Comments on: Living Foods / Fermented Foods (Healthy Probiotic Salsa!)

By: KitchenKop

KitchenKop — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 12:51:17 +0000

Hi Michelle,
I’ve never used milk kefir grains so I don’t know what you mean by “join together” – maybe someone else knows?
Kelly

By: Michelle (Health Food Lover)

Michelle (Health Food Lover) — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 06:09:19 +0000

Hi Kelly,

I have so far dabbled in a few types of fermented foods: Sauerkraut, buttermilk, yoghurt and sourcream all which were very good.

I find that sauerkraut doesn’t taste as acidic if I eat it with things rather than by itself. I actually really like it!

I’ve ordered water kefir grains so I’m excited to try them out! Do you know do they join together like milk kefir grains seem to do?

Michelle.

By: Kyle

Kyle — Mon, 04 May 2009 00:03:32 +0000

I was actually wondering about lacto-fermenting vegetables and stuff the other day, and then you posted this, so it was very timely! I'm definitely going to have to try that lemonade recipe. Sucanat isn't too expensive, I can get it for $2.05 a pound, which seems good to me. Maple syrup is super expensive though! It's over $10.00 a pound, so I go easy on it! I also need to get some water-kefir grains. Kyle’s last blog post..Where to find real eggs

By: Kelly

Kelly — Sun, 03 May 2009 13:44:02 +0000

Hi Catherine,
Where do you buy that pickling spice? My sister lives by you and I can ask her to get me some.
Thanks,
Kelly

By: Kathy

Kathy — Sun, 03 May 2009 02:19:39 +0000

I won’t blog again about how much I love fermenting!! I have made many of the recipes in NT. Some I like more than others but I have eaten or drank/drunk? them all. I just bottled another batch of kombucca yesterday. I have milk kefir grains but want to try the water grains. I love the whey methods flavors much better than the extra salt.

By: Local Nourishment

Local Nourishment — Sat, 02 May 2009 20:13:33 +0000

We've made many of the chutneys and relishes from NT now. We call them collectively "Mom's Jars." At dinnertime, some child will be assigned to bring Mom's Jars to the table and the various ferments will be passed around. When we go out to eat, we are sure to bring along papaya tablets to ease the inevitable indigestion. My youngest says, "Mom, when we eat out, can we bring along just one of your jars so I don't get a stomach ache?" Our favorites are pineapple chutney, mint chutney, raisin chutney, tomato and pepper relish and pickled red peppers. I drink kombucha tea (which the kids insist is nothing more than apple cider vinegar mixed with sparkling water) and coconut kefir, but can't convince anyone else of their deliciousness. It's definitely an acquired taste if you're not used to tangy. Local Nourishment’s last blog post..Simple Cucumber Salad

By: Rosy

Rosy — Sat, 02 May 2009 14:22:40 +0000

Julie,

Thanks for the info about the grains. Will letting it do a second ferment with out the grains help the sweetness, or should I just add some lemon or lime juice to it….Maybe pomagranate…mmmmm. I might just do that.

By: Catherine, In S.E. Mi

Catherine, In S.E. Mi — Fri, 01 May 2009 18:45:18 +0000

I’ve been making the ferments in NT and from the DiscussingNT list on Yahoo.
So far I do not like the pickled turnips, or the pinapple vinegar. I love the kraut from NT with the caraway. I came up with my own salsa recipe which I shared with the DNT group and have made one of the pickled cuke recipes out of the group recipe file. I found a good pickling spice from The Atlantic Spice Co. which I can purchase locally. It has juniper berries in it which help with the crisp factor. Strangely, I have found that the pickles tend to get crisper the longer they refrigerate. Also… I use the same pickle recipe to make dilled green beans by skipping the jalepenos and adding a crushed cinnamon stick. This, is a crowd pleaser! Especially with the pre-school children I work with.

By: Julie

Julie — Fri, 01 May 2009 17:37:38 +0000

I'm a huge water kefir fan and most days it's my main source of probiotics (although I do love fermented green beans too!). One thing to keep in mind with water kefir is that the sweetness of the finished brew does not indicate a high amount of remaining sugar. When using healthy water kefir grains, the remaining sugar should be approximately 20% of the sugar you started with and the remaining sugar will be mostly fructose (a mono-saccharide, aka a single sugar) which is much more digestible than the glucose and fructose combination (a disacchride, aka two simple sugars) you started with. For the long term health of the kefir grains, it is important to use a sugar water solution containing at least 3% and no more than 10% sugar (I usually recommend 1/2 c. sugar for 2 quarts water). Less sugar will starve the grains over time and cause them to work less efficiently and eventually stop working all together. Julie’s last blog post..How to Make Sour Cream (aka Creme Fraiche)

By: FoodRenegade

FoodRenegade — Fri, 01 May 2009 17:32:39 +0000

We really enjoy all the fermented dairy I've made -- yogurt, sour cream, buttermilk, kefir. And we LOVE kombucha & the fermented lemonade. My family also enjoys the lacto-fermented mayo & ketchup I make, and the dill pickle relish, and the raisin chutney. But for the more obviously sour, cabbage-based ferments like sauerkraut and cortido, we can only eat a spoonful or so at a time. We just can't slather my sauerkraut on a reuben. I'm not sure if I'm doing anything wrong, if it needs to ferment longer, or whatever. But it's really missing something. Thanks for participating in Fight Back Fridays today!! Cheers, KristenM (AKA FoodRenegade) FoodRenegade’s last blog post..Fight Back Fridays May 1st