The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1917-09-05
NOTES OF INTEREST BY
MISS MARY 3. MARIE IN

Ia $3.50 ~ .
Sauerkraut or Fermented Salt, Cab
bage.
Doubtless there is quite a LOT of
nice cabbage among the farmers of
this county that will go to waste
very quickly since this rain. These
could be utilized to a good advantage
in making ]sauerkraut, a product for
which you will always find a ready
sale besides its being a great addi-
ton to your own table. In many
parts of the country it is a general
belief that only late or fall cabbage
is suitable for making sauerkraut.
Such, however, is not the case. If
properly handled and stored, sauer-
kraut Of excellent quality Ear be
produced from cabbage maturing at
any season of the year. The essen
tial points are the use Of only ma
ture, sound cabbage, scrupulous
cleanliness throughout the process,
and proper care of the surface Of the
brine after fermentation is complet-
ed.
In making sauerkraut for home
purposes, the outer green leaves of
the cabbage should be removed, just
as in preparing the head for boiling.
In addition all decayed or bruised
leaves should be discarded and the
core removed. If an instrument for
this purpose is not available, it is
advisable to quarter the heads and
slice off the part of core remaining
on each quarter. Shred cabbage or
cut into this slices with a slaw cutter
or a large knife. ~.
The shredded cabbage should be
packed Immediately into a perfectly
clean, water-tight receptacle, such
as a cider or wine barrel, key or
tub. Use salt in the proportion of
2k lbs. of salt to each 100 lbs Of
shredded cabbage. Cover the bot
tom of container with a layer of
vegetables about 1 inch thick and
sprinkle over this a little of the salt.
Do not add too much salt to the
first layers packed, but try to dis
tribute it equally among the differ
emit aver so that the quantity which
has been weighed out will be srfici-
emit for the given quantity of vege-
tables packed. If a little of the salt
is left over, it al be added to the
top layer, but if more has to be
added than has been weighed out,
the finished product will taste too
salty. Continue adding layers OF the
material sprinkled with salt until the
container is about three-fourths full.
Spriakle the last of the salt en- the
top layer and spread over it one OF
two thicknesses of cheesecloth, tuck
ing them down at the sides. On the
cloth, place a round piece of board
about 1 inch or more in thickness or
a heavy plate of suitable size. On
this put a clean stone O. one or two
clean bricks. The size of the weight
depends on the quantity of material
being presented. For a 5 gallon key,
a weight, of 10 lbs. will be sufficient,
but if a larger barrel is used u hea-
vier weight will be needed. The
weight added should be sufficient to
extract the juices, to form a brine,
which will cover the top in about "a
hours and sometimes it may be ne
cessary to add more stones after the
material has stood awhile if a brine
does not form. After it is packed,
allow the container to stand in a
moderately warm room to fernlent.
The salt and pressure of the weight
soon extract water from the vege-
tables and form a brine which Soo
covers the whole mass. The stone
and board serve to keep the vegeta-
bles beneath the surface Of the IL
guild. If the weight is not sufficient
for this purpose, a larger stone or
more bricks should be added. AS
the fermentation goes on, bubbles
arise to the surface of the liquid.
The rate of fermentation depends
principally upon the temperature.
In warm weather, it requires only 8
to 10 days; in cool weather 2 TO
A weeks may be necessary when bub-
bling stops, fermentation is complete.
The containers should then be
placed in a cellar or other cool store
room and the surface treated to pre-
vent development of a scum of mold.
If mold is allowed to grow undis-
turbed, all the acid will eventually
be destroyed and the fermented pro-
duct will spoil. This scum must be
-~ro-J ~. c.-- &c IL, $500