The process of fermenting foods, to preserve them and to make them more digestible and more nutritious, is as old as humanity itself. My favorite is kimchi, and most recently Kombucha, especially ginger. Unfortunately, fermented foods have largely disappeared from the Western diet, much to the detriment of our health and economy. Fermented foods are a powerful aid to digestion and a protection against disease. Fermentation by nature, is an artisanal process, the disappearance of fermented foods has hastened the centralization and industrialization or our food supply(Monsanto anyone?), to the detriment of small farms and local economies. The taste and flavor of fermented foods is an acquired taste indeed. The practice is a partnership with microscopic life. This partnership leads to a reverence for all the processes that contribute to the well-being of the human race, from the production of enzymes by invisible bacteria to the gift of milk and meat from the sacred cow. The science and art of fermentation is, in fact, the basis of human culture: without culturing, there is no culture. Culture begins at the farm and binds a people to a land and its artisans. Many say America is lacking culture!! How can we be cultured when we eat food that has been canned, pasteurized, and embalmed? Dead Food=dead culture!! It's ironic that the road to culture in our germophobic technological society requires, first and foremost, that we enter into an alchemical relationship with bacteria and fungi and that we bring to our tables foods and beverages prepared by magicians, not machines.
Microbial cultures are essential to life's processes, such as digestion and immunity. We humans are in a symbiotic relationship with these single-cell life-forms. Microflora digest food into nutrients our bodies can absorb, protect us from potentially dangerous organisms, and teach our immune systems how to function. Not only are we dependent on microorganisms, we are allies. They keep the soil fertile and comprise an indispensable part of the cycle of life. Certain microorganisms can manifest extraordinary culinary transformations. Tiny little beings, invisible to eyes, bring us amazing varied flavors. Fermentation gives us beer, bread, cheese and my favorite chocolate, coffee and wine. The process of fermentation makes food more digestible and nutritious. Live, unpasteurized, fermented foods also carry beneficial bacteria directly into our digestive systems, where they exist symbiotically, breaking down food and aiding in digestion.
My first fermentation adventure was when I made my own beer. Pale Ale I believe it was. When I lived in Missoula, Montana. I was drumming in the rock-fusion-bluegrass band called Cold Mountain. The guys in the band loved to drink beer and lots of it. The bass player and I brewed it right there in his apartment. The fun part was drinking local Moose Drool beer while we waited for the primary steeping to progress. Then we pitched the hops, added the malt extract, poured the 5 gallon elixir into the primary fermentation tank and awaited the magic to commence. About a day or two, the release of CO2 happened and there it was an engagement of human primitive culture: fermentation had begun. Two weeks later we bottled and about a week after that we drank them down. I moved to San Francisco a short time later and kept it going, and after that to Nashville, Tennessee and I still occasionally craft my very own local brew. I moved on to Kimchi and sauerkraut, kombucha, and pickled jalapeños. Fermentation can be low tech. These are ancient rituals that humans have been performing for many generations. Connect to the magic of the natural world, and to our ancestors.
Live Food=Live Culture
Dead Food=Dead Culture
Microbial cultures are essential to life's processes, such as digestion and immunity. We humans are in a symbiotic relationship with these single-cell life-forms. Microflora digest food into nutrients our bodies can absorb, protect us from potentially dangerous organisms, and teach our immune systems how to function. Not only are we dependent on microorganisms, we are allies. They keep the soil fertile and comprise an indispensable part of the cycle of life. Certain microorganisms can manifest extraordinary culinary transformations. Tiny little beings, invisible to eyes, bring us amazing varied flavors. Fermentation gives us beer, bread, cheese and my favorite chocolate, coffee and wine. The process of fermentation makes food more digestible and nutritious. Live, unpasteurized, fermented foods also carry beneficial bacteria directly into our digestive systems, where they exist symbiotically, breaking down food and aiding in digestion.
My first fermentation adventure was when I made my own beer. Pale Ale I believe it was. When I lived in Missoula, Montana. I was drumming in the rock-fusion-bluegrass band called Cold Mountain. The guys in the band loved to drink beer and lots of it. The bass player and I brewed it right there in his apartment. The fun part was drinking local Moose Drool beer while we waited for the primary steeping to progress. Then we pitched the hops, added the malt extract, poured the 5 gallon elixir into the primary fermentation tank and awaited the magic to commence. About a day or two, the release of CO2 happened and there it was an engagement of human primitive culture: fermentation had begun. Two weeks later we bottled and about a week after that we drank them down. I moved to San Francisco a short time later and kept it going, and after that to Nashville, Tennessee and I still occasionally craft my very own local brew. I moved on to Kimchi and sauerkraut, kombucha, and pickled jalapeños. Fermentation can be low tech. These are ancient rituals that humans have been performing for many generations. Connect to the magic of the natural world, and to our ancestors.
Live Food=Live Culture
Dead Food=Dead Culture