Conference turris::cooks

    There are different kinds and flavors of sauerkraut, so basically
    one needs to experiment to figure out the exact proportions to one's
    liking. I'll write my grandmother's recipe since I have never seen
    anything more modern.
    
    Shred the cabbage and carrots as if you are making cole slaw. Cabbage
    has to be nice, firm and white. Shredding by hand results in nicer
    looking strips, but food processor can also do (especially if you
    have to do a lot). Mix your cabbage and carrots with salt. It has
    to taste a little more salty than for the salad. Sorry, I don't
    have the exact proportions but you really need to taste it to make
    sure it is right.
    
    Now put the mixture into a crock or even enamelled pot, cover with
    a clean cloth, top it with a plate, and put something heavy on it,
    heavier the better, a big stone would do nicely. Every couple of
    days you need to wash your cloth. Should take about a week to get
    properly fermented.  Good luck.
     
    

    This recipe is from a distant relative, a Ida Weisz Adolf of Mott
    North Dakota.
    
    	Cut caffage as for cole slaw.  Put 1 tsp. of canning salt in
    	for each quart of cabbage.  Add cold water to cover.  Weight
    	it down with a plate and a clean rock.  All the cabbage should
    	stay under water.  Put a cloth over to top to keep out bugs.
     	It will take 4 - 7 days.  Press into jars, add juice and seal.
    	Or, keep in the fridge.
    
    

    Buy a 1lb can of sauerkraut, then "doctor" it.  Saute some diced
    bacon and onion until bacon is crisp.  Drain the can of sauerkraut.
    Put the sauerkraut and bacon/onion stuff in a saucepan.  Add some
    pepper, and a little sugar (also caraway seeds if you like them).
    Add about � cup water and � can of beer.  Simmer for about an hour.
    
    We got this recipe from American friends when we lived in Germany,
    and our German friends loved it.  It is also much faster than
    starting from scratch.

    My exwife is German and she made the sauerkraut like .3 except that
    she added a grated medium potato.  No pepper though and don't drain
    the bacon grease.  Add 1/2 to 1 cup beef broth or bullion and bake
    at 350 for 2 hours.  The more often that it is reheated the better
    and better it begins to taste.  Note:  If the Sauerkraut is too
    strong in flavor then rinse it with water in a colander.
    
    Steve

    I love sauerkraut. I'm going to try making my own from scratch,
    now that I have an idea how to do it (it's just like pickles
    without the dill!). 
    
    But, for cooked sauerkraut, I use canned (prefer the
    kind you get in a plastic bag in the deli section of your
    grocery store, since I don't care for the by-produts of the
    can in my food).
    
    To this kraut, add water to cover. Shred fresh cabbage to
    equal about the amount of kraut you are using. Add  thinly
    sliced onion and caraway seeds if you like them. Simmer
    slowly for about 1 1/2 hour. Add a bit of brown sugar, to
    taste. If you're serving it with a roast, you can use a
    bit of the pan drippings and mix with the finished sauerkraut.
    Can also add stewed tomatoes. Delicious.
    
    This is an "old world" recipe that goes back many generations,
    was most often served with goose, duckling, or pork.
    
    Irena
                                     
    
    
    

    Now that late October is apon us, and the many crops such as
    "winter" cabbage is readily available, Does anybody out there
    know the proper way to make sauerkraut? I can remember years
    ago watching my grandparents putting up a small barrel of
    sauerkraut which contained shreaded cabbage of coarse, water,
    and I beleive rock salt. There could be other ingredients but
    I wouldn't know to be sure. Also unknown would be the quantities
    required to make a certain sized crock of cabbage. Can someone
    please enlighten me?
    
    
    	Frank

You don't need a crock, shredder, tamper, or any other special equipment to 
make good sauerkraut.  What you do need is firm, freshly picked cabbage, 
large canning jars, clean cheese cloth, uniodized salt, and a very sharp 
slicing knive.

Remove the loose outer leaves of the cabbage head, quarter and core it. 
Then shred it by slicing as thinly as possible parallel to the core.
Alternately add cabbage and salt to the jar so that you are using about
1/4 cup salt for each large head of cabbage.  Tamp each layer of cabbage 
lightly with a blunt implement (eg., knive handle) so that it is firmly 
packed, but don't crush or bruise it.  If the cabbage is very freshly 
picked, it will contain enough moisture so that you don't have to add 
water. Otherwise, you may have to add a small amount of water.

When the jar is filled, cut a piece of cheese cloth that will cover the 
opening when folded in fourths.  Place the cloth into the jar opening and 
weight it with a small, clean plate (or you can cut a pair of clean sticks 
- we used tongue depressers - and insert them into the opening of the jar
so that they catch where the jar widens).  Keep the jars in an area that 
stays at about 65 deg. F.  Check them every day, and if a scum forms, skim 
it off.  The kraut will be ready in about 2 weeks.  It will store for 
several months at around 38 deg. F.  If you want to can it, make sure that 
all gas bubbles are out of it; otherwise the expansion of the gas during 
canning will blow the juice out.

We used to make this back when we had time for a large garden.  The cabbage 
was picked and brought directly into the house to make the sauerkraut.  The 
stuff that you buy in jars, cans, or plastic sacks in the supermarket 
doesn't even compare. 

The preparation technique was adapted from PUTTING FOOD BY, R. Hertzberg et 
al., The Stephen Greene Press, Brattleboro VT, 1973, ISBN 0-8289-0163-5,
p. 299.