ជ្រក់ផ្កាស្ពៃ, Fermenting 101

 ជ្រក់ផ្កាស្ពៃ (Pickling 101)

Recipe & Directions:

• Veggies of choice 
• Salt 
• Sugar 
• Water 

1. Washed and drip off of excessive water.
2. Salt cured with generous amount of salt till completely welt, or for about 1.5 to 2 hours. 
3. Meanwhile, make a brine of 1 Tbsp. Sugar,  1 Tbsp. Salt per quart of water, bring it to a boil and let cool. Be sure to make enough to submerge the solid ingredients.
4. A quick rinse to get rid of excess salt and let drip to rid of excess water. Make fistful bundle, tightly fold and load tightly into a jar. Make sure to leave some room for submersion of veggies contents and leave about 3 inches of empty space.
5. Brine in, DO NOT fill water to the top of jar, as fermenting creates pressure and it will flood the jar. Remember to leave about 2" of empty space from the rise of brine surface. 
6. Airtight lid on, place the jar in a deep bowl to catch any messy liquid overflow. Let it go through fermentation for the next 3-4 days. At this stage,  this measurements should be ripened with a slight sauerkraut taste. It should yield a well-balanced salt and sour taste.  

FOOTNOTE:

• Salt-Cured method above is used when make pickle in a gloomy and cloudy forecast, or when using fresh veggies without sun-wilting. 
• To minimize waste of ingredients, for a tightly packed 1 gallon jar, 2 quarts brine will be plentiful. 

For a neatly and tightly packed 1 gallon jar, 2 Qt of water is plentiful. Get water boiling and let cool completely. 

Preferably, stored in a pantry or cellar if clear jar is used. But if a ceramic jar is used it is suitable for countertop storing.  

Pictures shown how I wrapped mine. It went in and came out with a still tightly wrapped bundle. No messy exit. 

This measurement might not yield the same result if using the method you'd commonly seen done on YouTube. 

There are pros and cons to being over Salted pickled. Keep in mind, the higher the salt content the longer it takes for bacteria to break down and convert to sour. But the over salted pickled has a longer Shelf-Life, which is good for off season needed Veggies.

Keep in mind that fermentation is Live. So, the taste of tartness changes as it aged overtime. Once it's ripped to liking, transfer it to a cool dark room to slow down the aging process.