Station: [6] Seasonal Foods and Preserving

F: This is where we get down to the nitty-gritty!

M: The kitchen wasn't just the room where people lived day-to-day, a room that was warm and cosy in all seasons. It was also where all the perishable food was processed and preserved.

F: At the front, on the left-hand side of the larger space, next to the sink, there's a real icebox– certainly a very special piece of equipment, and one not generally affordable.

M: In winter, ice was cut at a pond called Karlsteich, north-east of the modern district of Hetzdorf, and supplied to families in Bürgel. Once delivered, the ice was stored in the small, iron-lined compartment at the top of the icebox, and the flap firmly closed. That way, it released the cold into the larger space below, where the food was stored, the same as a modern fridge. The water from the slowly melting ice ran through a pipe into a tub, which had to be emptied by hand. Because there was no such thing as an icebox with auto-defrost.

F: In the smaller pantry to the left, long shelves support rows of preserving jars and, of course, jugs and pots from the famous Bürgel potteries. Preserving foodstuffs by heating them and creating an airtight seal was one of the most important methods of food processing and ensured a vitamin-rich and nutritious diet during the long winter months. 

M: In the early 20th century, a South German firm by the name of "Weck" had achieved resounding success marketing threadless jars. People could now preserve fruit and vegetables from their own gardens easily and in household quantities – a crucial step towards self-sufficiency for broad sections of the population.

F: Other foods such as fish or meat were smoked, cured or marinated, in other words, preserved in brine or vinegar. Salted or pickled eggs, in jars conveniently supplied by Weck, also had what we now call a "shelf life" because of the strong saline solution in which they floated.

Every household also had large clay pots for sauerkraut, pickled gherkins and plum jam!