Fermented Foods

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Welcome all to the wonderfully stinky world of fermented foods! These smelly, bacteria filled foods are an immune powerhouse that you should be incorporating into your diet. 

So for today’s blog I’d like to include some of my favorite fermented friends, their benefits, and how I like to prepare them. Hope you enjoy!

Firstly, the fermentation process has been around for hundreds of years and consists of the “chemical breakdown of a substance by bacteria, yeasts, or other microorganisms, typically involving effervescence and the giving off of heat” [1]. This process has been used to store foods during long, hard winters, as well as to enrich the nutritional value of an existing food. In today’s modern world where refrigeration is available almost everywhere, it is still important to incorporate fermented foods into the diet to reap the myriad health benefits they offer.

I’ve touched on the topic of gut health before on this blog and fermented foods are the MVP of a balanced and strong gut. Some of the benefits of these foods include:

          • Improved digestion

          • Improved food absorption  

          • Boost immunity

          • High levels of probiotics in these foods means you can cut down on supplement intake

          • Cheap to make and last a long time

In addition to the general benefits of fermentation, I will also include bacteria-specific benefits of these probiotic foods. 

Below are the fermented items I have started including into my diet, some of which include a recipe. 

1. Kimchi. “A staple in Korean cuisine, is a traditional side dish made from salted and fermented vegetables, most commonly napa cabbage and Krean radishes, with a variety of seasonings including chili powder, scallions, garlic, ginger, and jeotgal” [2]. Though Kimchi is quite easy to make in big batches at home, I have not yet experimented with any recipes. There are many kinds of kimchi available and I would suggest looking in your local health food store or asian market. 

2. Kefir. “Kefir or kephir is a fermented milk drink that originated in the Caucasus Mountains and is made with kefir “grains”, a yeast/ bacterial fermentation starter” [3]. If you would like to start making your own kefir and need the fermentation starter look on kefir groups on the internet (Facebook has many) as many people share the grains that help get you started. Once you start making your own, you will notice that the grains begin to multiply and when you have more than you need you can share yours with someone else- get the kefir train rolling, so to speak. 

No need to worry if you are lactose intolerant as kefir can be made from any kind of milk (e.g. soy, almond, coconut, hazelnut, etc). I have been making mine from almond milk and really enjoy adding it to my daily smoothies. The general ratio to make kefir is 600ml (2.5 cups) milk of your choice to two heaped tablespoons of grains. 

3. Sauerkraut. As I am currently based in Central Europe, this stinky cabbage has been a ubiquitous accompaniment to the hearty dinners of roasted duck and potato dumplings. While sauerkraut (or zely in Czech) holds a special place in European cuisine, I believe that the flavor combination was no accident. The fermented nature of this food aids in digestion and helps to break down the fats found in the meats and dumplings. 

Making your own sauerkraut at home is very simple and just requires a bit of time for the cabbage to break down. Essentially, you combine cabbage and salt and leave it to ferment, usually between 2-4 weeks. I have a delicious sauerkraut recipe included in my E-Cookbook which will be released this winter so keep your eyes peeled for that one.

4. Sourdough Bread. This bread involves a very similar process to that of kefir in the sense that it requires some kind of yeast/bacteria starter to begin. It “is made by the fermentation of dough using naturally occurring lactobacilli and yeast.” This yeast means that it has “better inherent keeping qualities than other breads due to the lactic acid produced by the lactobacilli” [4]. Though the final baked product is not a source of live and active cultures, the fermentation process it undergoes beforehand makes this particular bread much easier to digest. 

5. Chocolate. That’s right, the silky rich treat we all love is actually fermented. During the process of cultivation, the cocoa bean must ferment for between 4-5 days in order for the seeds to break down before being dried and prepared for production. In order to get all of the benefits of the bean however it’s recommended to consume dark (anything above 80%), minimally processed chocolate.

While there are many fermented foods out there to choose from they all have one thing in common: they are loaded with probiotics and healthy bacteria. The most common strain of bacteria found in fermented foods is lactobacilli. This good bacteria does the body good by: helping to reduce cholesterol, strengthening the immune system, helping to maintain a healthy weight, and helping to calm food intolerances/ allergies. Probiotics do wonders for the gut and while supplementation is ok, why not consume them in a tastier way in chocolate or sourdough bread? 

I hope that you all have enjoyed this brief introduction into the world of fermented foods. There are many that I have left out (i.e. beer, kombucha, cheese!) but I wanted to include my go-to list of the ones I buy and consume every day. 

Are there any here that surprised you? Are you already including fermented foods into your diet? 

In the meantime, if you have any blog post topic requests please shoot me an email or DM me on Instagram :)

xoxo,

Alexandra

Disclaimer: All material on this website is provided for your information only and may not be construed as medical advice or instruction. No action or inaction should be taken based solely on the contents of this information; instead, readers should consult appropriate health professionals on any matter relating to their health and well-being.

Sources:

1. “Fermentation | Definition of Fermentation in English by Oxford Dictionaries.” Oxford Dictionaries | English, Oxford Dictionaries, 2018, en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/fermentation 

2. “Kimchi.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 11 Sept. 2018, 10:03, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kimchi 

3. “Kefir.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 23 Sept. 2018, 14:43, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kefir

4. “Sourdough.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 14 Sept. 2018, 06:00, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sourdough