Recipe
3 Easy Fermentation Recipes to Kick Up Your Kitchen
These days probiotics are all the rage, and Whole Foods walls are stacked with expensive forms of sauerkraut and Brussels sprout Kimchi. What's the big deal and why does a bunch of sour cabbage cost so much? While I can't explain the price hike, a lot of probiotic foods are just fermented veggies with live or active cultures still present. Basically, they're just a bunch of microbes living in your food, which all sorts of purported health benefits.
Beyond being a trendy addition to your diet, fermented foods also add a kick to your kitchen. The bacteria start producing different kinds of acids and secondary metabolites that change the taste of your food. That's why sauerkraut ends up sour, and your kimchi starts to get funky. These three easy recipes will add some extra depth to your diet without the hefty price of buying trendy food at the grocery store.
The easiest way to start fermenting at home is with sauerkraut. Sauerkraut is a German classic served best with bratwurst or maybe on the side of some fried eggs. #SpoonTip: Add some caraway seeds or Thai chilies to spice up your kraut, and feel free to experiment with other veggies besides cabbage.
Sauerkraut
- Prep Time: 20 mins
- Cook Time: 10 days
- Total Time: 10 days 20 mins
- Servings: 1
Ingredients
- 1 medium head cabbage
- 2 tablespoons kosher salt
- 1 quart-sized mason jar
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Napa Cabbage Kimchi is a delicious addition to anything from pork buns to ramen. This recipe is a little on the complicated side but it's a great way to up your home-fermentation skills. The hardest ingredients to find are the kochukaru chili flakes and the salted shrimp, but an Asian specialty store should have them both. The kochukaru can be replaced with any medium spicy chili flakes and the salted shrimp can be omitted if you can't find it. Seafood is often used in fermentation recipes to kick-start the fermentation process.
Napa Cabbage Kimchi
- Prep Time: 45 mins
- Cook Time: 28 days
- Total Time: 28 days 45 mins
- Servings: 1
Ingredients
- 1 medium head Napa cabbage
- 2 tablespoons salt
- 1/3 cup and 2 tablespoons sugar
- 1/2 cup scallions roughly chopped
- 1/2 cup carrots julienned
- 1 head garlic peeled and minced
- 1 2-inch piece ginger peeled and minced
- 1/2 cup flaked red chile preferably Korean kochukaru
- 1/4 cup fish sauce
- 1/4 cup soy sauce
- 2 teaspoons salted shrimp
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I'm a spicy food fanatic so this next recipe is my personal favorite. It's amazing and it keeps for ages, so you can have a spicy, tangy hot sauce to add to curry or stews well into the winter months when the warmth is needed most.
Fermented Hot Sauce
- Prep Time: 40 mins
- Cook Time: 3 mos
- Total Time: 3 mos 40 mins
Ingredients
- 3 pounds chopped and stemmed fresh hot chilies - cayenne chili de arbol or red jalapeno. Substitute up to 1 pound with sweet chilis depending on your spice preference
- 1 1/2 tablespoons salt
- 1 head garlic minced
- 1/2 inch fresh ginger minced
- Zest 2 limes