Is this a pickle barrel?

[thebelgianpanda]

Cause if it is, I'll be happy as a clam.  I don't see any cracks, but I also don't see a lid for it either

[linuxboy]

My folks have one of those. It's a large clay pot, right? Not sure what it was originally for, but they use it for brining, making pickled veggies (like cukes), large batches of ____ (insert food here), etc. Theirs was huge, I think 8 or 10 gallons. They never had a lid, but used a large plate to cover pickles or cabbage.

[MrsKK]

Yep, looks like a kraut crock to me.  I'm VERY envious, Panda.  Where did you find it?

[thebelgianpanda]

I guess it belonged to my Grandmother, but I never once saw her use it.  I found it stashed in the garage behind a crapload of stuff on top of a 12 foot tall shelf covered in dust and cobwebs.

Can't wait to use it! 

[DeejayDebi]

WHOO HOO!

That my dear is a 10 gallon crock! and it looks to be in good condition. Any chips inside? That'll make some great pickles or anything else pickled for that matter. I can't for the life of me remember that brand label but that crown is the logo so to speak and the 10 tells you it's 10 gallons.

Cut yourself a nice thick plywood lid and finish it with a good food grade varnish to keep the dust out and throw a towel over it when you are curing and you are gonna be one happy pickler!

BTW that crock could be worth thousands of dollars if it is in pristine conditon.

[thebelgianpanda]

Well, I don't see any defect that I would attribute to actual use, but there are definitely defects in the glazing and workmanship.  It belonged to my grandparents, and my whole life I never ate a home made pickle at their place.  Plenty of jam, preserves, and canned goods (I inherited more jars than you can believe), but never any kraut.  It is likely it was only ever used once or twice, perhaps never at all.

[homeacremom]

You ARE lucky!

I have had my eye on one of those for the past 6 years. We actually still made kraut and pickles in crocks when I was growing up (not so long ago  ), but as was mentioned they are expensive.

BTW, I think you are lucky on the jars too. I already have and use over 1,000 qts, but they were full before I was done canning last year.  Almost empty now...

[DeejayDebi]

I can't see any defects inside so tat should work BUT fill it with water and make sure it doesn't leak and check that the chip in the side does bleed.

You can get crocks in alot of places and online for good prices but for a 10 gallon crocks you'd go broke on shipping. I just bought 3 new crocks around Christmas time for under $100 with shipping. 1, 2 and 3 gallons.

I posted a few recipes perfect for crocks here someplace awhile back.

[Elie JAMES]

Thank for sharing this