Lacto-fermented Cherry Tomatoes

These lacto-fermented tomatoes are tangy, slightly fizzy and delicious. They make the perfect salad topper or taste great just on their own. They are simple to make and have a really pleasant flavour which makes them a great ferment for beginners or kids. 

Ingredients for 1 litre/quart size jar

Enough cherry tomatoes to fill jar

2 cloves garlic, crushed

2 tablespoons roughly chopped fresh basil

1 and a half tablespoons sea salt

1 cup of water

Instructions

Place the garlic in the bottom of the jar.

Layer the tomatoes and basil to fill the jar leaving about an inch space at the top.

Combine water and salt in a bowl then pour over the tomatoes.

Top up with extra water if needed to cover the tomatoes leaving about an inch of space at the top of the jar.

Weigh the tomatoes down with a fermentation weight, shot glass or saucer small enough to fit inside the jar.

Cover with a lid and leave to ferment at room temperature for 3-4 days or until taste is to your liking (they should be slightly tangy with a bit of fizz. If they are too mushy you've left them too long).

As the tomatoes ferment carbon dioxide is created causing lots of bubbles and fizzing sounds. Burp the jar daily to help release the gasses. Don't be alarmed if any liquid spills over just make sure the tomatoes remain submerged.

When fermentation is complete store in the refrigerator where they will keep for about 2 weeks.

Cultured Dilly Carrot Sticks

These dilly carrots are my new favourite. They are simple to make, crunchy, tangy and delicious. You can eat them straight out of the jar, dip them into your favourite spread or chop them up and add to salads. They make a great lunchbox snack too! 

Once you've eaten all the carrots you can save the leftover brine and use it in salad dressings, marinades or as a starter culture for ferments like this Cultured Cashew Cheese or Basil Pesto.    

Ingredients for 1 quart/ 1 litre jar

4-5 carrots

2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill

2 cloves garlic

1 tablespoon sea salt

1 cup water

Instructions

Cut the carrots into thick evenly sized sticks, peel and crush the garlic and place together in a wide mouth mouth mason jar.

Combine the water, salt and dill in a bowl then pour over the carrots and garlic.

Top up with extra water if needed to cover the carrots leaving about an inch of space at the top of the jar.

Weigh the carrots down with a fermentation weight, shot glass or saucer small enough to fit inside the jar.

Cover with a lid and leave to ferment for 4-7 days or until taste is to your liking.

When the carrots are ready the brine will be cloudy and the carrots slightly tangy and crunchy. Sediment on the bottom of the jar is normal.

Store in the refrigerator where they will keep for about a month.

NOTES

Temperature and size of carrots will affect fermentation time.

It's good practice to taste your ferments as they go to get the right amount of tang and crunch you like.

Curtido

We eat A LOT of sauerkraut at our place. A huge spoonful with most meals adds up fast - almost 1 quart jar every couple of weeks. Anjali likes our Plain Kraut best but we like to mix it up, get creative and experiment with different flavour combinations. 

This variation is my absolute favourite. I first came across Curtido - an El Salvadorian ferment, in the book Nourishing Traditions 2 years ago and have been hooked on it since! It's super punchy and is the perfect way to add extra flavour to your meals. We have adapted the original recipe to our liking. 

Ingredients for 1 litre/1 quart jar

1/2 large cabbage (green or red), roughly chopped

1 carrot, grated

1 onion, finely sliced

2 teaspoons dried oregano, or 2 tablespoons fresh oregano

1 small chilli, finely diced

1 tablespoon sea salt

Instructions

Remove the outer leaves of the cabbage and set aside.

As you chop, grate and slice all the vegetables into a large bowl, sprinkle on the salt and mix through.

Massage, squeeze and work the vegetables with your hands to release all the water.

Pack tightly into your jar/vessel of choice. Press down hard as you go with your fists or a tamper. This again helps force water out of the cabbage.

You should have just enough liquid to cover the vegetables. If you don't you can top up with a little water but don't add too much as it may become soggy.

Cover with the outer cabbage leaves and a small weight (jar, shot glass or river stone) if you have it to help keep the cabbage submerged.

Place the lid on and put in a spot out of direct sunlight.

Leave to ferment at room temperature for about a week. In the first few days when most of the action occurs, periodically press down on the weights to help force more water out and keep the cabbage submerged.

