SAURKRAUT HELP

greenspun.com : LUSENET : Countryside : One Thread

I'M MAKING KRAUT FOR THE FIRST TIME SINCE LITTLE, WITH MY JAJA. NEED SOME TIPS TO REMEMBER

-- GREG GREY (xoryorz@aol.com), October 18, 2000

Answers

This is how my Grand Mother, Mary Mae Swarthout Phillips made it------ cut cabbage fine, as if for slaw, then pack it down in a crock, first a sprinkling of salt, then a layer of the cabbage, then salt, then cabbage, until it is full or nearly so. Then press it down closely, pounding it with something heavy to pack it close.Lay over it a round cover with a heavy stone to keep the cabbage under the brine to ripen. It is not used until it has undergone a fermentation. When prepared to eat, it is drained & rinsed & fried in butter. (some put caraway & whole pepper corns inbetween the layers also. Sonda in Ks.

-- Sonda (sgbruce@birch.net), October 19, 2000.

Boy - Sonda has all the advice I could give. I just cut the cabbage pretty finely, say 1/8". Then a tablespoon of salt, a layer (1 to 2 inches?) of cabbage, and repeat til you are done. I use food grade plastic buckets and hold the top layer down with a dinner plate weighted with a canning jar full of water. What is not going well for you? I'm sure you have enough 'kraut makers here to help you out! GL!

-- Brad (Homefixer@SacoRiver.net), October 19, 2000.

Instead of the buckets, etc., I make it directly in the jars. Shred the cabbage fine, pack it into the jars tightly, add a teaspoon of salt, and fill with boiling water (it won't take much if you've packed the cabbage good and tight. Put your lids and rings on loose, and set it outside, in a shed, etc., because as it ferments, it does smell, and sometimes the jars foam over. When it's done fermenting, clean up the jars, put on new sterilized lids and process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes. My folks always just tightened the rings and put the jars in the root cellar, and no one ever got sick, and we all loved the kraut, but when I got older (amd wiser?) I added the processing, just for my own peace of mind before I fed it to my own family.

-- Kathie (twinrosefarm@worldnet.att.net), October 19, 2000.

I make my kraut pretty much the same as Brad. I use 3/4 cup of sea salt for 4 gal. in 5 gal. food grade plastic bucket. It takes approx. 8 heads of cabbage. Layer of cabbage, salt, smash down with fist, repeat. Then I lay a large piece of clean plastic on top of the bucket, fill in the leftover space with water (inside the plastic) tie at top with string. This creates a weight that keeps the oxygen from reaching the kraut. Leave this weight on 4-5 weeks WITHOUT disturbing. (4wks.=mild, 5 wks.=more sour) Remove weight, heat kraut and hot pack in quart jars for 40min. Yummm

-- Tang J. (tang@mtaonline.net), October 19, 2000.

All good advice. My grandparents always used less (minimal) salt than commercial brands and, like many Alsatians (southern France-- where the Germans cross the boarder for better kraut) and Germans, tossed in a few Juniper berries.

-- Z (zumende@aol.com), October 23, 2000.


Shred cabbage...stuff into jars...add 1 t. of salt and 1 t. of sugar...pour boiling water into to jars...put lid and ring on loosely...let sit in dark area...24 hours later add more boiling water if necessary, it may loose a little...tighten rings...let it sit in sun for three days....waterbath for 10 minutes...Enjoy!

-- Cindy (atilrthehony_1@yahoo.com), October 24, 2000.

Moderation questions? read the FAQ