Dear Kirsten and Christopher,
Thank you so much for all the resources you offer on your website.
I started fermenting recently, and would probably have given up right at the start if it wasn't for all the invaluable information, reassurance, and support that lovely people like you provide.
My latest attempt was to ferment garlic cloves and I'm not sure if it's working as it should:
They went in 12 days ago, on July 13th, and a couple of days ago, little white particles started appearing in the water. There is a lot of it now and some of the cloves are a darker yellow on one of the ends.
I'm worried about the floating white bits. Are they normal?
I don't know if this information is useful, but I used Himalayan pink salt (and there were little bits of pink here and there on the first couple of days, which are no longer visible).
Thank you so much for any feedback you could give me, and once again, for all the wonderful resources you offer us.
Have a lovely week,
Camila
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Dear Camila,
I am so glad to hear that the information we provide is helping you become a confident fermenter! Thank you for letting us know.
I know those bits do have a concerning look about them and I wish I could tell you exactly what they are in a science-y sort of way but I don’t know exactly what is happening. What I do know is that they are normal and we get them in some of our brined garlic as well. Smaller sediment floaters in other vegetable brine ferments are very, very normal, so normal that in fact they can be a sign all is well, soI do think that these are just garlic’s version. As our experience has shown this happens in the same way. I have wondered if it has to do with the sticky nature of the garlic.
The darker portions are also normal. Last year I did a test of 18 garlic ferments simultaneously and all the pickles developed that to some degree and they are all great and delicious.
Hope that helps,
Kirsten