Saturday, June 26, 2010

Sayreville Sauerkraut - my own World Cup version

Once upon a time, a young woman, fresh from college was hired to teach science in the then-most-Polish-town in all of New Jersey. Little did she know when she signed her teaching contract that her career in the sleepy hamlet of Sayreville she would become proficient in far more than creating lesson plans and teaching objectives for college bound chemistry students. She would also spend two back-to-back football seasons (American version) working along side the King of Kraut himself, Wayne McCormick, and learn the secrets of Sayreville Sauerkraut.
In fact, the very same year that Jon Bon Jovi gave away his house on MTV, this young woman was informed that whenever the Sayreville Bombers hosted a home football game, it was her responsibility as Senior Class Adviser to have the ingredients ready for Wayne to start prepping the famous sauerkraut before school ended on Friday afternoon.
Now, many years later, before the start of the last match the USA will see in FIFA World Cup play this year, our heroine made her own version of the kraut to simmer and cook for dinnertime this evening.

Traditional Sayreville Sauerkraut (American Football)

Cut raw bacon into bits, cook, and drain excess fat. Chop onion and cook till tender. Drain. Rinse off kraut. Place all ingredients in large saucepan. Add a little moisture: water or apple juice if making for the minors and sale on high school property - a little fermented barley and hops (beer) if you aren't manning a concession stand at a high school athletics event. Let simmer and cook for several hours on low heat. Keep covered and stir occasionally.

World Cup Variation

Same as above with the following additions: 45 minutes before serving, chop up hot dogs, bratwurst and knackwurst. Add to kraut. Stir in another bottle of beer. Raise heat and let simmer 40 minutes. Serve with hot German potato salad. Enjoy. Refuse to think about the fact that maybe, just maybe, you've thrown your allegiance to Germany tomorrow morning instead of England because you ate kraut and potato salad. Decide to make blueberry scones in the morning to make up for your error.


2 comments:

Amie V said...

mmmmm... delish! i'm sorry it was their last game, but i'm glad you enjoyed the kraut. =D

Charlotte's World said...

I am actually going to try this! Thanks!