Pickling is a good tradition that helps hostesses to feed their whole family in a delicious and varied way. But preserving food for a long time is not so easy. And here, pickle barrels can very helpful.
When choosing a barrel, it is necessary first of all to understand for what purpose it will be used. Will it be a full-fledged pickling cabbage, cucumbers, tomatoes, and other vegetables, or just storing them. Today you can find a variety of oak wood barrels, but if you want the pickled products to have excellent flavor and aroma, it is worth choosing a barrel made of oak. In this case, the preserved products will always be fresh and delicious.
Oak wood is distinguished by its dense structure and durability and has a high content of antibacterial substances. Oak has the ability to resist the growth of fungal colonies, so the probability of mold formation in oak barrels is much lower than in other containers.
The chemical composition of oak wood is very rich. There are lignins, complex ethers, and biologically active flavins. This combination ensures the unique aromatic properties of oak wood and its resistance to pathogenic microflora.
However, in addition to the material, the way the barrel is processed is important. Both sawing and splitting can be used. In this case, splitting is preferable. The thing is that in this case there is no violation of the integrity of the fibers of the tree, and this increases the strength of the barrel in use.
A few words should be said about the barrels for alcohol. They are made under the same technology as barrels for pickling and storage, but they are also fired. Firing of barrels for the storage of fruits and vegetables is not required. In this case, such treatment simply breaks all the taste of pickles.
A good barrel for pickling should not have any glued parts. In this case, its service life is significantly reduced. In addition, the glue can penetrate into the products and cause a strong toxic effect.
And, of course, you should never buy pickle barrels without a stand, lid, and oppression. This is very convenient when you need to set some heavy object on the lid, for example, when pickling cabbage or lard.
And lastly: the average life of a barrel is no more than 5 years, but if this object is properly cared for, it can last a decade.
