About lacto-fermentation

Fermentation and lacto-fermentation as been around for a very long time mainly as a means to preserve food over long periods of time when refrigeration wasn’t available. Today more and more people are rediscovering those old methods of preserving food because the taste is amazing, but also because it’s a great way to consume probiotics.

Lacto-fermented foods are fermented by lactobacillus bacteria, which is a category of beneficial bacteria that feeds on sugar and that produces lactic acid as a byproduct. This is why lacto-fermented foods taste acidic.

Just about any vegetables and even fruits can be lacto-fermented, but fruits will need much less fermentation time as they contain much more sugar. You can play around and try all sorts of funky combinations to discover some amazing tastes. Spices and herbs are also often used extensively to give an even greater flavor to the final product. For example, sour pickles are often flavored with dill, garlic and a combination of pickling spices. Some examples of pickling spices arebay leaves, cinnamon sticks, whole cloves, whole peppercorns, coriander seeds and mustard seeds. A popular variation of Sauerkraut (lacto-fermented cabbage) is made with apples and Juniper berries.

Health Benefits of Fermented Vegetables

Cultured or fermented foods have a very long history in virtually all native diets, and have always been highly prized for their health benefits.

The culturing process produces beneficial microbes that are extremely important for human health as they help balance your intestinal flora, thereby boosting overall immunity. Moreover, your gut literally serves as your second brain, and even produces more of the neurotransmitter serotonin—known to have a beneficial influence on your mood—than your brain does, so maintaining a healthy gut will benefit your mind as well as your body.

Fermented foods are also some of the best chelators and detoxagents available, meaning they can help rid your body of a wide variety of toxins, including heavy metals. It effectively restores your own detoxification system, and the fermented/cultured foods are instrumental in this self-healing process. And you don't need to consume large amounts either.

Eat about a quarter to half a cup (2 to 4 oz) of fermented vegetables or other cultured food, such as raw yogurt, with one to three meals per day. Bear in mind that since cultured foods are very efficient detoxifiers, you may experience detox symptoms, or a "healing crisis," if you introduce too many at once. Begin with very small servings and work your way up to the quarter- to half cup serving size. This way your intestinal microbiota has the chance to adjust.

General guidelines for lacto-fermentation

Even though the whole process might seem long and complex, fermenting food at home takes nothing but a few basic instruments and ingredients. At its basis, most lacto-fermented foods are noting more than whole, chopped, sliced or grated vegetables placed in a brine of salt and water for a period of time at room temperature to let the beneficial bacteria develop. The important thing to keep in mind is that the vegetables should stay submerged all along to prevent mold from forming. Lactobacillus bacteria is a facultative anaerobic category of bacteria, meaning that it doesn’t need oxygen for energy production.

If you decide to chop, slice or grate your vegetables, you should add salt as you place the cut vegetables in your chosen fermentation vessel and pound everything heavily with your fists or with a potato masher to breakup the vegetables, release their juices and to eliminate any pocket of air that may form. When using whole vegetables, like with sour pickles, you’ll simply place them in your vessel and submerge them with a brine.

You’ll probably come across a lot of recipes calling for fresh whey as a starter for the ferment, but simply using salt gives out the same desired result. Whey is only a way to bring more lactobacillus bacteria right at the beginning of the process, but that desired bacteria is already present on the surface of the vegetables you’re fermenting and will multiply fast enough when given the opportunity.

You don’t have to use much salt either and in fact you could even ferment food without salt, but using at least some salt prevents undesired bacteria to gain power over the lactobacillus. Using salt also helps the vegetables stay crunchy and helps draw water out of the vegetables. This extracted water can then act as the liquid for the brine. The quantity of salt to use is up to you, but 3 tablespoons per 5 pounds of vegetables is a good ratio to follow.

As an alternative to salt, you can also use a vegetable starter culture found at your local health food store. These will ensure that only the desired bacteria ferments your food, but they are not necessary at all when using salt. As yet another alternative to salt, seaweeds are also a great choice as they are high in sodium. Seaweeds are also packed full of micro-nutrients and are a great source of much needed iodine.

The other very important element is the fermentation vessel. You’ll want to choose a large ceramic or glass jar where you can fit a cap or plate on top to be able to press on the vegetables and keep them under the brine at all times. In any case, you’ll probably want to press on the cap or plate by putting a rock or a jug of water on top. The salt will keep on extracting water from the vegetables several hours after you put them in the fermentation vessel, but you should verify that the liquid covers your vegetables the following day and add water if it’s not the case. Some mold can also form on the surface after some time in the form of a white film, but it’s usually not a problem and removing it as best as you can is good enough. It’s also a good idea to place the chosen fermentation pot or jar on a plate or thick towel as the ferment usually expands and spills can happen.

