Yam, Beet Apple, Cucumber Lacto-Ferment - Made Dec 10/22

 

- 1/2 a large zip-lock bag of chopped frozen sorrel leaves & stems

- 2 med. sweet potatoes (my parents called them yams), coarsely grated

- approx. 1 1/2 cups of finely chopped frozen sliced yams

- 1/2 a green cabbage (about 6" in diameter) finely chopped

- 1 large onion diced
- 2 cloves of garlic minced
- 2 med. red beets coarsely grated

- 1/2 a large zip-lock bag of frozen sliced cucumber chopped

- approx. 3 cups of "wild" apples cored and chopped

- 2 Tbsp of Himalayan pink salt

I mixed everything together... It  filled 4 liter mason jars firmly packed to the shoulder.  I left them loosely covered  by a cardboard box in front of a rad for 3 1/2 days.  At this point I could see they were fermenting well, so I moved them to the fridge to stabilize and be eaten.

Pepper, Fennel, Carrot & Rutabaga Lacto-Ferment - Made Dec. 3/22

 

- 2 large carrots coarsely grated

- 2 med. rutabaga coarsely grated

- 1 large onion chopped

- approx. 3 cups of cored & chopped frozen "wild" apples

- 1/2 a large zip-lock bag of chopped frozen orange & yellow sweet peppers 

- 2 cloves of garlic minced

- 1/2 a large zip-lock bag of chopped frozen sorrel leaves & stems

- 1/2 a large zip-lock bag of chopped frozen fennel bulbs & leaves

- 1/2 cup desiccated coconut

- 1/2 of a small green cabbage about 5" in diameter chopped finely

- 2 Tbsp + 2 tsp. Himalayan pink salt

I mixed everything together; then firmly packed it into 5 liter mason jars  filled to the shoulder. I'll leave these either in my cupboard over my stove or covered in front of a rad.., I ended up leaving them in front of a rad as my cupboard was clearly not warm enough especially as the mix was already SO cold from all the frozen ingredients...  After 4 days I could see they were fermenting well, so I moved them to the fridge to stabilize and be eaten... 

Fennel, Rutabaga & Apple Lacto-Ferment - Made Oct 27/22

 

- 8 med. wild apples chopped - approx 3 cups

- 1/2 a large zip/lock bag of frozen chopped fennel with leaves

- 1 large rutabaga coarsely grated
- 1 med./large carrot coarsely grated
- 40 chopped sorrel leaves with stems from my garden 

- 1 large onion chopped
- 2 Tbsp of whole fennel seeds crushed

- 3 small cloves of garlic minced

- 2 Tbsp Himalayan pink salt

- 2 large leaves of green cabbage chopped finely

I mixed everything together; then firmly packed it into 4 liter mason jars.  They're filled a little lower than usual, to just below the shoulder.  After 3 days in my "warm cupboard over my stove, I could see they were fermenting well, so I moved them to the fridge to stabilize and be eaten... 

Pea, Rutabaga & Apple Lacto-Ferment - Made Sept. 28/22

 

- 1 cup dried Green Peas

- 1 cup dried Black Eyed Peas
- 1 cup Oat Groats

- 1 cup Millet

- 4 small pieces (approx. 1 1/2" by 1") of kombu seaweed broken up

- 1 med. onion chopped

- 2 cloves of garlic minced

- 2 med./large rutabagas coarsely grated

- 1 med./large carrot

- 40 sorrel leaves & stems from my garden

- about 2 cups of frozen chopped fennel bulbs & roots from my garden

- approx 4 cups of "wild" apples cored and chopped

- 5 leaves of green cabbage chopped finely

- 3 1/2 Tbsp Himalayan pink salt

I  cooked the peas for about 2 1/2 hours.  I cooked the oats separately for 1 hour adding the millet for the last 1/2 hour of cooking time.    When all  were  soft, I mixed both together making a fairly firm paste.   The kombu was mixed with the rest of the ingredients and except for the cabbage these were all added to the pea/oat/millet mix when it had cooled a little .  I added the cabbage  last when the mixture was just warm (NOT hot).  After mixing it well, I packed it into 6 one liter mason jars filled to the shoulder .  These fermented quite quickly, only spending 2 days in my "warm" cupboard over my stove.  At this time I could see they were fermenting well, so I moved them to the fridge to stabilize and be eaten...  

