When Is It Ready? Storage and Troubleshooting for Fermented Vegetables

From a microbiological and food safety perspective, lactic acid fermentation ends when carbon dioxide is no longer produced, and only the lactic acid-producing bacteria remain alive (this is the second phase of primary fermentation). A very visible sign of this is that gas production completely stops, the jar quiets down, and liquid no longer drips from under the lid.

I recommend that we wait for this phase with all our fermented vegetables and only start consuming them once fermentation has concluded. During this phase of fermentation, the pH drops to optimal levels, the product becomes completely safe to consume, and the salty and sour flavors balance out in the pickle.

Pay attention to details and don’t confuse this state with when fermentation seemingly stalls for a few days due to sudden cooling! With the next warming, bubbling and fizzing will resume in this case.

Many sources suggest we should start tasting the fermenting vegetables after just a few days, and when they taste best, put the jar in the refrigerator. The cold slows down fermentation, and the flavor experienced during tasting won’t change much. Generally, this practice isn’t considered a significant risk either, but it’s good to know that we can’t yet be certain that the microorganism selection has been successful, meaning pathogens may still rarely occur. Additionally, the product is much more perishable during this phase due to frequent opening, tasting, and low acid content (which is why we keep it refrigerated after short fermentation periods).

Safety Standards

Pickles can be considered completely safe from all perspectives when their pH drops to at least 4.5 – this usually only occurs at the end of primary fermentation. We can easily check this at home using litmus paper.

Storage and Shelf Life

Once the more intensive fermentation phase concludes (liquid no longer drips from under the lids), after thorough wiping, we can confidently place the jars on pantry shelves. If we’ve kept them sealed throughout, they’ll keep at room temperature for up to a year.

Although lactic acid bacteria gradually die off during secondary fermentation, enzymes can remain active for many months. After about six months, the pickle’s flavor becomes increasingly milder and more balsamic, while the vegetables’ texture becomes as if we had pre-cooked them. Fortunately, this apparent deterioration doesn’t significantly change their health benefits.

Opening Stubborn Jars

Screw-top canning jar lids can stick very tightly to the jars. Try warming the lid by placing your open palm on it and rubbing it in circles for a few seconds. The warmed lid becomes more flexible and easier to unscrew. If liquid leaked during early fermentation and dried between the threads, drip a little water into the gap between the lid and jar. If this doesn’t help, carefully slide a thin blade under the lid (this lid won’t be suitable for fermentation later). Never bang the lid or knock the jar against the table!

Whenever we open a jar, always use clean utensils to reach inside, and definitely store it refrigerated after opening. Here it will keep for months, even years, without spoiling.

Although not typical, cross-contamination can naturally occur despite the greatest precautions. If we put the pickle in the refrigerator early and yeast film appears on it, proceed as described earlier. After topping off and salting, put the jar back on a tray and ferment the vegetables at room temperature until they quiet down.

If we see fuzzy or strange, brightly colored colonies in the jar, don’t try to save it! Pour the contents onto compost.

Troubleshooting Common Issues

If Too Salty

It can happen at any time that by the end of primary fermentation, we still find the pickle’s flavor too salty. This is especially true in spring and summer, when our digestive system’s function changes and we crave strong flavors less.

We can balance saltiness by gently rinsing the fermented vegetables just before consumption. From pickles, we can make salads, cream soups, dips, or dressings by mixing with fresh vegetables and possibly yogurt, kefir, or cream cheese.

For dry-salted pickles, it’s worth reducing salt content by putting half the total amount in a strainer, rinsing it, then mixing it back with the rest, repeating until we achieve the desired flavor. Use clean tools or rubber gloves for this operation! Pack the rinsed fermented vegetables tightly in jars and store them sealed in the refrigerator.

If Too Sour

We can mix strongly sour fermented vegetables with fresh vegetables and yogurt or kefir, or make some kind of relish from them. Blend them and mix with neutral flavor enhancers to create cream soups, salad dressings, pickle juice, sandwich spreads, or use as flavoring in any recipe. We can also spread them on parchment paper and dry them in sun, dehydrator, or convection oven, then grind into powder to make seasoning salt.

If we want a flavor effect reminiscent of vinegar-sugar recipes, never sweeten during preparation, but always just before consumption. While continuously tasting, mix a little sweetener (such as sugar, honey, syrups or stevia extract) with the fermented vegetables. Always prepare only as much at once as we’ll consume shortly. Natural sugars can restart fermentation (and the result will be even more sour than the original), while artificial sweeteners can have adverse effects on lactic acid bacteria due to their antibacterial properties.

If Too Hard

Many of us love crispy fermented vegetables. Especially with brine-pickled root vegetables, it can easily happen that they’re still impossibly hard at first tasting. In this case, the best thing we can do is reseal and wait patiently: the bacteria will thoroughly work on the vegetables’ fibers over time.

Naturally, we can also bake or cook something delicious from our fermented vegetables in this state. We can make excellent vegetable sides, chips, or stew using them – but be careful that their flavor will intensify due to water loss. They’ll seem much saltier and more sour than fresh, so adjust our finished dish’s seasoning accordingly!

If Too Soft

It’s a natural part of lactic acid bacteria’s work that they eventually break down the digestible plant parts (simple and complex carbohydrates), so certain fermented vegetables become increasingly soft as time progresses. However, if overly vigorous gas production occurs at the very beginning of fermentation for any reason, otherwise delicate ingredients can become completely and irreversibly mushy within 2-3 days.

If we notice no problems in the jar other than the vegetables’ texture (meaning not yeasty, not moldy, not stinky), we can safely consume it. Eating it alone offers little enjoyment value, but they can gain entirely new meaning if we make dips, spreads, cream soups, vegetable dishes, sandwich spreads, or sauces from them. I’ll show some ideas for all of these in the recipes. If it’s otherwise still consumable, it would be a shame to waste the jar’s contents over such a small issue.

How to Use the Recipes on This Blog

Since we all like working with different sized and types of canning jars, I’ve given ingredient quantities in the recipes so they’re easily usable with any capacity pickling vessel.

I’ve given brine quantities generously in every recipe and rounded to half liters to make calculation easier. Exactly how much will be needed always depends on how much the vegetable pieces fill our container. Naturally, depending on season, ingredients’ freshness, moisture content, and chopping method, a little more or less of a given vegetable or fruit will always fit in the same size canning jar. After a little practice, everyone will have enough routine to determine approximately how much of what they’ll need just by looking. If there’s still excess, we can always put it in smaller jars too – or consume it fresh, prepared as salad. I very often pickle using vegetables left over from baking or cooking and usable “waste” (such as cauliflower, beet, or radish leaves).

We can also increase or decrease the spice quantities given in recipes according to taste each time. When creating our own combinations, it’s worth keeping a fermentation diary of our preparations, so we can remake truly successful recipes later. It’s enough if we write down the preparation date, exact quantities of ingredients used, and the first tasting or “deemed ready” date in a notebook.

If our skin is sensitive, it’s worth using rubber gloves when kneading dry-salted ingredients.