Some special ceramic pots and glass jars are designed especially for lacto-fermentation and to keep the vegetables submerged under the brine.

The fermentation time will vary on a lot of factors: temperature, starter used, quantity of salt, nature of the vegetable or fruit, … The best way to go about it when trying original combinations is to taste it along the process and to go with the taste as the best indicator. When it tastes acidic enough for your liking, it’s ready to be enjoyed and placed in the refrigerator to stop the fermentation. Taste it after 3 days, then taste it 3 days later and so on. The finished product will keep for months when stored in the refrigerator.

How to Ferment Your Own Vegetables

While you can do wild fermentation, which is allowing whatever is on the vegetable or fruit that you're culturing to just naturally take hold and culture the food, this method is very time consuming. Inoculating the food using a so-called starter culture speeds up the fermentation process.

Although you can use a crock pot, it is easier toferment your veggies directly in the glass Mason jars, which eliminates the need for a crock pot and eliminates a transfer step in the process. This also allows you to make smaller batches, and it eliminates the presence of wild yeasts which can occur when using a crock.

Here's a quick summary for how to make your own fermented veggies:

  1. Shred and cut your chosen veggies
  2. Juice some celery. This is used as the brine, as it contains natural sodium and keeps the vegetables anaerobic. This eliminates the need for sea salt, which prevents growth of pathogenic bacteria
  3. Pack the veggies and celery juice along with the inoculants (starter culture, such as kefir grains, whey, or commercial starter powder into a 32 ounce wide- mouthed canning jar. A kraut pounder tool can be helpful to pack the jar and eliminate any air pockets.
  4. Top with a cabbage leaf, tucking it down the sides. Make sure the veggies are completely covered with celery juice and that the juice is all the way to the top of the jar to eliminate trapped air
  5. Seal the jar store in a warm, slightly moist place for 24 to 96 hours, depending on the food being cultured. Ideal temperature range is 68-75 degrees Fahrenheit; 85 degrees max. Remember, heat kills the microbes!

"Simply put the jars into a [portable] cooler and place the cooler OFF the floor (the floor is usually too cold due to heat rising away from it). Wrap the jars inside the cooler in an old towel and place an additional jar of HOT water into the cooler to make the environment warm. You can replace the hot water jar when you "think" about it - no need to obsess.

You can also place the jars in a casserole dish or baking dish and wrap them in a towel and place them in your oven with the oven heat OFF of course, but switch the oven light on. The heat emitting from the appliance bulb will keep the veggies warm.

Another option is to place as many jars as possible into a dehydrator and set it to the lowest temperature setting, but most dehydrators only accommodate a couple of jars max. It's best to prepare many jars at one time due to the given fact that making veggies is a labor intensive process. I like the cooler or oven incubation processes best. They work well every time."

  1. When done, store in the refrigerator to slow down the fermentation process

Last but not least, resist the temptation to eat out of the jar! This can introduce organisms from your mouth into the jar. Instead, always use a clean spoon to take out what you're going to eat, then, making sure the remaining veggies are covered with the brine solution, recap the jar.

12 Tips and Tricks for MakingFermented Vegetables

  1. Cabbage should comprise at least 80 percent of your vegetable blend. Carrots, sweet potatoes, beets, turnips and other hard root veggies can also serve as a great base for your cultured veggies, but they're not as economical.
  2. Five to six medium-sized heads of cabbage will yield about 10-14 quart-size (32 oz) jars of fermented veggies.
  3. You can use red or green cabbage, but make sure they're hard and heavy, with densely packed leaves. The lighter, leafier varieties will tend to turn into mush that doesn't ferment well.
  4. Add in other vegetables to suit your taste, such as: red, yellow or orange bell pepper, butter nut squash, dill, parsley, kale, collards and red or golden beets. Beware: use bell peppers sparingly as they have a very strong presence. One small pepper for 12 to 14 jars is plenty.
  5. Always use ORGANIC vegetables!
  6. Peel your vegetables as the skins can add a bitter flavor.
  7. When adding aromatics, such as onion, garlic and ginger, remember that fermenting increases the flavor multiple-fold, so a little goes a long way. Don't overdo it! A few medium-size cloves is enough to infuse a dozen jars or more with a mild garlic flavor.
  8. Onion tends to overpower, no matter how little is used.
  9. When adding herbs, only use fresh organic herbs, in small amounts. Tasty additions include: basil, sage, rosemary, thyme and oregano.
  10. Add sea vegetables or seaweed to increase the mineral, vitamin and fiber content. You can add pieces of whole dulse, or use flakes. Wakame and sea palm, which do not have any kind of fishy flavor, need to be presoaked and diced into desired size. Arame and hijaki do have a fishy flavor.
  11. Use two packets of starter culture for a 12-14 jar batch during summer season. In the winter, you'll need three packets.
  12. During summer, veggies are typically done in three to four days. In the winter, they may need up to seven days. Just open up the jar and have a taste. Once you're happy with the flavor and consistency, move the jars into the refrigerator.

