The salt starts the cabbage in the leaching process. I don't know if it creates enough liquid to cover the whole batch.
I make a brine using 3 Tablespoons of salt to 2 quarts of water. I pour over the cabbage till just barely covered. I think that there is well over an inch of liquid now.
If the cabbage does not stay below the water line, it apparently spoils. This is the second time making it. I read lots of articles from local university extension services. Lots of recipes, and watched a bunch of You-Tube videos.
You don't need a crock. An old 1 gallon glass jar will work. The also sell kits on the Internet for the glass bottles. The kit's allow the gases to burp or escape.
Once you've mad a batch, you'll never go back to canned kraut again.
As for hot baths and pressure canning, I don't process mine. I use sterilized jars, and once fermented, I place in pint or quart bottles and place in an old refrigerator. It stays "crisp" this way.
Owl, couple of pointers you might consider trying if you want to. First of all if your batch turned out good last yr and does again this yr, then by all means keep doing what you're doing, why mess up a good thing.
But, you wouldn't have to mix up a brine and stomp it if you chose not to. We put a layer of fairly fine cut cabbage in (about 3 scoops with both hands) then a tablespoon of Kosher salt sprinkled evenly on top. Keep repeating that process, layer of cabbage, tablespoon of salt. The salt draws out the moisture in the cabbage and makes its own pure brine. You need weight on top to help drive it out. We use a glass gallon jug on top of a plate. Within a few days the plate is submerged in liquid.
As for canning, again if you chose too, sauerkraut is not very involved when it comes to canning. Because of its acidity there's no need to either pressure cook it or water bath it for safety sake. Same as tomato sauce, etc.
Simply bring your fermented kraut to a low boil, then open kettle it right out of the kettle into your canning jars. Make sure your lids are clean, jar rims are clean, and jars are slightly warmed so they wont crack from the hot liquid and you're good to go. No need to refrigerate they will keep for several yrs if need be just sitting on a shelf.
Just some different options to think about if you decided to try a different way. Hope your batch turns out good, good homemade sauerkraut is certainly worth the effort!