The drought has made one of the cheapest fall products more expensive

The drought has made one of the cheapest fall products more expensive. During this period, the households prepare for the winter and prepare the barrels with the tasty vegetable.

The Romanians who planned to pickle their own cabbage during this period have some very bad news. The drought has led to serious price increases, and those who want to buy pickled cabbage must also take into account other costs.

The drought made kg of fresh cabbage more expensive. As long as this is found at the stall

This year has been a difficult one for cabbage growers, and production has been severely affected by the drought, which has led to a decrease in the harvest and an increase in prices, which reach the stalls now up to 6 lei per kilo. A grower explained that the drought prevented the crop from growing properly, but even so, some of the cabbages end up weighing three kilograms.

For example, in Suceava county, lack of water led to the loss of more than three tons of cabbage per hectare. Even with high prices, households continue to buy the necessary cabbage for the preparation of Christmas sarmals, being careful to choose the right vegetables for different dishes.

Homesteaders are already preparing for pickles, looking for the best vegetables

A savvy homesteader mentioned that you can tell right away if a cabbage is good for chopping or braising just by touching it.

“When you put your hand on the cabbage, you can tell if it’s for chopped or for scallions. If I put my hands on it, I know which one it is. This is light, put for pickles, this is the same, this is thick and heavy because it is ripe”, he explained to the Observer.

Asked about the secret to keeping sauerkraut from going soft, another local explained that he’s never had such problems, noting that cabbage should be kept cool and boiled every few days.

Drought made the price of kg of sauerkraut more expensive

The costs to prepare a 50 liter barrel of sauerkraut are significant: about 200 lei for cabbage, 20 lei for salt and 10 lei for spices. For those who don’t have the patience to prepare it themselves, ready-made sauerkraut costs 8 lei per kilogram.

The secret of a sauerkraut with beautiful yellow leaves: It is nicely cleaned of the outer leaves, put in a barrel with horseradish and celery. The brine must be made separately, because if we put the salt on top the leaves will turn black from the salt, but this way we only pour water with salt.

In some areas, such as in large agricultural basins, almost six tons of cabbage are pickled in large vats, after which almost five tons of brine are added, which allows the cabbage to be preserved for a year if kept at room temperature low.

He explained that in the past cabbage was pickled in wooden tubs, a custom that was passed down from generation to generation, and the lifespan of such a tub can reach 50 years.

Romania remains one of the largest producers of cabbage in the European Union, growing over 600,000 tons annually, a large part of which is exported to countries such as Germany, Spain and Italy.