How to use a GARTOPF HARSH Crock for fermenting

 1 Cleanthe crock pot by scrubbing it out with plain water, rinsing and allowing it to dry. You also should clean the stones that come with the crock pot, as well as the lid.

 2 Clean whatever vegetables you are going to use, and cut them into the desired shape.

 3 Add salt to taste and any desired spices. About 2 tsp. of salt per pound of vegetables is a good starting point.

 4 Place the vegetables in the clean crock pot and mash or tamp them down. This releases the fluid from inside the vegetables by breaking open the cell walls. Do not overfill. You will need to leave three to four inches above the top of the vegetables for liquid and breathing room.

 5 Put the stones on top of the vegetables. The purpose of the stones is to prevent the vegetables from coming to the surface. If the vegetables are not submerged in their own liquid, then boil saltwater and allow it to cool before adding it to the crock pot. The vegetables must be submerged at least two inches deep in liquids.

 6 Put the lid on the crock pot, and fill the moat with tap water.

 7 Keep the crock pot in a warm place for three days.

 8 Move the crock pot to a cool location, around 50° F, for four to six weeks.

 9 Add water to the crock pot moat frequently.

 10 Check for readiness after one month. You can take weekly portions out when the vegetables are ready and allow the rest to stay in the pot as long as you do not open the pot too frequently and always replace the water in the moat.

Naturally Fermented Carrot Sticks Recipe

Ingredients:
2-3 lbs. Carrots, cut into sticks
Water
One of the following:
1 T. Salt or2-3 t. Salt and 1/4 cup Whey or
A starter culture such as Caldwell’s Cultured Vegetable Starter or Body Ecology Starter Culture and salt as indicated by the instructions for the specific culture you are working with
Instructions:
If using just salt or salt and whey, dissolve the salt in water and then add the whey. If using a starter culture, prepare the liquid according the package instructions. Place the carrot sticks in the jar and pour the liquid over the carrots. Ideally the carrots should be submerged under the liquid. Ferment for two weeks or longer at room temperature. Once the fermentation period is complete, the carrots can be removed to a storage container if desired. Store cultured carrots in the refrigerator or root cellar.
Makes approximately two quarts.
Fermented Salsa
Ingredients:
  • 1 medium Onion, diced
  • 2 large Tomatoes, diced
  • 1 medium Green Pepper, diced
  • 1-2 Jalepeños, diced
  • Clove of Garlic, minced
  • Handful of fresh Cilantro
  • Lemon and Lime juice to taste
  • One of the following:
  • 2 t. Salt or
  • 1-2 t. Salt and 1/4 cup Whey or
  • A starter culture such as Caldwell’s Cultured Vegetable Starter or Body Ecology Starter Culture and salt as indicated by the instructions for the specific culture you are working with
Instructions:
If using a starter culture, prepare the culture according the package instructions. Mix all the ingredients together including the salt, whey, or starter culture. Place the salsa in a fermentation container pressing down to release some liquid. Ideally the vegetables should be submerged under the liquid (add a bit of extra water if needed). Ferment for 2+ days at room temperature. Once the fermentation period is complete, the salsa can be removed to a storage container if desired. Store salsa in the refrigerator or root cellar.
Makes approximately one quart
FERMENTED DILLY BEANS
  • 1 lb young green beans, trimmed
  • 2 tablespoons red pepper flakes, or to taste
  • 4 garlic cloves, smashed and peeled
  • 1 teaspoon black peppercorns
  • 2 large handfuls of dill (flowering heads preferred, but leaves work well too)
  • water and salt for brine
  1. Make a brine with a ratio of 3 tablespoons of sea salt to every 1 quart of water. Set aside.
  2. In the bottom of each of your quart jars divide up the red pepper flakes, garlic cloves, peppercorns, and dill.
  3. Place the green beans on top of the seasonings, straight up if they are long and thin or sideways if thicker and cut into chunks. Cover with your brine solution up to 1 inch from top of jar.
  4. Seal tightly with a lid and allow to ferment at 60-80 degrees for 3-10 days, tasting to determine when it has fermented to your tastes. (It will get tangier as it ferments.)
  5. Transfer to cold storage.
THREE METHODS OF MAKING SAUERKRAUT