starter from ghost pepper juice I keep in the refrigerator.
Covered the mess up with left over garlic skins.
Added water that has been salted to about 1 1/4 tablespoons of kosher salt and put the lid back on.
We shall see how this turns out.

This smells so good. Started it last weekend, you can see the bubbles in there. Green tomatoes, a variety of green and red hot peppers, purple onion, garlic. Very active. Probably going to leave it until Sunday, then make a hot sauce. 5% brine.

Spaghetti squash chutney, supposed to ferment for 7-21 days. 3% on the salt to vegetable weight, no added water really, maybe just a spoonful.

Carrots, garlic, curry powder, raisins are all part of the mix. Mountainfeed supplied the recipe.

When and if you ever make sauerkraut you will never buy it again.
Just to remember to add apples like honey crisp.
The canned stuff is horrible.

Plan is to grow some cabbage this fall and winter. What type of cabbage would you say makes for the best sauerkraut? I grew a couple of Savoy last winter, that seemed to do better for me than the tight green type, but I am open to any variety. Bugs attacked the hard, green type, but I didn’t do any chemical application to thwart the critters.

The red cabbage makes a beautiful sauerkraut and turns the apple chunks red.
I like the pointed cabbage too like Charleston Wakefield, it is over 100 years old an heirloom and developed for the southern states.
The bugs snails and worms ate all of mine this winter.

A good two week ferment will make the sauerkraut taste like a deli pickle three week will be more sour and after that it just starts getting more sour.
A lady I know from Germany likes the real sour stuff and liked my 3 week stuff really well.
Her family made it in a wood barrel in the basement and dipped out of it all winter, no canning.
My mom made it in a huge 5 gallon fermenting crock.
One time my dad saw her drooling over a 50 gallon crock or was it 100 gallons, I know the thing was huge.
I followed the instructions from the sausage maker when I got my large 15 liter German style fermenting crock.

My fermenting tomato garlic concoction is doing pretty well.
Many bubbles today and I could have slacked off on the salt a wee bit.
My formula is for a temperature of around 75 degrees F and my house is around 72 while I am at work.
Temperature at night as low as the old AC will let me go, 67 in this 95 something heat.
Yes I have gotten it down to that much from many ferments and experience.
I stopped bothering with the many fancy air locks and so on and just let a little pressure off every 24 hours by cracking the lid a wee bit and smelling the gases coming off.
Usually if you let the very active first lacto bacteria calm down another bacteria comes into play that is less active this is around two weeks to three weeks.
This later bacteria is the one that makes it more sour and acidic.
If you chose to back slop like I do you can use the juices from the first two weeks and back slop from it.
If not and use a 3 to lord knows how long juices back slop you wont get the same favors because you bypass the lacto bacteria from the one to two week ferment.
What this will do is sort of stall out the ferment like you would if you started out fresh.
It will simply take longer.
I back slopped off of a four week ferment for the tomato garlic concoction.
All I did was save some juices from a ghost pepper ferment I did a year or two ago that I keep in a pop bottle in the refrigerator.
It is just exactly like keeping a sour dough starter for many years.
Once you get what you like just hold on to it.
I will take the juice/water from this ferment and put it back in the pop bottle to preserve the colony I started a long time ago far past the ferment I did around two yeas ago.

Got some serous action going on about a week into the ferment.
Crack the lid to let some pressure off and it is like a hot soda pop being cracked opened a wee bit.
Foam.
Temperatures are 67 F at night and 73 F in the day time.
Yest just a little difference in temperature will effect a ferment greatly.
No pictuer you may ask?
Now why would I want to post a pictuer?
That will be in another week at least.
It looks like tomatoes and garlic in water.

Nan6b wrote: ↑Thu Dec 12, 2019 6:39 pm DH has just started Orange, Apple, & Cranberry flavored Sauerkraut. That's one type of sauerkraut with 3 flavors.
We'll see around Christmas.

Oh my goodness! I've never heard or imagined you could do this with saurkraut. Would you be willing to share your recipes? They sound delicious!