The oak tub for s alting has been used for a very, very long time. Cabbage, cucumbers were s alted in such containers, apples were soaked or kvass was stored and prepared.
Varieties of tubs
Today, a large number of different types of these reservoirs are known. Some of them are used to work with food, some are used only as bath accessories.
The first type of oak tub is called a gang. This is a fairly large container made of wood materials, which has two handles. This particular type is not used for s alting any products. The main purpose is to store and collect hot water. A barrel is installed in the bath. Due to the fact that the tree is able to retain heat for quite a long time, capacity and has become widespread.
Another type of oak tub is a jug. The design of this tank is cone-shaped. The barrel narrows at the top and widens at the bottom. At the same time, from below and on the side or right in the bottom, such tubs have a tap for draining the product stored inside. Most often they are used to store beer, kvass, sbitnya.
The third oak tub, that's what it's called - for pickles. With its externalin appearance it somewhat resembles a jug, since the structure also narrows upwards. However, this is not a completely closed container, it is rather a wooden bucket, which is closed on top with a lid-yoke. It is important to note here that depending on the wood material from which the bucket is made, the taste of pickled products will also change.
Assembling the pickling tub
The process of assembling a barrel is quite simple. It begins with the fact that it is necessary to insert rivets into a metal hoop. To make it convenient, the hoop must be placed vertically. In order to fix the ends of the inserted rivets, you can use a clamp or other type of device. To facilitate the assembly process, you can first fix only three pieces, and after that you can fix all the others. If the calculation of the dimensions was correct, then there will be no problems. After attaching the top hoop, you can move on to the middle one. The bottom one is attached last.
After the skeleton of the tub has been assembled, you can proceed to the procedure for inserting the bottom of the barrel. As this element, you can use round blanks that have been sawn or hammered together like shields. In order to correctly insert the bottom into the barrel, you need to slightly loosen the lower hoop. After inserting the part, the circle is tightened again. After inserting this component, you can proceed to the processing of the tub with a planer. This is done in order to get rid of irregularities and give a presentable look to the product.
Final stage
When the oak tub for pickles is ready in planassembly, it is necessary to complete the whole process by hardening the structure. There are many ways to do this, but firing is considered the easiest to perform. This method has been used for a very long time. In order to carry out the firing procedure, you must do the following. The barrel is placed on its side, sawdust from any fruit trees is placed inside and set on fire. While they are burning, the barrel needs to be rolled to ensure that all sides are fired evenly. It is important to understand here that the sawdust should smolder, but in no case should it burn like in a fire, otherwise the product will simply burn out.
Features of operation
There are several points that will help you avoid trouble in the operation of tubs.
- Oak tubs need to be soaked for about a month to completely remove all tannins from them.
- If the tank is made of lime or aspen, you can reduce the soaking time to 1-2 weeks.
- Right before putting food inside, it is recommended to pour boiling water over the inside of the container to disinfect it.
- The bookmark must be carried out to the top. If you leave free space inside, then mold will definitely appear on the walls.
- To store the barrel while not in use, you need to use a dark and cool place. So that it does not dry out, it must be lubricated with vegetable oil before storage. Under no circumstances should the container be filled with water. Because of this, mold or fungus will appear there.
S alting cabbage in an oak tub. Recipe
It is necessary to start s alting with the fact that the bottom of the container is laid out with large and clean cabbage leaves. After that, the cabbage forks should be cut into small pieces and chopped into straws. If the volume of the tub, for example, is 12 liters, then about 500 grams of carrots will be required, which will also be cut into strips.
After completing this stage, you can proceed to the next one. A large basin is taken, in which a certain amount of chopped cabbage, some carrots are placed. From above it is all sprinkled with s alt, a small amount of granulated sugar is added. All this is kneaded by hand until the juice from the vegetables comes out. When the juice begins to flow, it is necessary to add new portions of cabbage and carrots.
If you s alt cabbage in an oak tub or a 12-liter bucket, you will need about two full handfuls of s alt, as well as one full handful of sugar.
End of process
After the entire volume is processed in this way, the vegetables are laid out inside the barrel, on pre-packed cabbage leaves. You need to fit tightly. To do this, you can use a wooden pusher. Experts advise avoiding the use of any metal objects when working with cabbage that has already given juice. Any spoon or pusher that is used must be wooden.
After the first layer has been laid out, cabbage, which has been cut in half, is placed on top of it. For such small heads it is recommendedcut the stalk a little. Cabbage with carrots is again laid out on this layer of small heads of cabbage, which was pushed into the basin. It is laid as tightly as the first layer, and compacted with a pusher. On top of this layer lay out clean apples without any defects, with the cuttings removed. Antonovka is considered the best variety. However, any other sour variety will do. After that, the next portion of cabbage is laid out and the whole process is repeated again. Thus, the tub is filled to the brim.
On the last layer you need to put small chopped heads of cabbage mixed with apples. All this is covered again with large clean cabbage leaves on top and closed with a lid.
