Water Kefir - A Day in the Life of Fermenting!

Water Kefir

Ingredients:

3 Cups of Spring or Mineral Water
Kefir Grains - approx.1/4 cup
1 Teaspoon Organic Sugar

Directions:

1.  In a 1 quart jar, add 3 cups of spring or mineral water.
2.  Add the sugar and stir until dissolved.
3.  Add the kefir grains.
4.  Cover with a cloth or coffee filter and rubber band.
5.  Set in a warm location to begin fermentation for 24-48 hours.
6.  When desired sweetness is in the liquid, strain the kefir grains
     with a cheesecloth and drink the liquid.
7.  Gently rinse your grains in non-chlorinated water to be used again.

Second Fermentation - Fruit Flavored Kefir:

1.  Add 1/4 cup fruit ( I addd raspberries) to each quart of water kefir.
2.  Cover and culture for another 24-48 hours.
3.  Discard or eat fruit - then refrigerate your flavored Kefir.  Enjoy!






Our new favorite drink in the house - out with the soda in with the flavored water kefir!  This recipe was so easy, just hard once again finding the right grains in which you can order on the internet.  But simple and delicious.  The family is looking forward to making several flavors and bottling them up and keeping them in the refrigerator.  This process began on September 3 and we were drinking our flavored water kefir by September 8 after the second fermentation process - Delicious!

Red Miso - A Day in the Life of Fermenting!

Red Miso

Ingredients:

1 Cup Aduki Beans
1 Cup Dried Koji
4 Tablespoons Sea Salt
1 Tablespoon Seed Miso Starter

Directions:

 1.  Soak beans overnight in salt water
 2.  Drain the beans but save the liquid
 3.  Make a brine with 1/2 cup of liquid, dissolve 1/2 salt and beans
      and cook either in a pressure cooker or pot.
 4.  While waiting for the liquid to cool, mash beans into a paste.
 5.  When brine is below 105 degrees, mix in seed miso starter.
 6.  Add mashed beans to the liquid mixture.
 7.  Salt (1/2 tsp) your fermenting vessel at the bottom, add bean 
      mixture and smash down firmly.
 8.  Sprinkle salt on the top of your mixture, add wax paper and a weight.
 9.  Cover miso with a cloth to keep the flies out.
10. Label and date your ferment as it will sit for 6 months.




What can I say - love me some MISO!  Isn't this beautiful?  It's just too bad that it takes at least 6 months to ferment!  I started the ferment August 25th and I still have a least a week to go in order to taste it - I may even go with the fermentation process a little longer, but I'm looking forward to my fist Miso attempt and by the looks of everything, it's going to be delicious!

Kimchi - A Day in the Life of Fermenting!

Kimchi

Ingredients:  

Kim Chi

(makes 1 quart) 

.75 Pounds Napa cabbage
1 carrot (grated or coined)
1/4 Cup daikon radish
3 Tablespoons chopped onion
1 Tablespoon ginger
1 clove garlic
1 Tablespoon red chili flakes (less or more if desired)
1 Tablespoons sea salt (non-iodized)

Directions:

1.  Shred cabbage, carrots, and radish. 

2.  Add the salt and mix together. 

3.  Place onions, ginger, and garlic in a food processor or blender. 

4.  Blend into a paste and add to the vegetables. 

5.  Tamp into crock and let it ferment for 3-5 days in a warm place. 

6.  Jar and place into the fridge. 

Oh my goodness - this recipe was the "bomb"!  This is deliciousness that will be a staple in the fridge for a long time.  I started my ferment on July 9th and put in the refrigerator on July 15th.  A tad bit on the spicing side, but I love it.  It's beautiful in color and in taste.  My mouth is watering just thinking of it. Enjoy this one!

Red Wine Vinegar - A Day in the Life of Fermenting!

Red Wine Vinegar

Ingredients:

Red Wine Pellicle

1 Cup Organic Wine - No sulfites

1/2 Cup Filtered Water

Directions:

1.  Place your vinegar mother (pellicle) in a wide mouth glass jar or other wide opening 

     vessel.  

2.  Add 1 Cup Organic Wine preferably with no sulfites and organic.  *Trader Joes carries 

     two brands that you can purchase.

3.  Add 1/2 Cup filtered Water to the wine liquid.

4.  Taste your liquid, you will find that over time it is going to turn more vinegary and less like 

     wine.

5.  Cover the jar with a cloth and rubber band to prevent bugs from entering but allowing 

     oxygen in.

6.  Date the jar and place in a dark cool location.

7.  Process takes approximately 6-12 weeks.  Begin tasting in intervals to notice the flavor 

     and your liking.

Began my Red Wine Vinegar ferment on August 31st and it's still in the process of fermentation.  This was my first attempt and the hardest part of this process was finding a pellicle starter, eventually I would like to start my own.  And the second hardest part was finding an organic "no sulfites" red wine.  Trader Joes does carry only 1 brand - fyi.  Looking forward to tasting this amazing vinegar!

Yogurt - A Day in the Life of Fermenting!

