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fermented foods RECIPES Megan Coupland PHOTOGRAPHY Tracie Heasman
I could write a book on fermented foods and why they are great for us, instead I will suggest some delicious recipes and ideas to get you started, and leave the research to you.
Mad Millies supplies fermenting crocks and cultures, this is a very easy procedure to follow, always with great results. These products are available at Red Kitchen and this is a great way to get started.
Bread can be made with fermented grains and you can change your bread tomorrow. A good fermented sourdough white bread is better for you than a grainy brown loaf from the supermarket.
FERMENTED CAULIFLOWER AND CAPSICUM
Flaveur Breads in Mount Maunganui make their breads with no yeast, just fermented grains. They soak their organic grains for 72 hours and ferment the dough for eight hours. Their fermented sourdough starter is 13 years old, making each loaf 100% organic and more easily digested, among many other health benefits.
2L of boiled water
A quarter of a cup of fermented food a day is all you need, and you can have this by adding different flavoured vegetables as a side dish.
2 bay leaves
Here are some recipes that I use as some of my daily sides. EASY WHEY
1 litre plain pro-biotic rich organic yoghurt or milk kefir Set up a sieve and sterile muslin cloth and drip the yogurt through the cloth. The result will be a clear whey in the bowl underneath and you use this as your easy whey. This will keep for approx three weeks in the fridge. GINGERED CARROTS
1kg grated carrots ¼ cup peeled and finely grated ginger (use a microplane) ¼ cup easy whey, plus extra 3 tbsp Himalayan salt Ensure everything is really clean, you don’t want any competing bacteria sneaking in. Add your carrots, ginger and salt to a glass bowl, and with clean hands knead and massage till enough juice comes out of the carrots to nearly cover the carrots. Add the easy whey and stir. Put your mix into a sterile fermenting crock or jar and top with a little extra easy whey, add a weight or a cabbage leaf to keep the carrots under the juice. Ensure the top on the jar is as clean as possible. Leave for 3–5 days. They should remain crisp. When satisfied with the taste, take out of the fermenting jar, transfer into smaller sterile jars and pop into the fridge to stop the fermentation process. These will last for approx six months.
4 tbsp artisan salt 1 head cauliflower, cut in florets and rinsed 2 red capsicums, sliced and rinsed 2 garlic cloves, peeled (or more if you love garlic!) 1 tsp coriander seeds ½ tsp peppercorns 1 sachet of Mad Millie Vegetable Culture (available from Bin Inn Papamoa) Make a brine by dissolving 3 tbsp of salt in 1.5L boiled water. Set aside to cool. Sterilise the sauerkraut crock and all your equipment. Place garlic cloves, bay leaves, coriander and pepper in the bottom of the crock. Fill the crock with the cauliflower and capsicum, fitting them in tightly and leaving at least 3–5cm space to make sure the clay weights still fit in. Dissolve a sachet of culture in the cooled brine (make sure it is less than 30°C so you don’t kill the lactic acid bacteria). Pour the brine into the crock. Use the clay weights to keep the vegetables under the liquid. Top up the brine if necessary, so there is about 1cm brine above the weights. Place the lid on the crock. Fill the moat with cooled boiled water making sure the holes in the lid are covered to make a seal. Ferment at room temperature (16–21°C is preferred) until desired flavour is achieved (brine should taste sour). Once the vegetables are finished (3–7 days), gently stir the crock contents to mix the spices; put into sterilised jars and move to the fridge. The brine may appear cloudy. This is good and means the bacteria is doing its work (unless the vegetables smell rancid or have a rotten, slimy texture!). The flavour will continue to develop over time. You can eat them straight away but as it is a dynamic system, the flavours will continue to develop and the texture will soften over time. The fermented vegetables can be kept in the fridge for several weeks. Depending on the size of your cauliflower and capsicums, your crock may not be quite full, which is okay. You can add more vegetables if you like, but make sure you have enough brine to cover all the vegetables.
RED CABBAGE WITH APPLE AND JUNIPER BERRIES
1 head red cabbage, finely shredded
A PERFECT START
3 apples peeled, cored and cut in cubes
1 slice of Flaveur seeded sourdough toast
1 tbsp caraway seeds
¼ avocado
3 tbsp juniper berries, crushed
¼ cup your favourite sauerkraut
2 tbsp Himalayan salt
handful watercress
Ensure everything you use is clean, dry and sterile. I clean my equipment with boiling water and put it in the dehydrator until I use it.
1 tbsp toasted pumpkin seeds
Put the red cabbage, salt, juniper and caraway in a glass bowl, massage and knead the cabbage until there is enough juice released from the cabbage to cover the cabbage. Mix through the apple and transfer to a sauerkraut crock, push the cabbage down in the crock so the juice covers the cabbage and then add the weights to keep it down. Ferment at room temperature for 7–10 days (20°C being ideal).
Smash avocado with a fork on your hot fermented sourdough toast. Sprinkle with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Top with your sauerkraut and watercress, and sprinkle with pumpkin seeds to finish.
When you are satisfied with the taste and smell, transfer to sterile glass jars and keep in the fridge. Note: A fermenting crock has weights supplied and a water channel around the lid to keep out bacteria and allow a clean fermentation. You can use a jar and weight your veges down with cabbage leaves and a clean rock (try boiling one).
Megan Coupland RedKitchen | www.redkitchen.co.nz