Hi gang,
So this is where you've all been hiding
I make sauerkraut all the time. One of the best sources for all things fermented is the
'Wild Fermentation' website. I have his book but he also posts some of the most used recipes online - including sauerkraut.
As mentioned it will 'technically' keep virtually forever under the right conditions - the science of preserving with salt is explained somewhere on the site - but there is a 'peak' to the quality and taste. It's super easy to make at home (shred 5 lbs. cabbage, add 3 tbsp. salt, pack tightly into a container, weight it down, cover and wait). You start tasting it after a few weeks and when it reaches YOUR preferred flavor (tang, crunch, etc.) you put it somewhere cool to keep it at that stage for as long as possible.
After that point the only 'maintenance' is to keep the cabbage submerged in the brine. The stuff that is exposed to air can dry out and get kind of 'funky' and eventually moldy. If you bought the kraut in anything but a glass jar you should transfer it as soon as possible. Tall and narrowish is best since it's the easiest way to keep the kraut submerged. There are a few ways to do that. Some people fill a zipperlock bag with brine and use that as a weight between the top of the kraut and the lid of jar. I like a jar small enough to fit through the mouth of the storage jar to wedge the kraut under the brine. If you have different sizes of Ball mason jars around this works great since the 1/2 pint jars fit nicely into the wide mouth quart jars.
If not, the teensy jars from the 'Thai Kitchen Curry paste' fit into just about any other jar.
btw - winter is the best time to try making homemade sauerkraut since the flavor is so much better when it ferments longer at a lower temperature. If you decide to try a second batch use a couple of tablespoons of juice from your first batch. The lactobacillus culture kicks starts the second batch in record time.
Michelle.