Sauerkraut!

[Rebel SS]

Hey Glenn! I did a copy and paste for ya!!! 



Holly Ebel: He's sweet on sauerkraut


Holly Ebel, life@postbulletin.com Oct 9, 2017 Updated 8 hrs ago   (0)

"I have a shaded end of my garden that grows cabbage well," says James White, who harvested heads of Megaton Cabbage in his Rochester garden -- which is 45 feet wide by 185 feet long -- in August. White hosts an annual sauerkraut-making party and says his group is a cross-section of Rochester people that includes a judge, cattle buyer, Latin teacher and an attorney. "They all come out and make sauerkraut at my place. Three weeks later, we get together and can it. And everyone takes home a 30-pound bucket of sauerkraut."


Sauerkraut lovers — and I know you are out there — listen up. There's a fellow in our midst who loves it so much, he cans some 270 pounds every year. (He does, however, get a good bit of help from his friends.)

To say it's a passion of his isn't far from the truth. PB photographer Elizabeth Nida had told me about James White of Rochester and this project of his. This was definitely something I wanted to pursue. Nida warned me, "He'll make your head spin." She wasn't kidding.

I visited White on his farm, and as I stepped into his kitchen the first things I saw were 20 jars of V-8 juice he'd just canned from the remainders of his garden, and at least six large Tupperware containers filled with honey and honeycombs from his 24 hives around town. (He collected 1,500 pounds this year.)


There was also a jar of pickled eggs from eggs gathered from a flock of 20 chickens. "I collect hobbies," he said.

But that is all for another time — I was there to hear about this sauerkraut happening.

It all starts mid-winter, when White starts seeds of Megaton cabbage. When the ground warms in spring, he plants them in a shady area of the vast garden he maintains (where he also grows watermelons — over 200 pounds).

"For some reason the cabbages love it there," he said. "They thrive." Indeed! These are among the largest you'll ever see, basketball-sized and maybe bigger. The average weight is 10 pounds.

This year, White planted 42 and harvested 40 of them. In early August, they are ready to pick and the call goes out to the friends who help. It's an eclectic group, including folks from Mayo, IBM, a judge, a Latin teacher, a lawyer or two and a former weatherman.

The initial preparation begins with cleaning the heads, then cutting them in quarters. Then everyone begins shredding, either by hand or with an electric cutter White picked up at a garage sale somewhere.

As the cabbage is shredded, it is weighed and when there are 5 pounds it is dumped into a food-safe plastic bucket and sprinkled with 3 tablespoons of kosher pickling salt. White then uses a tool to press the cabbage down. As soon as water appears, another 5 pounds goes on top of that, with another helping of the salt. This process is repeated until each bucket holds 30 pounds. The cabbage is then weighed down with a ceramic plate, a big jar of water and then covered with a cloth.

"The point is to keep the liquid over the top of the cabbage to prevent oxidation," he explains. All of the buckets then live in his basement for the next 3-1/2 weeks while fermentation takes place.

White is pretty exact about the fermentation time, and when it is over a call goes out that the sauerkraut is ready to be packed and processed. Everyone involved brings their own canning supplies and does their own filling of jars. There are five to six hot water canners going and each batch processes for 15 minutes.

The jars are then cooled and everyone then takes home their share, which is about 30 pounds. For most of us, that is more than a lifetime supply. For these folks, it lasts about a year, until the next crop of cabbages is ready.

"There are two kinds of people in the world," White said. "Those that like (sauerkraut) and those that don't want it in their house."

My guess is that most of us fall somewhere in the middle.

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Recipes

Glazed sauerkraut

1 quart sauerkraut, drained

4-5 slices bacon

1/2 cup chopped onion

1/2 teaspoon caraway seeds

1 medium potato

Rinse sauerkraut, drain well and save 1/2 cup water. Fry bacon until crisp, pour off drippings, saving 2 tablespoons. Saute onions in drippings Add sauerkraut, reserved water, bacon and caraway seeds to the onion. Cook, covered, 1-1/2 hours. Add water or a little white wine, even beer, if needed. Peel and shred the potato and stir in 10 minutes before end of cooking time to glaze the kraut. Serve with kielbasa.

Beef and sauerkraut

1 large onion, sliced

3 tablespoons butter, divided

3-4 pounds pot roast, trimmed of fat

1/2 to 1 cup boiling water

1 pound sauerkraut, drained

1 apple [peeled and grated

1 large raw potato, peeled and grated

1/2 teaspoon salt

Pepper to taste

1 teaspoon caraway seeds

In a Dutch oven, saute onion in 2 tablespoons butter until golden. With a slotted spoon remove onion from pan. Add the rest of the butter to the pan. Add the roast and sear on all sides. Add water and onion. Cover tightly and bake at 375 one hour. Spread sauerkraut over meat, sprinkle with apple and potato. Season with salt and pepper and caraway seeds. Cover and bake 3 hours or until tender.

Braised pork chops with sauerkraut

6 slices sauteed bacon

2 pounds sauerkraut

2 cups applesauce

1 tablespoon brown sugar

1/4 cup dry white wine

1/2 tablespoon dry mustard

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

6 loin pork chops, 1-inch thick, sauteed on both sides

Mix everything except the pork chops together in a casserole. Place the chops on top of the mixture, cover and bake for 1 hour.

Sauerkraut relish

3 cups sauerkraut, drained

1 onion, diced

1 cup diced celery

2-ounce jar diced pimento, drained

1 small green pepper, diced

1/2 teaspoon celery seed

3/4 cup sugar

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1/2 cup white vinegar

To the drained sauerkraut add the onion, celery, pimento, green pepper and celery seed. Set aside. In a small saucepan mix sugar, oil and vinegar and bring to a boil. Cool. Add to the sauerkraut mixture and let marinate in the refrigerator for a day before serving. Keeps a long time.

Post Bulletin food writer Holly Ebel knows what's cookin'. Send comments or story

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[glenn57]

i just made horsedaish with a guy that made sourkraut very similar to this reciepe. he added onion and some apple to it. wasnt cooked, tasted a bit sweet. he said if you cook/can it to seal the heat kills the probotics????????? whatever that is????? supposed to be good fer ya????????

[Rebel SS]

i just made horsedaish with a guy that made sourkraut very similar to this reciepe. he added onion and some apple to it. wasnt cooked, tasted a bit sweet. he said if you cook/can it to seal the heat kills the probotics????????? whatever that is????? supposed to be good fer ya????????

Now ya opened up the floodgates...

[glenn57]

i just made horsedaish with a guy that made sourkraut very similar to this reciepe. he added onion and some apple to it. wasnt cooked, tasted a bit sweet. he said if you cook/can it to seal the heat kills the probotics????????? whatever that is????? supposed to be good fer ya????????

Now ya opened up the floodgates...

tsk.........tsk!!!!!!!

[LPS]

Thanks for the info Rebs.  I need to make another batch now that you mentioned it.  I did 2 qts regular and 2 qts with caraway and we liked it without the caraway better.  It was the first time we made it and liked it better than the store bought.  Easy too.  Takes 2 qts canning jars for each cabbage from the store.

[Rebel SS]

Save those caraway seeds for caraway bread...good stuff! 

[glenn57]

Save those caraway seeds for caraway bread...good stuff! 

i'd just car a way to the garbage!!!!!!!!!!!!!