Refrigerate when desired ferment time is complete and taste is to your liking.

NOTES: Leave out the chilli if desired. Using red cabbage makes this really pop!

Kimchi

One of our gorgeous friends Simo from Sunshine and Health declared this as "The best Kim Chi Ever!!" We couldn't agree more and we love keeping a jar of this handy to spice up our meals. It's full of flavour - a little too spicy for Jali so we keep it all for ourselves! 

Ingredients for 1 litre/1 quart jar

1 Chinese (wombok) cabbage, roughly chopped

3 radishes, grated (use daikon or regular)

1 carrot, grated

2 spring onions, finely chopped

4 cloves garlic, finely chopped

3 tablespoons freshly grated ginger

2 or more hot chillies (depending on how spicy you like it), finely diced

1 small bunch of coriander leaves, stems, roots and all, finely chopped

1 tablespoon sea salt

 

 

 

Instructions

Remove the outer leaves of the cabbage and set aside.

As you chop, grate and slice all the vegetables into a large bowl, sprinkle on the salt and mix through.

Massage, squeeze and work the vegetables with your hands to release all the water.

Pack tightly into your jar/vessel of choice. Press down hard as you go with your fists or a tamper. This again helps force water out of the cabbage.

You should have just enough liquid to cover the vegetables. If you don't you can top up with a little water but don't add too much as it may become soggy.

Cover with the outer cabbage leaves and a small weight (jar, shot glass or river stone) if you have it to help keep the cabbage submerged.

Place the lid on and put in a spot out of direct sunlight.

Leave to ferment at room temperature for about a week. In the first few days when most of the action occurs, periodically press down on the weights to help force more water out and keep the cabbage submerged.

Refrigerate when desired ferment time is complete and taste is to your liking

Pickled Peppers

These peppers are made with nothing more than water, salt and a bit of garlic. This style of pickling or fermenting is called Lacto-Fermentation. We ferment all our veggies like this because it makes them easy to digest and encourages the growth of healthy bacteria in our guts (just like a probiotic). Hooray for pickles!! 

These peppers pack a punch and the brine tastes amazing. The best thing about the brine is you can re-use it to culture other ferments like this Cashew Cream Cheese.

Ingredients for 1 litre/1 quart size jar

200g stavros peppers (or any small pepper variety - we get ours from the Noosa Farmers Market)

1 clove garlic

1 tablespoon sea salt

1 thick slice of onion

water

Instructions

Place a cup of water, sea salt and garlic in the bottom of a jar and stir well.

Pack the peppers in tightly leaving about an inch of space at the top of the jar.

Add more water if needed to completely cover the peppers.

Place the slice of onion and shot glass on top to help weigh down the peppers.

Put the lid on and leave to ferment at room temperature for around 4-5 days depending on the time of year (the warmer it is the faster they will ferment).

Refrigerate when the taste is to your liking. The brine will become cloudy and the peppers will soften but still retain some of their crunch.

Fermented Mushrooms

This was our first time fermenting mushrooms and we couldn't be happier with the results. They are soft, tangy and delicious with a similar texture to marinated mushrooms. We've been eating them in salads, on sourdough, with scrambled eggs or just straight out of the jar. 

Ingredients for 1 litre/1 quart size jar

1 bag of mushrooms around 400g (we used buttons)

1 clove of crushed garlic

1 tablespoon mustard seeds

1 tablespoon sea salt

2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

Filtered water

Instructions

Slice up mushrooms and set aside.

Place garlic, mustard seeds, salt and parsley in the mason jar with about 1/2 a cup of water and give it a good stir.

Pack the mushrooms tightly into the jar leaving about an inch of room at the top. Use your hand to push them down hard as you can so they are tightly packed. (They will try to float up when they ferment so the more you can fit in the better).

Weigh them down with a shot glass or a small dish.

Cover tightly and leave to ferment at room temperature for about 3-4 days.

Have a taste as they ferment and when they are to your liking then transfer to the fridge.

NOTES:

Fermentation time will vary depending on the time of year and the temperature in your home.

Feel free to change it up with the herbs and use what you have on hand or add in a chilli for some spice.

