Lesson 4: Methods & Tools

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Our ancestors fermented many different types of foods… and yes there are different methods to use on different foods.

We will cover the two most common methods used to ferment, or culture, foods, which will give you an understanding of how to match the method to the need.

For vegetables it is really a question of… Are they raw or cooked?

Raw vegetables naturally have the lactobacilli needed to ferment them, so all you need to add is a little salt and sometimes water. Most of the ferments you do will be raw.
Cooked foods do not have the live lactobacilli needed for fermentation, so a "culture" must be used. Whey strained from live yogurt or kefir is the commonly used culture.

The "Raw" Method…. aka Salt Method

Using salt in lacto-fermentation is the most traditional method dating back centuries. This is a simple method that produces the tastiest fermented foods. Salt acts to inhibit the growth of putrefying "bad" bacteria, allowing the "good guys" lacto-bacilli to populate the ferment.

The salt method allows to vegetables to stay crisp and tasty. Salt ferments can be enjoyed by anyone, including those with dairy-sensitivities and those concerned about their sodium intake.

How much salt is used?

To understand how much salt is used in a ferment lets look at sauerkraut. In an 1 oz serving, about the size of the palm of your hand there is about 200mg of salt. That is considered very low for a food by the FDA, but wait… it is even less! That serving of sauerkraut included the juice too. But we usually leave the juice in the jar, so actually the amount of salt falls to around 100mg per serving. That is really low!

What types of salt can be used in lacto-fermentation?

What salt you use is very important! White table salt contains fillers and chemicals, that could inhibit the fermentation process, not to mention it is not healthy for you. We would suggest using an unrefined sea salt, Real Salt® or Himalayan salt. Personally we always go with Himalayan Salt since it is the most unprocessed of the three. (We encourage you to do a search for "Himalayan Salt Health Benefits".)

Just about any vegetable can be fermented with the salt method.

Some examples of salt ferments are: Pickled items, like pickles, peppers, asparagus, green beans, beets, carrots, onions, cabbage better known as sauerkraut, and even garlic.

The Whey (Culture) Method

As we mentioned before, cooked foods do not have the lacto-bacilli needed to ferment. Adding a culture, whey, (which you will learn how to obtain in a later lesson) allows us to make numerous fermented condiments such as, ketchup, mayonnaise, mustard, salsa, relish, or dips like hummus or bean dip etc.

The whey derived from yogurt or milk kefir contains the live bacteria that cultures the food to help jump start the ferment, resulting in more consistent results. This allows us to ferment a wider range of foods.

Powdered starter cultures are another option instead of using whey. But we find these an unnecessary expense.

Tools for Lacto-fermenting

We have all heard about using the right tool for the job, in lacto-fermenting using the right tools can definitely help.

Vessels Used in Lacto-fermentation:

Stone Crocks with Weights – Our ancestors used simple crocks to ferment foods in. Today these traditional crocks are made of clay or stoneware and are big. heavy, and not to mention they can be quite expensive.
Mason Jar with Metal Lid – In more modern history a mason jar with metal lid was used to lacto-ferment. While very affordable, this method does have issues with releasing the natural pressure that builds up during the fermentation process. This process can cause the lids to bend and in some cases cause the jar to crack or explode.
Lacto-fermenting Air-lock System – The most economical method, and the one that we recommend is using a jar with a lid that has a pressure relief of some kind. This pressure relief is called an "air-lock", which allows the pressure produced in fermenting to bleed off without breaking the jar.

The Cooking God’s Way Air-lock System we manufacture and sell, is made to fit all standard "wide-mouth" Mason-type canning jars (Ball, Kerr etc.) and also contains a gasket that provides an "air-tight" seal to ensure an anaerobic condition in the jar, while keeping mold at bay and producing a better tasting ferment.

Some other items that could be helpful include:

Kitchen towel to wrap the jar in to protect the food from UV rays from the sun.
Food-safe fermentation weight(s) placed on top of the ferment to keep vegetables from floating, thus preventing mold and other possible issues.
Small space heater with temperature control to keep fermenting time consistent during cold seasons.

We will demonstrate the use of these tools in the lessons that prepare food for lacto-fermentation.

Continue to Lesson 5 – Storage & Safety —>