Sunbury American and Shamokin journal. [volume] (Sunbury, Northumberland Co., Pa.) 1840-1848, 1843-01-28
torrIcE IN MARKET s~sEkr, NEAR DEER
From the Southern Literary Messenger.
sOUR>KROUT

fFom {se Southern Literary Messenger.
sOUR-KROUT,
lear what German poet saith, and his are th
Y rules worth following:
Germans, who relish sourkrout
Which no true patriot is without,
Should, for the honor Of the land,
Tell how our people make it--and
What Is important, let them see
The process Of the cookery,
Fir-t, take the largest cabbage heads
Out os the lowest sunnicst beds,
And then. when frosty days set in,
Put them together in the bin,
Now lie, your barrel he prepared,
All water tight and nicely aired,
And fou weeks ere the christmas comes
Go down among the Bergen drums;
Cut the stalks close--but mind pray,
Don't fling a single one away,
For when sci out in early sJ~ine,
Many mess Of sprouts they'f bring,
Now pick out rot,on leaves, and such
As make the heads spread on, too much;
And after cutting them in quarters,
Wash them we'll out in two good waters,
For many a sly creeping thing,
Will often to the outside cling.
Gut careful out that calious part,
In common parlance called the heart,
And on a table, boards or trough,
Law them to drain the water off
Soon rs night comes, cail in the nen--
ou must not tax u woman Then
For sour-krout making is hard work,
And must be finished in jerk.
The krout machine is hired out,
And each house takes an hour about.
A. seven hire. to morrow you
Get il. perhaps from twelve to two,
And SO the neiGhhws use the power,
FOR a whole week, from hour to hour.
The cutter has four blades, they lie
Close to each Other slan,ingiy,
Two auarered cai,.ases are driven
Across the blades, untIl they're riven
Bv cne mans hands. in shreds so small
That down between the knives they fall.
A tub receives them; there they lie,
Until the man who's standing Ivy.
Finds there is quite enough to make
A good deep LAYER for the brake
Or pounder. Now the important past
OF sour krout making is the art
BY which we all avoid the fault
OF too hard poundiug-too much salt.
As to the salt-three pints is what
We to hundred heads allot;
But vulgar minds, who love to drink,
After sour-krout dinncr-think
A peck of salt will scarcely do
TO sstura,e the barrel through.
Now when you have layerin,
Sprinkle the sal, evenly, but HinS
Then gently pound away, nor stop
a. l. Ill III,
Over this stretch strong white cloth,
-Four double, to receive the froth,
Across this put two sticks-wh'ch done,
Lay down a heavy broad Fat stone,
Put cover upon the head,
Then eat your supper and 60 to bed.
In few days the pickle ics.
Which the experienced eye apprises,
CAS- well by this as by the smelly
Thai fermentation goes on wei.
On Christmas morn the good vrow goes,
(She only has to follow her no~e.)
AIMED with clean hands and earihen pan,
With tub Of water in the van.
FIRST she skins off the thick white froth,
Then throws the stone and sticks and cloth
Into the tub-her ready hand,
Drags up the golden trcasare--and
fh's up 'he e'sh' nnsTa.mg'y'
For hungry folks enough there'll be.
And now she nicely washes out
The cloth which lay upon the krout,
As well as sticks and stones and then,
She cnvers up the cssk again.
This process she goes through each DAY,
When kroui dinner comes IN play.
Now comes the Important part at last,
To insure a genuine rich repas,,
And in the middle of the lot
A goodly piece Of pork appears,
iaroolied the DAY before she Tears
The mess VIII hc too salt Ana now