Guest guest Posted December 30, 2003 Report Share Posted December 30, 2003 > Was at a place the other day and was talking to some german guys. > > They almost freaked out when I wanted uncooked sauerkraut. > > They said as far as they know its always been cooked after its been > fermented. > > To me this defeats its purpose ? > > Or are there benefits to cooking it ? It tastes good. :-) Although I think they're wrong about it _always_ being cooked. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 30, 2003 Report Share Posted December 30, 2003 > How would they cook it? > > ( I never asked that question eh ) > > I got some raw kraut in the fridge atm I bought from the shop that sternly > told me it was not yet cooked lol > > And that I would have to do it myself. I've personally only cooked it a few times, and all I do is fry it a few minutes with some already sauteed onions, garlic, red and black pepper, then put sour cream on top, but below is a real German recipe from " The German Cookbook " by Mimi Sheraton. " Gekochtes Sauerkraut 3 pounds sauerkraut 4 tablespoons lard, goose fat, finely minced bacon, or butter if you prefer it 1 large onion, minced 2 medium-sized apples, peeled, cored and chopped 3 to 4 cups stock or water, as needed 1 tablespoon caraway seeds (optional) or 6 or 8 juniper berries (optional) 1 tablespoon flour dissolved in a little cold water, or 1 large potato, peeled salt to taste Drain sauerkraut in a colander, pressing out excess liquid. If it is very sour, rinse once or twice in the colander until the flavor is mild; press out excess water. Heat fat or melt bacon in an enameled Dutch oven or casserole; when hot, add onion and apple and sauté slowly until golden brown. Add sauerkraut, stir until mixed with fat, cover and braise over very low heat 10 minutes. Add enough stock to half-cover suaerkraut. Add juniper berries or caraway seeds if you are using either. Cover and simmer slowly but steadily 1½ to 2 hours, or until sauerkraut is soft but not overcooked. Add more liquid to pot as needed during cooking. To thicken sauce, stir in flour blended with water and simmer 3 or 4 minutes. I find that the potato makes a richer, more flavorful thickening. It should be grated into sauerkraut the last 20 minutes or so of cooking time. Check to see if more liquid is needed as sauce thickens. Season to taste. It is a good idea to make sauerkraut the day before you want to serve it and store in the refrigerator overnight, as its flavor will improve. " Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 30, 2003 Report Share Posted December 30, 2003 >Was at a place the other day and was talking to some german guys. > >They almost freaked out when I wanted uncooked sauerkraut. > >They said as far as they know its always been cooked after its been >fermented. Don't worry, Europeans can be even more provincial than Americans. When I was living in Switzerland, I freaked out my hosts by asking to bake (gasp!) a potato. Potatoes, of course, are always BOILED. Corn was grown all over the town where I lived, but of course it was only fed to livestock (though it was quite good if you just picked it off the stalk and ate it). On board a Spanish freighter, one of the passengers irked the cook by asking for eggs for breakfast. No way! Eggs are only for dinner! (mind you, they had eggs EVERY day for dinner, but never for breakfast). Further, I lived in a canton that only spoke French. No shopkeeper would speak German to me, even though 25 miles away was a canton that spoke only German. So yeah, it would not surprise me if they only ate kraut cooked, and then only in specific dishes. Cooking kraut kills the probiotics, but to eat it raw, you would have to go outside traditional German cooking, I think. I never saw raw kraut on any menu in Germany. I'd guess this is changing, because they are starting to do probiotics in Europe too so people are becoming more enlightened. Also, there is a long tradition of kids stealing kraut from the kraut barrel ... -- Heidi Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 30, 2003 Report Share Posted December 30, 2003 Ah ok. That is some nice interesting info :-) I assume the kids that stole fro kraut ate it raw ? _____ From: Heidi Schuppenhauer [mailto:heidis@...] Sent: Wednesday, 31 December 2003 4:27 PM Subject: Re: cooking saurkraut >Was at a place the other day and was talking to some german guys. > >They almost freaked out when I wanted uncooked sauerkraut. > >They said as far as they know its always been cooked after its been >fermented. Don't worry, Europeans can be even more provincial than Americans. When