A Beginner’s Guide to Fermenting

Fermenting is a simple way to extend the shelf life of your food. It is also a simple, tasty way of adding nutrition by promoting the growth and life cycle of good bacteria.

Here are some beginner’s tips to fermenting food at home:

The fantastic thing about fermenting is that it’s very simple to do at home – all you need are some sterilised jars, assorted vegetables, muslin, baking parchment and a bit of patience.

Sterilise your jars

The first thing you need are sterilised jars. This is important to avoid the growth of the wrong type of bacteria, as this could make you ill. You’ll need wide-mouth jars to pack in all the ingredients.

To sterilise your jars:

1. Heat your oven to 180C.
2. Wash the jars and lids thoroughly in warm soapy water, then leave to dry on the draining rack, drying the lids with a clean tea towel.
3. Put your jars on a shelf in the oven for 15 mins, then remove with oven gloves.
4. Once cool, they are ready to use.

Simple fermented vegetable recipe

Ingredients

• sliced or chopped vegetables (anything will do, I really like broccoli, radishes and carrots)
• 2 cups water
• 1 1/2 tablespoon sea salt
• 1 wide mouth mason jar with lid
• any spices or herbs you like (peppercorns, dill, basil, bay leaf, etc.)

Method

1. Place vegetables and any spices/herbs in the jar up to the bottom of the neck, there should be about 1 inch of space to the top.
2. Stir the salt and water together until dissolved.
3. Pour the salt water over the vegetables there is about 1/2 inch of room left.
4. Close the lid on the jar tightly and place the jars out of direct sunlight in a relatively moderate temperature.
5. In day 2 or so, you will start to see some bubbling. After day 2, gently loosen the lids to let some of the gas escape once or twice a day.
6. The vegetables are ready anywhere from day 4-10. The longer they sit, the tangier they'll be. Taste them from day 4 to figure out your preference.
7. Once you decide they're the level of sourness you're looking for, place the jar in the refrigerator where it will keep for a couple of months.