Yogurt

Ingredients:

5 Cups Whole Organic Milk

1 Package Greek Yogurt Culture Starter

Directions:

1.  Heat 5 cups of your whole milk in a stainless steel pot stirring at all times while keeping a 

     thermometer in place.  Heat the milk to 160 degrees then turn your burner off.

2.  Once the temperature drops to 110 degrees, you will add your 1 package of greek yogurt 

     culture and keep stirring until blended well.

3.  Pour your liquid into your yogurt jars and place without lids into the yogurt maker and set 

     for 12 hours.

4.  Once your 12 hours have passed, take each jar and stir yogurt, place lid on jars and 

     they're ready for the refrigerator.

5. You can add any type of fruit or granola to your yogurt.

Simple and Bon Appetit! 

Well this is my first attempt at Yogurt - and it was a fail the first and second time.  After a bit of research I learned with making yogurt, it's best to use a yogurt culture vs. a enzyme powdered culture starter.  I started the process on August 3, 2016 but it took 3 attempts and a week of experimenting to get it right!  We will be experimenting different yogurts and flavors in the future and I hope you do too!  Enjoy!

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Pickles - A Day in the Life of Fermenting!

Pickles

Ingredients:

3-4 lbs of Pickling Cucumbers

5-6 tbsp Sea Salt

2-3 Heads of Garlic

Bunch of Flowering Dill

2 tbsp of Whole Coriander Seeds

1 tsp of Peppercorns

Directions:

1.  Rinse the cucumbers making sure the blossoms are removed.  Soak them in very cold water for a

     couple of hours.

2.  In a separate clean jar (not the one you'll be using for the picks), dissolve the salt into the 1/2 

     gallon of warm water.  Set aside as this brine will be one of the last things you'll add.  Into the 

     clean, gallon jar or crock you'll be using for the pickles, drop in the garlic, dill, coriander and

     peppercorns.  Then, put the cucumbers into the jar.  If you've sliced large cucumbers into spears, 

     pack the spears vertically into the jar.

3.  Pour the salt water solution (a.k.a. the brine) over the cucumbers.  You want your cucumbers to be 

     completely submerged in the vine at all times.  If they're sticking up above the line, they'll get 

     moldy. Another idea is to nest a smaller glass jar into the opening of the larger jar to keep 

     everything down.

4.  Your pickles will be ready after 1-4 weeks depending on the temperature in your house.  Every 

     couple days do a taste test of your pickles.  They're ready when they taste done to you.  Once they 

     do taste done, transfer the jar into the fridge to slow fermentation.  

Enjoy!

   

I love this "so simple" pickle recipe and you will too!  Pickles are a short harvest, I began mine on July 8th and starting munching away on July 16th!  It only takes a few days to a few weeks for pickles depending on how crunchy you like them.  So many ways to ferment pickles with different recipes from sour to sweet.  Keep in refrigerator, they last a very long time fermenting.  Enjoy!

Sauerkraut - A Day in the Life of Fermenting!

Sauerkraut

Ingredients: 

10 cups Shredded Organic Cabbage
2 cups Grated Organic Carrots
2 cups Diced Organic Apples
6 tablespoons Sea-Salt

Directions:

1.   Chop or shred all the vegetables - layer all ingredients and sprinkle salt on each layer.
2.   Once everything has been added together - start mixing ingredients throughly using your hands to
      massage the mixture.
3.   Begin packing your mixture into a one-gallon crock or glass jar.  Use your fist or a wooden
      tamper to push down the vegetables.
4.   With packing down your vegetables, you are creating an anaerobic environment with getting all
      the air bubbles out.
5.   Make sure that the brine is above the vegetables.  You may want to add a plate or tray under your
      containers as the brine may make it's way through the air lock.
6.   Seal your containers and add water to the fill level in your air lock.
7.   In the first week, you will want to push your vegetables down and keep the brine on top.  It may
      take a day or two to keep the vegetables below the brine.
8.   After the first week, you may begin tasting your sauerkraut to see if it's to your liking.  You can
      let it ferment as long as you wish but most prefer 2-4 weeks of fermentation in a one gallon batch.
      If it's too young, it still has a carbonated feeling on your tongue.  This should disappear after
      about a week.
9.   The best temperature to ferment sauerkraut is 55-65 degrees..  Put in a pantry, root cellar,
      cupboard or on your kitchen counter.
10. When it is ready, scrape off the top layer and enjoy the fresh gut healthy goodness!




I began my harvest of sauerkraut on June 23, 2016 and ate almost the entire jar the week of my harvest fermented end date August 4, 2016.  I found this ferment to be the easiest for me since I've done this one in the past and thoroughly enjoy making and eating it.  I do have to admit this was my first time using the air lock system that I will always use since it prohibits mold growth - and it really works!  I let the sauerkraut six for the six weeks before transferring to the refrigerator.  I usually add at least a few teaspoons with each of my meals, but for some reason, this jar of ferment was eaten up within a week.  A little bit too salty still after the six weeks, but delicious!