Bubbies

[spo1977]

I have been buying Bubbies Saurkraut and Pickles and I have to say these are deliscious. They seem very old world in style and natural. Would you assume these have the health benefits of pickled/fermented foods?


http://www.bubbies.com/

[shelley]

They do and they don't - they ahve tons of nutritional benefits, but not the actual microbes themselves since any product sold commercially has to be pasteurized now.

[spo1977]

I sent the company a similar email, halfway expecting them to have no idea what I was talking about. Check out there lenght, detailed, thoughtful reply.

Thank you very much for writing in, we are always
happy to hear from one of our customers and we
would certainly like to take this opportunity to
answer your question and tell you more about the
rest of our products, particularly those that are
naturally fermented.

Our Old Fashioned Sauerkraut sold in the 25 oz.
glass jar has been heated, but not to
pasteurization temperatures. We were forced to
begin heating our jarred Sauerkraut to calm the
cultures inside because they were causing the
kraut to continue to ferment too much causing a
buildup of gas that then causes the brine to leak
all over distributor's and retailer's equipment
and shelving.

When we heat our Sauerkraut, it is quickly raised
to about 140 degrees and then allowed to cool as
it is being jarred. The goal here is not to
eliminate all the beneficial cultures, but rather
to stifle them so they wont cause the jars to
leak. When our Bread and Butter Chips are
pasteurized the pickle chips are heated to about
175 degrees and the brine solution is just
beginning to simmer (near 212). This process is
designed at eliminating any potential cultures
while the heating we do for our Sauerkraut is
intended to calm them with the specific goal in
mind not to eliminate them all.

We recently had all our naturally fermented
products tested for their biological activity,
including an additional sample of our sauerkraut,
but a 100% raw variety we are only able to
distribute in large buckets at this time. Bubbies
Raw Sauerkraut showed a minimal increase in
activity over the heated, jarred Sauerkraut. The
jarred Sauerkraut definitely responded to their
biological activity tests and showed that it has
living beneficial bacteria within; and, since the
product continues to change over time because of
continued fermentation (even when refrigerated --
but most definitely if left at room temperature);
those same enzymes produced in the original
fermentation are still being produced. On a
slightly different note, the Sauerkrauts, raw and
heated, tested a much distant third on the charts
for biological activity than our second and first
place winners: The Pure Kosher Dills and Pickled
Green Tomatoes. The tomatoes actually tested the
highest for biological activity and we believe
that has to do with the fact that tomatoes have
more residual sugars for these beneficial bacteria
to live on after the fermentation process has
essentially stopped.

It is important to note that our Sauerkraut is
very crisp. It is crunchier and able to maintain
its crunch for far longer than other brands of
Sauerkraut I have tried. This is because there
are still some vegetable fibers left intact in the
cabbage which are the complex carbohydrates that
break down into the simpler food that the lacto
bacillus and bulgaricus bacteria feed on during
the fermentation process. Our Sauerkraut
maintains its fibers better than others for
several reasons -- one, because we pay close
attention at when to pull and pack our Sauerkraut;
and two, because of the method of preparation on
the cabbages: they are shredded coarsely, and as a
result the Kraut is not reduced to a near relish
consistency at the end. This is one of the key
reasons our Sauerkraut is so active and we were
forced to begin doing the heating process. The
fermentation process must be carefully watched to
ensure that the product is packed and cooled at a
time prior to when the bacteria use up the bulk of
the food supply -- i.e. when all the fibers in the
kraut have been broken down and those simple
carbohydrates have been consumed. If your
fermentation process is too long, or at too hot of
an ambient temperature, the process will happen
faster and eventually you can over ferment your
product. If this happens the bacteria and the
enzymes have run out of viable food sources and
begin to die off. You can see that in creating
the optimal Sauerkraut there is quite a bit more
to it than just throwing it together waiting until
it is not giving off anymore gas to throw it in
the jar.

The two gallon buckets of Sauerkraut we make and
distribute to local restaurants and The Rainbow
Grocery Cooperative in San Francisco are 100% raw.
The distributors we deal with will not carry this
product because the Sauerkraut is so active that
it continues to build up gas inside the buckets
causing brine leakage. These companies will not
risk having other products in their trucks and
warehouses be damaged by the proliferation of our
lacto bacillus bacteria and the enzymes which
naturally follow from such an extremely active
Sauerkraut. We are currently working on a smaller
container than two gallons for distribution to the
end line consumer. We have made several attempts
at this but cannot seem to get our Sauerkraut to
stop building up that gas and leaking in any sort
of typical container. Our next plan is to attempt
to implement a snap lid mason jar, with the big
metal clamp on the outside of the jar. While we
anticipate that this product will only end up in
select natural food stores throughout the country
because of its extravagant packaging, if we can
pull it off we feel it is simply the best Kraut in
the world. If you would like to know more about
this product, check back in with us in a few
months and I'll be glad to give you an update.

As for our other products, Bubbies Pure Kosher
Dills, Dill Relish, Pickled Green Tomatoes
prepared with no artificial flavorings, colorings
or preservatives and are 100% raw. Our Bread and
Butter Chips are a sweet vinegar pickle, but I'm
sure you would find them to be first rate and very
crunchy like the rest of our products. We are now
proud to offer both Beet and Prepared
Horseradishes, a Sweethot Mustard and, just out,
Pickled Herring in Wine. The only pickled herring
to our knowledge made with absolutely no
preservatives! So try some soon, sweethot!

If some of these other products fit your fancy, we
would love if you would request them in your
favorite stores. Consumer demand is the key to
success.

Thank you again for writing in, we hope we have
answered your question and we wish you well.