In the mid-1960s, my mother was a newlywed who wanted to learn how to make sauerkraut. She called her Aunt Alice Remington – my great-aunt.

Aunt Alice’s husband, Uncle Chester Remington, was born at Trask with my grandfather. They moved away from the area, first to Oklahoma, then eventually to California after the drought of 1950s, before moving back and settling north of Mountain View in the 1960s.

I’ll always remember Aunt Alice most for her wonderful lemon meringue pie, but I suppose that’s a different story.

Born somewhere around 1910, Aunt Alice and Uncle Chester obviously lived through the Great Depression and learned how to do many things for themselves and food preservation certainly was a necessary skill.

Her method of making sauerkraut goes by taste, which is hard to quantify on paper. I’ve included here tips from my mother, passed on from Aunt Alice, as well as some instructions from the Ball canning book.

My sauerkraut lesson started Sunday evening, but won’t be complete until we can our product in another month or so.

The first steps are pretty obvious. Using “firm, mature heads,” fresh cabbage or store-bought cabbage must be trimmed of “undesirable portions.” Wash in cool water and let drain.

Cut heads in half or quarter, removing the core. Cores can be discarded or placed in brine later. If cores are to be kept, trim cores smooth and set aside.

Use kraut knife (shredder), food processor or butcher knife “to cut cabbage into shreds about the thickness of a dime.”

We shredded two to three small heads – the equivalent of one large head – at a time. Add approximately one tablespoon of canning salt and mix with hands. The Ball book calls for 50 pounds of cabbage and one pound of canning salt. We used the cabbage we had, using approximately one tablespoon of salt per head.

Taste salted cabbage. It should be more salty than you would make coleslaw or other table food.

This was a difficult part for me, since at home we only use a little salt on our food and don’t add additional salt to any prepared food. When you’re used to a low-salt diet, it’s more difficult to judge the amount of salt. By my tastebuds, the cabbage was about twice as salty as I would have liked it.

Let the salted cabbage rest for a few minutes to wilt slightly. This “allows packing without excessive breaking or bruising of the shreds,” according to Ball.

Pour shredded cabbage into clean crock or jar. To pack the kraut, the Ball book says to use a wooden spoon or hands, but Aunt Alice said you had to use your fist.

Using your fists, punch cabbage down into the crock. You will be able to hear and see the juice coming out of the cabbage. Repeat shredding and salting with additional cabbage, packing until the crock is full.

Once the crock is full, juice should be visible. If the cabbage hasn’t made enough juice, a brine solution can be made to add. To mix brine, use 1 1/2 tablespoons of salt per one quart of water. Add enough brine to cover.

If cores are saved, place around the edges of the crock, pressing down into the cabbage and brine mixture until covered.

Cover cabbage “with a clean, thin white cloth (such as muslin) and tuck the edges down against the inside of the container.”

Place a plate or round board on top of the cloth. Use a plate that fits the container so the cabbage “is not exposed to the air.”

Weight the plate down “so the brine comes to the cover, but not over it.” We used a jar of water.

Place another cloth on top, covering the entire top of the crock, and tie in place. This keeps dirt or insects from getting into the crock as it ferments.

According to Ball, “formation of gas bubbles indicates fermentation is taking place.” A room temperature of 68 to 72 degrees Farenheit is best for fermenting cabbage, says Ball, which usually is completed in five to six weeks.

Once fermentation is complete, Ball says to heat sauerkraut to simmering, without boiling. Pack hot into hot jars, leaving half an inch head space in the jars. Cover with hot juice, again leaving a half-inch head space. Remove air bubbles. Adjust caps. Process pints for 15 minutes and quarts for 20 minutes in boiling water bath.

Aunt Alice’s preservation method is only slightly different, with jars packed while kraut is cold. Jars of sauerkraut are then placed in the “hot water bath” for the same amount of time as above.

Once complete, your cabbage is preserved and sauerkraut can be used in a variety ways. Our favorite is in a skillet with browned Polish sausage. Sauerkraut salad is another way to have fresh coleslaw in the winter without a trip to the grocery store. Reuben sandwiches or the Reuben loaf shown below are more tasty ways to use sauerkrat.

Sauerkraut salad

2 cups kraut (1 pound can)

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup thinly sliced celery

1/2 cup thin strips green pepper

1/2 cup shredded carrots

1/4 cup chopped onion

Mix sugar and sauerkraut and let stand half an hour. Add remaining ingredients. Cover tightly and chill at least 12 hours before serving. Will keep a week in refrigerator.

Reuben Loaf

3 1/4 cups flour - save 1 cup to knead in

1 tbs. sugar

1 tsp. salt

1 pkg. quick rise yeast

1 cup hot water

1 tsp. soft margarine

1 egg separated

1/4 cup 1,000 Island dressing

7 oz. corn beef

1 cup sauerkraut

6 oz. Swiss cheese

1 tbs. cold water

Mix 2 1/4 cup of flour, sugar, salt, yeast, hot water, margarine and egg yolk. Knead in remaining flour. Let rest a few minutes. Roll into 10 x 15-inch rectangle. Put 1,000 Island dressing down center. Layer corn beef, kraut and cheese. Cut sides into 1-inch strips. Weave over filling. Brush with cold water mixed with egg white. Let rise in warm place. Bake 15 minutes at 400. Brush again with egg white mixture and finish baking until golden brown.

Whole-kernel corn can be preserved in the same way, using brine in a crock. When packing corn, however, don’t press, just brine in crock to can later. To eat canned corn, rinse salt water off.