10132 Wildcrafted Fermentation

CONTENTS Introduction: Discovering Fermentation

1

1. Fermentation Basics

9

2. Getting Started: Exploring Your Local Terroir

47

3. Exploring Local and Ethnic Flavors

71

4. Delving Deeper into Local Ingredients

125

5. Fermenting with the Environment

163

6. Foraged and Fermented Soups, Pastes, Spreads, and Sauces

199

7. Wilder Cheeses

237

8. Creative Dishes and Plating

269

Resources 277 Recipe Index 279 Index 281

CHAPTER 3

Exploring Local and Ethnic Flavors

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here are many ways you can bring your ferments to the next level by wildcrafting aromatic plants such as sages, making your own spice blends, and mixing wild and regular savory herbs, berries, and seeds to explore local or ethnic flavors. Let’s look at some possibilities.

Fermenting with Spice Blends A few years back I had no idea how to make my own spice blend. Like most people I would purchase my favorite ones at the store, but it never occurred to me that the process was quite simple.

I mean, it’s not that obvious: You basically purchase some colored powder or odd mix of herby bits and it makes food taste great. It’s quite magical!

Somehow I had the (mis)conception that creating this magic powder was a very esoteric process requiring some sort of obscure knowledge, huge amounts of herbal enlightenment, possibly incantations and a master’s degree from the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

It wasn’t until I started researching and making my own spice blends using local wild herbs and aromatic seeds that I understood how simple the process can be. I also learned that, with a bit of practice and experimentation, you can create blends much more delicious than whatever you can purchase at the store. The reason is quite simple: By making your own blends, you can adjust the ingredients to your own taste buds, and with practice it becomes a highly intuitive endeavor based on your savory preferences.

I’m not saying that you must absolutely make your own blends. There are quite a few wonderful commercial blends out there! Some are so delicious that I’m still trying to deconstruct them, which isn’t always an easy task.

(Maybe they do use incantations!)

Being active in several online fermenting groups, I think not enough fermenters are taking advantage of the possibilities. A good blend can really elevate your regular ferments to new levels—sauerkrauts, kimchis, or even mixed vegetables. It doesn’t have to be complicated at all: Last week I made a sort of kimchi using a barbecue spice blend as flavoring instead of the regular chili powder, garlic, and ginger. As a result the smoky/sweet flavors made the ferment incredibly tasty, and I’m not even sure if I can still call it a kimchi.

Mixing spice blends with fermented wild edibles is even more exciting.

Not only are you experimenting with new savory ingredients in the first place, but by flavoring them with various blends, you can multiply the creative culinary possibilities indefinitely. A new world of tasty fermented condiments waits to be explored.

Don’t hesitate to experiment with regular ingredients. I could probably write a whole book on just fermenting cabbage with various spice blends and aromatic herbs.

But let’s start with a simple blend using spices that can already be found in your kitchen or the local supermarket. We’ll deal with more complex stuff later on. The method is really not elaborate, and in this case we’re not even using dried herbs, tough roots, or seeds. All the ingredients can be purchased in the form of powders or granules (sugar).

If you have to deal with ingredients requiring grinding, you can easily use a coffee grinder, a Vitamix (for larger quantities), or—like me—a stone grinder. There is something primal and feral in stone-ground spices; it seems to be ingrained in our DNA. I can imagine one of my ancestors doing exactly the same thing to flavor a dish thousands of years ago. Doing it by hand, you also have more control over the “roughness” of the final product.

Sometimes I want components such as bits of leaves or herbs to be part of the aesthetic. My Dandharissa (fermented hot dandelion paste) is rough and slightly stringy. It’s unlike anything you can possibly purchase at the store; it’s more akin to the types of textures you find in nature—rough, muddy, and coarse. Texture and appearance can carry some powerful messages. The best examples will be found in my chapter about fermented wild cheeses and creating savory crusts.