I was living in Switzerland, I freaked out my hosts by asking to bake (gasp!) a potato. Potatoes, of course, are always BOILED. Corn was grown all over the town where I lived, but of course it was only fed to livestock (though it was quite good if you just picked it off the stalk and ate it). On board a Spanish freighter, one of the passengers irked the cook by asking for eggs for breakfast. No way! Eggs are only for dinner! (mind you, they had eggs EVERY day for dinner, but never for breakfast). Further, I lived in a canton that only spoke French. No shopkeeper would speak German to me, even though 25 miles away was a canton that spoke only German. So yeah, it would not surprise me if they only ate kraut cooked, and then only in specific dishes. Cooking kraut kills the probiotics, but to eat it raw, you would have to go outside traditional German cooking, I think. I never saw raw kraut on any menu in Germany. I'd guess this is changing, because they are starting to do probiotics in Europe too so people are becoming more enlightened. Also, there is a long tradition of kids stealing kraut from the kraut barrel ... -- Heidi Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 30, 2003 Report Share Posted December 30, 2003 When I lived in Germany (20 years ago) they cooked most of the sauerkraut and then mixed some raw kraut back in for " vitamins " Irene At 10:27 PM 12/30/03, you wrote: >So yeah, it would not surprise me if they only >ate kraut cooked, and then only in specific dishes. >Cooking kraut kills the probiotics, but to eat >it raw, you would have to go outside traditional >German cooking, I think. I never saw raw kraut >on any menu in Germany. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 31, 2003 Report Share Posted December 31, 2003 >Ah ok. That is some nice interesting info :-) >I assume the kids that stole fro kraut ate it raw ? Yeah, the account I have is from my mother, who used to steal handfuls from Grandma's Kraut Barrel. Mind you, this wasn't Germany, but her grandma was of German descent. They just grabbed a handful and gobbled it ... so much for sanitary kraut conditions ... the barrel was on the front porch. I've read the cider barrel was also typically on the front porch, and visitors could just pour a cup as needed. -- Heidi Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 31, 2003 Report Share Posted December 31, 2003 Heidi, Where did your Grandma grow up? I live in Asheville, NC and am reading a fascinating book called " Mountain Cooking " by Parris (circa 1978). The author interviews and gives accounts of people all over Western North Carolina and their experiences with food and drink - the " old timey " way! There is at least one mention of children reaching into the kraut barrel - just like your Grandma did - on the back porch. Any way, I recommend this book to anyone interested in how country folks used to eat (I'm guessing mostly prior to WWII era). -R Robin Stone, MS, RD Robin Stone Nutrition (828) 252-7408 RE: cooking saurkraut >Ah ok. That is some nice interesting info :-) >I assume the kids that stole fro kraut ate it raw ? Yeah, the account I have is from my mother, who used to steal handfuls from Grandma's Kraut Barrel. Mind you, this wasn't Germany, but her grandma was of German descent. They just grabbed a handful and gobbled it ... so much for sanitary kraut conditions ... the barrel was on the front porch. I've read the cider barrel was also typically on the front porch, and visitors could just pour a cup as needed. -- Heidi Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted December 31, 2003 Report Share Posted December 31, 2003 >Heidi, > >Where did your Grandma grow up? Tennessee. I'm not sure how many generations were there though, I should look it up (I have our geneology somewhere). >I live in Asheville, NC and am reading a fascinating book called > " Mountain Cooking " by Parris (circa 1978). The author interviews >and gives accounts of people all over Western North Carolina and their >experiences with food and drink - the " old timey " way! There is at >least one mention of children reaching into the kraut barrel - just like >your Grandma did - on the back porch. Sounds like a great book! Mom knew some of the recipes but they were a little weird to make at home (she did head cheese, which was interesting). They grew chickens when she was growing up (yeah, pre war) and she said pretty much everyone had chickens and a vegetable garden, even though they weren't in the " country " . -- Heidi Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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