Can you identify this tool??
- Thread starter Step
- Start date
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Drum roll please! Mystery solved, a member of the UK crafts forum recognises it as a tool for pressing cabbage!! I really would never have guessed that but it makes perfect sense as she is Norwegian and likes making Surkal (Norwegian Sauaerkraut or fermented cabbage)
The presser tool apparently fits into a oak container or drum designed for use with the tool and is used to press but not over-press cabbage...
I guess that will be healthier slightly than the cake. Thank you for all your help!
The presser tool apparently fits into a oak container or drum designed for use with the tool and is used to press but not over-press cabbage...
I guess that will be healthier slightly than the cake. Thank you for all your help!
Macgyver1968
Senior Cook
You could still use it to carry tacos though... 
menumaker
Sous Chef
Did your grandmother ever work with Pelts by any chance?
menumaker
Sous Chef
Sorry, just caught up with your solved mystery post.
CarolPa
Executive Chef
Mad Cook
Master Chef
I use mine for softening butter when I have a big batch of sandwiches to make. Stand the metal part in boiling water for a few minutes, dry it and mash the 'fridge-cold butter. Less wasteful than the m/wave.
Mad Cook
Master Chef
Mine didn't come with a drum. It's rather too small to be practical for the usage you suggest. The handle is only big enough to hold in your fist and the aluminium part is only about 2.5-3" across.
CarolPa
Executive Chef
Unfortunately it doesn't have any markings on it and actually I don't believe it came with a drum.
MadCook - do you have one too? Could you post a picture? Yes having researched making Surkal I can't find anything that actually looks like it but I think warming it to melt butter is a good idea. I only do a bit of cooking now and then but I've heard mixing butter with flour for pastry should always be done cold..
Addie
Chef Extraordinaire
Step, thank you for letting us know just what the mystery tool is. So often a person will come on here and ask a similar question. When we don't have a definitive answer, we never hear from them again. Did they get an answer elsewhere or not? 
CarolPa
Executive Chef
Step, I also researched making Surkal and Saurkraut and did not see any cooking tools that resembled this one. My son makes saurkraut and never saw this too. I am very interested in kitchen gagets and always look for unusual ones. I would like to know where I can get one of these, but in order to find one online I would need to know either the manufacturer or the actual name of the item.
Steve Kroll
Wine Guy
That's interesting, but without seeing the entire tool, I'm not really buying into this explanation. Having said that, I can't identify it, either.
I come from a long line of sauerkraut makers on my dad's side of the family - granted, he is German rather than Norwegian, but the concept is the same. I've seen cabbage mashing tools, but generally they are made of wood and resemble the business end of a baseball bat.
Something like this:
Chief Longwind Of The North
Certified/Certifiable
It looks to me like something that could be used with pastry dough to make the gashes, three at a time, say in a bear claw, or cheese danish. It would be useful for combining chopped apples into dough to make apple fritters as well.
It would be a good tool for breaking up ground beef in the pan, when making something like taco meat, or browned hamburger for a sauce.
I also think it could be a good device for cutting fat into pie dough.
If all else fails, it's a throwing weapon to quickly remove an errant kitty-cat from the dining room table.
Seeeeeeya; chief Longwind of the North
It would be a good tool for breaking up ground beef in the pan, when making something like taco meat, or browned hamburger for a sauce.
I also think it could be a good device for cutting fat into pie dough.
If all else fails, it's a throwing weapon to quickly remove an errant kitty-cat from the dining room table.
Seeeeeeya; chief Longwind of the North
Well I thought I had the answer! I won't give up the search until I find something. I will ask my gran again when I next see her
CarolPa - It definitely has no manufacturer or markings on it, I may even try taking to restaurants/cookware shops to ask!
CarolPa - It definitely has no manufacturer or markings on it, I may even try taking to restaurants/cookware shops to ask!
CarolPa
Executive Chef
Step, it's possible that the woman was right, but it's just not a common item.
It is shaped similar to a pastry cutter but seems too bulky and heavy for that use.
Amazon.com: Winco 5 Blade Pastry Blender, Stainless Steel: Kitchen & Dining
It is shaped similar to a pastry cutter but seems too bulky and heavy for that use.
Amazon.com: Winco 5 Blade Pastry Blender, Stainless Steel: Kitchen & Dining
