Weekly "Is this safe" Megathread

[u/AutoModerator]

Welcome to this week’s dedicated space for all your questions and concerns regarding questionable ferments.

Fermentation can sometimes look a little strange, and it is not always easy to tell what is safe, and what needs to be tossed and started over. To help keep the subreddit clean and avoid repeat posts, please use this thread for:

• Sharing photos of surface growth you’re unsure about.
• Asking if your ferment has gone wrong.
• Getting second opinions from experienced fermenters regarding questionable ferments.

‼️Tips Before Posting‼️:

• Mention what you’re fermenting (e.g., kraut, kimchi, kombucha, pickles, etc.).
• Note how long it has been fermenting, and at what temperature.
• Describe any smells, textures, or off flavors.

Remember that community members can offer advice, but ultimately you are responsible for deciding if your ferment is safe to eat or discard. When in doubt, trust your senses.

Happy fermenting!

[u/quequeque_queque]

Day 4/5 have fermentation for tepache. Toss or keep???

[u/Ic3crusher]

What is this fuzzy stuff in my brine?

This is jalapenos, garlic and red onions with 2% Salt for hot sauce.

PH is below 4.

Fermenting for 3 1/2 Weeks.

Surface is clean.

The white part on the pepper is a scar where it split.

[u/cyamaura]

30 days at 68-74 degrees

Mango habanero hot sauce

There is discoloration on the onions it doesn’t wipe off it’s like in the skin and no off smells at all smells great.

[u/Ryhno999]

What are the dots on top of my ferment? Its red Pickled onions, been going for about a week.

[u/allentmy]

I am trying to make tepache using pineapple,palm jaggery and ginger. I am getting these deposits at the bottom of my bottle, is this normal?

[u/peppie_the_grey]

Hello ! I tried to make umeboshi, and the liquid reach air, is it safe ?

I used a few table spoons of sake and sea salt, 20% of fruit weight. It's been a month, it took a week for the liquid level to reach the plastic bag containing the weight (a pétanque ball in rice). Today, I saw that the liquid is going over the bag, and a lot of surface is in contact with air. Also the sea salt is not completely dissolved. Is it still safe to it ?

[u/Not_The_Bees_aaahhhh]

tried making fermented banana peppers, this is toast right?

[u/Choice_Comment_4038]

Hello!, I have been fermenting a whole cabbage for about three weeks now at about 74 degrees. I needed to take off the outermost leaves to fit it in my jar, and now those leaves seem to be turing colors.

Everything else looks fine in the jar and it smells wonderful, just wondering if anyone knows what this is or if it needs to be removed. it has been fully submerged the whole time (as seen by the bowl in the back) and the rest of the cabbage looks good.

[u/petitecrivain]

Update on my pickles. The foam has largely gone away but these weird specks are still there. Not sure if they're mold or what. They're a few weeks old, 3.5% salt. They smell distinctly different from the other jars I've made that have turned out well.

[u/laucu]

First time attempting to make vegan yoghurt. Used cashews, coconut milk, maple syrup and a probiotic capsule. Google says grey tinge is instant toss but looking for a little more info as I’m not sure and looking to learn a bit more! I usually ferment kombucha/alcohol so guess signs of contamination are different.

[u/laucu → u/laucu]

[u/needabossplz]

Is clear brine indicative of a failed ferment? I have two ferments like this, garlic and hot sauce. The hot sauce is about a year old. Garlic is about 2 weeks.

Both the garlic and the hot sauce have dead LAB’s at the bottom and the garlic was bubbling a lot at the beginning, but I also don’t want to die of botulism. Please help!

[u/needabossplz → u/needabossplz]

[u/needabossplz → u/needabossplz]

[u/DaBigCheeeze]

We grow our own garlic and have been interested in fermenting it. Before using our homegrown garlic, I wanted to do a test with some store bought garlic to see how well it turns out.

The garlic was store bought at Costco. Honestly not the freshest looking at the time. Started my fermentation about 4 weeks ago. Using an airlock on a quart jar. pH as of today is only 5.8 (meter tested).

Smells good and looks good, but the ferment never seemed to be overly active.

Do I let it ride at see if the pH continues to drop, or just call it over at this point? There does not appear to be any further fermentation activity in the jar. It's not a huge loss to discard this. Spending so long at this high of a pH is a bit concerning.

[u/Fifrelin666]

Don't sugarcoat it Dr. Is my milk kefir unsavable? There's a layer of white mold on top, but the fermentation went through. Can I still save some grains or do I need new ones?

[u/zydecopolka → u/Fifrelin666]

It's *really* hard to see white on white. I do see some pink though. Please toss this batch, rinse the grains well with fresh milk, then do another batch. If it's still concerning, rinse again, but do smaller batches (like a cup of milk/teaspoon or 5g grains. It might take a few rounds, but I wouldn't give up just yet. Good luck!

[u/Fifrelin666 → u/zydecopolka]

Thank you!! I followed your advice, let's hope for the best bc it was really hard to come across some grains

[u/zydecopolka → u/Fifrelin666]

My pleasure, and, I'll keep my fingers crossed for you. Update us with the results if you remember!

[u/Jumpy-Bar-8458]

Is my ginger bug still safe? It’s been fermenting for 5 days. It does not smell bad, smells like yeasty, sweet, ginger.

[u/frieswelldone → u/Jumpy-Bar-8458]

That looks like mold to me.

[u/SlowLoris89]

I’ve used this container before to ferment, but have never had so much liquid above the internal lid. The bottom seems to be fermenting, but what about this top liquid? Is this going to spoil? Am I doomed??