Never take an existing recipe as the last word, by the way: A spice blend should be your own personal creation. You can move stuff around, find substitutes, and add other things that you like or think would work. If it wasn’t a good idea, you just learned something. Cherish the mistakes; with time and experience you can become a spice Jedi and—who knows?— maybe make a fortune selling your own “secret” blend.

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Wildcrafted Fermentation

BARBECUE SPICE BLEND I’m sure you already have some of the ingredients for this at home. Go open the cabinet; if you like cooking, you should already have some chili flakes, brown sugar, garlic granules, and peppercorns. Take note of what you’re missing, and the next time you go to the store (which should be right now), purchase the rest. By the way, ethnic markets are the best locations to find more spices than you’ll ever be able to make savory blends with. The selection in a regular all-American supermarket is pretty slim and, dare I say, boring. I’m lucky to have Middle Eastern, Indian, and Hispanic stores nearby. One of them has a full aisle dedicated to spices. Some are so obscure, I don’t even know what they are and what to do with them. Purchasing online is another good option.

Ingredients for 2½ tablespoons (about 20 g) 1 tablespoon (6 g) paprika 1 teaspoon (3 g) chile morita powder (smoked jalapeños) or smoked chipotle powder ½ teaspoon (1.5 g) ground peppercorns ½ teaspoon (1.5 g) garlic granules or powder ½ teaspoon (1.5 g) onion powder ½ teaspoon (1.5 g) ginger powder 1 teaspoon (4 g) brown sugar

Procedure

All you need to do is mix everything together in a bowl with a fork or spoon. I like to use a wooden grinder to really mix the ingredients. Simple, isn’t it? We’ll use this blend in the next recipe. The recipe doesn’t include salt; you’ll add that when you’re mixing the ingredients to be fermented.

Interested in personalizing the blend? Instead of smoked chipotle powder, you could use a regular chili powder or flakes, but add smoked paprika powder instead of regular paprika powder. That way, you’ll keep the wonderful smoky flavors that many barbecue blends have. Heck, you can even skip any smoked powders but add a bit of liquid smoke in the ferment itself. If you love garlic or ginger, by all means double the amount.

Exploring Local and Ethnic Flavors

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Wildcrafted Fermentation

WILD RADISH PODS FERMENTED IN BARBECUE SPICE BLEND Super easy to make, and the final result is fantastic in salads, sandwiches, tacos, or even added to soups. You can also try the same recipe with regular ingredients such as diced daikon, sliced carrots, and mixed vegetables.

Ingredients for a ½-pint jar (236 ml) 7 ounces (226 g) wild radish pods 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped 1⁄5 small red onion (¾ ounce / 21 g), finely diced 1 teaspoon (5.5 g) salt used for fermentation Barbecue Spice Blend

Procedure

For this recipe, use the whole amount of spice blend from the previous recipe; it’s close to 2½ tablespoons (around 20 g).

The method used is a variant of fermentation method 3 (page 28); you’ll just add a bit of brine at the end because you don’t get much “juice” from radish pods.

1. First mix the wild radish pods, garlic, onion, and salt, then massage tenderly for 2 to 3 minutes. Let everything rest for 20 minutes, massage it again, and let it rest again for 15 minutes. You want the salt to start extracting moisture. The mix should be quite wet, with the pods soft and tender, which makes it easier to pack them in the jar.

2. When the pods are ready, add the Barbecue Spice Blend and massage again for 2 to 3 minutes, then pack everything into the jar. No need to pack too tightly. Mix ¼ teaspoon (1.5 g) salt with ¼ cup (59 ml) water and pour it into the jar.

The ingredients won’t be under the brine, so the method used is to simply close the jar tightly and shake two to three times (or more) a day for a few seconds, then unscrew the jar a tiny bit so fermentation gases can escape. The goal of the small amount of brine is really to distribute the acidity occurring during the fermentation process to all the ingredients during the shaking—good insurance that all the pods will ferment properly.

3. Ferment for 7 to 10 days, and when the initial fermentation is complete, place in the fridge.

Exploring Local and Ethnic Flavors

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