Crunchy Dill Pickles

These pickles are super easy, tangy, crunchy and delicious. They were one of Anjali's first foods and she absolutely loves them - hence her nickname 'Jali pickle'. They taste great on sourdough or just by themselves. The dill makes them and really gives it that 'pickle' flavour but if you don't have dill use any fresh herbs you have on hand.

In the video below we show you how to make them. We filmed this late last year with our lovely friends the Organic Sisters. Check out how small Anjali is. She managed to sleep through the whole thing (ahh how times have changed!).  

Ingredients for 1 quart/1 litre size jar

3-4 pickling cucumbers

1 tablespoon mustard seeds

2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill

1 tablespoon sea salt

1 cup of filtered water

Instructions

Wash cucumbers well and place them in a large bowl of ice cold water for 30 minutes to freshen and help crisp them up.

Place cucumbers in a wide mouth mason jar.

Combine remaining ingredients and pour over cucumbers.

Add more water if needed to cover the cucumbers.

To keep the cucumbers submerged under the liquid as they ferment use a small dish or a shot glass to hold them down.

The top of the liquid should be at least 1 inch below the top of the jar.

Place the lid on and keep at room temperature for about 3-4 days or until crunchy to your liking. The water will become cloudy and the cucumbers will darken in colour.

Store in the fridge and slice up to serve.

NOTES:

If you can't get cucumbers that will fit in a jar you can chop them in pieces - your end result just won't be as crunchy.

Don't be afraid to taste the cucumbers as they ferment. If you leave them for too long they will become soft and soggy.

The warmer the temperature the faster they will ferment.

Re-use the brine solution for one more batch or save it and use a starter for fermented condiments.

2 Ingredient Sauerkraut

This is our most basic sauerkraut recipe. Nothing fancy just straight up cabbage and salt. We made this for Anjali when we first introduced her to sauerkraut because of its plain flavour. If you want something with a bit more flavour then feel free to add in any herbs, spices or different vegetable combinations. The possibilities are endless. Once you get confident with the basics then experiment as your heart desires. 

We find as long as you stick to these basic 'rules' you can't go wrong. 

Our Basic Rules

• Keep the vegetables submerged under the liquid. This creates an environment where moulds are less likely to grow. 

• Leave about an inch space at the top of the jar so the vegetables have room to move.

• Weigh the vegetables down with a weight (shot glass, river stones or saucer) to help keep them under the liquid. If you do this you will not need any fancy airlocks or jars. 

•  Keep out of direct sunlight when fermenting. 

• Keep your hands, utensils and fermenting vessels clean. 

• Let your intuition guide you. If it looks, tastes and smells right then it most probably is. You are the best judge of this. 

Ingredients for 1 quart/1 litre size jar

These measurements are a rough guide so you have a starting point.

1 medium cabbage (green, red or wombok)

1 tablespoon sea salt or himalayan salt

Instructions

Remove the outer leaves of the cabbage and set aside.

Roughly chop up the cabbage and place in a large bowl. The finer you chop the cabbage the softer it will be. Experiment with how you like it.

Sprinkle on a pinch of salt as you go to help draw water out of the cabbage. If you have time leave the chopped cabbage and salt sit for at least 10 minutes to help draw out more water.

Massage, squeeze and work the cabbage with your hands to release all the water.

Pack the cabbage tightly into your jar/vessel of choice. Press down hard as you go with your fists or a tamper. This again helps force water out of the cabbage.

You should have just enough liquid to cover the cabbage. If you don't you can top up with a little water but don't add too much as it may become soggy.

Cover with the outer cabbage leaves and a small weight (jar, shot glass or river stone) if you have it to help keep the cabbage submerged.

Place the lid on and put in a spot out of direct sunlight.

Leave to ferment at room temperature for about a week. In the first few days when most of the action occurs, periodically press down on the weights to help force more water out and keep the cabbage submerged.

Refrigerate when desired ferment time is complete and taste is to your liking.

NOTES

White surface mould may appear and is completely normal. This means the vegetables were exposed to air. Scrape it off and another inch or two below and keep the rest.

The warmer the temperature the faster the fermentation time. Adjust your ferment time to suit.

Larger batches will take longer to ferment. We leave our 5L fermentation crock for 2-3 weeks.

Sauerkraut will develop in flavour the longer you leave it so adjust to your liking.