{"id":68741,"date":"2022-10-25T13:43:00","date_gmt":"2022-10-25T18:43:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tigermedianet.com\/?p=68741"},"modified":"2022-10-28T09:45:50","modified_gmt":"2022-10-28T14:45:50","slug":"local-farmers-hays-community-members-make-1700-lbs-of-sauerkraut","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tigermedianet.com\/?p=68741","title":{"rendered":"Local farmers, Hays community members make 1,700 lbs. of sauerkraut"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

BY CAITLIN LEIKER<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Local farmer Mike Brull has been holding parties out on his family\u2019s land for the past six years, where \u201cthe good ole boys\u201d and company get together to mass-produce sauerkraut.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

All 1,700 pounds of cabbage in this year\u2019s batch was transported from St. Libory, Neb., a town of 271 people, according to the 2020 census. The group uses a sweet hybrid cabbage that can\u2019t be found in local grocery stores, so they order all of it from Placke Melons and Produce.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe guys who taught us how to make this, they\u2019ve been getting it up there for 25 years,\u201d Sean Kraus said. Kraus, a friend of Brull, has been a part of the sauerkraut production team from the start.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The \u201cmad scientist behind it all,\u201d as Kraus referred to him, is Jerry Rome from Hays. Most of the sauerkraut helpers on the Brull family farm were between the ages of 40 and 60. The members of Rome\u2019s crowd continue to work the same mass process, in the range of 70 to 80 years old.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThey do it in two days, though. We do it in one evening,\u201d Kraus said. \u201cIt\u2019s a community effort, and it\u2019s keeping something alive from the old days.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Steps of sauerkraut preparation (gallery)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
\"\"
The pallets of cabbage heads are transported to a large garage on the Brull family farm.\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
First, the outermost leaves are peeled off and the core must be removed. The outer leaves are saved to cover the cabbage towards the end of the process.\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
After being peeled and cored, the cabbage heads are cut into smaller wedges to be ground up.\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
The wedges of cabbage are fed into the electric grinder one by one. Once each tub is full, it gets dumped into the vat containing distilled water and the rest of the batch.\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"
People take turns pounding away at the ground cabbage with wooden baseball bats as canning and pickling salt is added incrementally. Pounding the cabbage is the most important step\u2013 this is what releases the juices that cause the cabbage to ferment.\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Once the entire batch has been pounded adequately, the outer cabbage leaves will be layered on top, followed by wooden boards with weights on top. After 3-4 weeks of fermenting, the sauerkraut is ready to be canned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe use a lot of it,\u201d Brull said. \u201cWe\u2019ve got friends; we give it out as Christmas presents. It lasts about a year, and then we start up again.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Brull and his friends usually make regular sauerkraut, but they\u2019ve had requests for their smoked sauerkraut and jalapeno sauerkraut as well. Brull also makes mass amounts of horseradish in November.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, the goal of this annual endeavor isn\u2019t to make money. Brull said it\u2019s the annual comradery surrounding the work, and a potluck meal that keeps people coming back.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe have a good time. We\u2019ve got plenty to eat, good beer to drink…just visiting,\u201d he said. \u201cIt beats watching TV.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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