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A savory and satisfying soup, especiallly for cold, rainy days. "Authenticity" is easy to claim here since there are many variations (several meat options are listed). I have also developed a Vegetarian Version that I use more often than meat versions.

1. Peel POTATOES and cut into bite size chunks, cut MEAT OPTION as appropriate.
2. Slice GARLIC. Put Meat, Potatoes, Garlic, CARAWAY and PEPPERCORNS in a pot large enough for the final recipe. Add enough water to cover well. Bring to a boil and simmer while you work on the rest.
3. When potatoes are cooked through, pour in SAUERKRAUT and all JUICE. Make sure the potatoes are cooked through before adding sauerkraut or they'll be hard on the outside.
4. Chop ONION and SALT PORK small, keep separate.
5. Put the Salt Pork in a pan and fry stirring until some fat rendered. Stir in Onion and fry slowly, stirring often until you see just a touch of color, then add FLOUR and stir about 2 minutes more but do not brown.
6. Stir in some soup from the main pot, adding bit by bit until you have a smooth mixture. Stir this back into the main soup pot.
7. If using SAUSAGE, cut it into slices and quarter the slices. stir into the soup when mostly done.
8. Adjust liquid as you simmer slowly for at least a half hour. It's better if you then set it aside and reheat the next day.
9. You can adjust acidity to your taste using sauerkraut juice, balsamic, wine or malt vinegar. Don't use cider vinegar - it's the wrong flavor.