Already 6000 BC man used fermentation to keep vegetables, meat and fish durable. Thus fermentation is one of the most ancient methods of conservation without using external energy.
If you leave food for a while it changes its smell, structure and taste – microbes tamper it and normally it perishes. Fermentation is the regulation of this process in a controlled manner. Bacteria or fungi, so called "good organisms", decompose food into its parts as nutrients.
During the fermentation process food changes its taste in a positive way. Not only new and complex flavours are developed, but food also becomes more digestible. Well known fermented food products are sauerkraut, marinated salmon, yoghurt, coffee, tea, beer and the Corean traditional dish kimchi.
Today we rediscover native methods, appreciate homemade food and try to find a new variety of taste. Moreover fermentation is sustainable and resource-saving as it works in an absolutely natural manner without any external energy like cooling or heating.
The fermentation starter kits are conceived to discover and try this old method to prepare food in a tasty and healthy way. The Weck set contains a 1590 ml (56.0 fl.oz) cylindrical jar, a 100 mm glass lid, a rubber ring, two Weck clamps, a silicone lid as alternative closure and a 60 mm Weck glass lid to weight the filling goods.
The Le Parfait sets (Super Terrine 750 ml/26.4 fl.oz and Super Terrine 1000 ml/35.2 fl.oz) contain a fired claystone to weight the filling goods.
Beyond that all sets include a booklet with useful tips, ideas and recipes developed by the famous international star chef Heiko Antoniewcz.
PLEASE NOTE!
It's important to use vegetables that are fresh and of best quality if possible. To avoid bad bacteria in fermented food the jars have to be cleaned carefully before use (boil for ten minutes in boiled water or sterilise in the oven).
Layer cut food in a vessel.
Brine: boil 1000 ml (35.2 fl.oz) water with 20 g non iodized salt. Cover ingredients in jar completely with cooled down brine. Weigh down with fermentation stone. Close jars. Ventilate every two or three days.
Leave vessels three to four days at room temperature to start lactic acid fermentation by itself. After this let stand for at least three weeks at a temperature of minimum 15°C. Then the food is durable, but fermentation continues. There is no point when fermentation is "finished". This is up to your taste. As soon as it is okay for you consume put it into the fridge to slow down fermentation and keep the taste mostly constant.
Fermentation is one of the most sustainable methods of conserving food, especially if you use seasonal food. You can reproduce easily the following recipes for the fermentation of vegetables.
Ingredients:
Preparation:
Peel kohlrabi and cut into thin slices, blanch, and refresh in ice water. Dissolve sugar and salt in blanch water and add vinegar. Stack kohlrabis in a jar and cover the prepared liquid. Let rest for four days at room temperature, then ferment for three weeks in the fridge.
Ingredients:
Preparation:
Wash tangerines accurately and score them lenghtwise ten to twelve times. Fill the cuts with salt and lemon thyme. Place tangerines in a jar and cover them with hot water. Allow to stand for twelve days at room temperature. Then let ferment in a fridge for approximately six months more.