Carrot, Apple & Sorrel Lacto-Ferment - Made Sept 27/22

 

- 5 to 6 cups of cored and chopped "wild" apples

- 5 leaves of green cabbage finely chopped

- 1 med./large onion diced
- 2 cloves of garlic minced
- 40 sorrel leaves and stems from my garden

- 8 med./large carrots coarsely grated
- 4 med./small Horseradish leaves chopped finely

- 2 Tbsp of Himalayan pink salt

I mixed everything together... It fills 4 liter mason jars firmly packed to the shoulder.  After 4 days in my "warmish" cupboard over my stove, they were fermenting well, so I moved them to the fridge to stabilize and be eaten... 

Onion Lacto-ferment - Made Sept. 21/22

 

- 13 Med. onions diced

- 1/2 of  a large zip-lock bag of chopped frozen Egyptian Walking Onions from my garden 

- 8 small/med. "wild" apples cored and chopped

- 35 leaves and stems of fresh sorel from my garden chopped

- the remainder of a green cabbage I've been using for awhile - about 3" in diameter chopped finely

- 2 Tbsp + 2 tsp. of Himalayan pink salt

I REALLY enjoyed the 2 batches of fermented onions I did last year...  They were especially useful in the spring and summer when the onions I could buy weren't so "good"... so this year I'm doing it again... a little differently though with Egyptian Walking Onions instead of Leeks and the addition of a few apples and sorrel...  The Egyptian Walking Onions have a wonderful onion flavor, but tend to be quite fibrous because it isn't practical to try to separate and peel the cloves which are about the size of a typical garlic.  I usually chop them finely with their peel, freeze them and then cook them with my meals and they work well this way... We'll see how they ferment...  The Walking Onions fermented well... but I won't be using them in the future because I didn't have room to plant them in my new garden...

I packed the mix firmly to the shoulder of 4 liter mason jars, then left them in the "warm" cupboard over my stove to begin their fermentation process.  With the dip in temperature that we've had, my warm cupboard wasn't so warm... so they've stayed there for a week.  However, they are now fermenting well, so I've moved them to the fridge to stabilize and be eaten...

Bean & Barley Lacto-Ferment - Made Jul 30/22

 

- 1 cup dried Pinto beans

- 1 cup dried Adzuki beans
- 1 1/4 cup Pot Barley

- 3/4 cup Hulless Barley

- 4 small pieces (approx. 1 1/2" by 1") of kombu seaweed broken up

- 1 med. yellow cooking onion chopped

- 1 small red onion chopped

- 6 smallish red beets coarsely grated

- 2 large cloves of garlic minced

- 2 meal sized pieces of squash- flesh diced and skin finely grated

- about 3 cups of chopped sorrel leaves from my garden

- 1 bunch of celery chopped

- 2 cups of finely chopped cauliflower

- what was left of a head of green cabbage (about 4" x 1")chopped finely

- 4 Tbsp Himalayan pink salt

This time I cooked the beans and barley separately... the beans for about 2 1/2 hours and the barley for 1 hour.  I mixed all of the other ingredients together except the cabbage. I then added the cooked beans which I mashed to make a firm paste and the cooked barley to this mixture,  adding the cabbage last after the whole mix had cooled to just warm. The mix filled 6 liter mason jars packed firmly just to the shoulder... After spending 5 days in my warm cupboard over my stove I could finally see they were fermenting well (it took longer than I expected for some reason) so I moved them to the fridge to stabilize and be eaten...

Bean & Barley Lacto-Ferment - Made Apr. 12 /22

 

- 2 cups dried Pinto beans
- 1 1/2 cups Pot Barley

- 1/2 cup Barley flakes

- 4 small pieces (approx. 1 1/2" by 1") of kombu seaweed broken up

- 1 med. onion chopped

- 2 med/large red beets coarsely grated

- 1 large clove of garlic minced

- 2 med carrots coarsely grated

- 1 1/2 cups frozen apple pieces

- about 1 cup of frozen chopped tree spinach leaves from my garden

- 10  - 1/2" slices of frozen cucumber chopped

- 2 cups of chopped frozen rhubarb

- 4 leaves of green cabbage chopped finely

- 4 Tbsp Himalayan pink salt

I  cooked the beans and barley together (a mistake) for about 3 hours, adding the barley flakes for the last 20 minutes of cooking.   I mixed them together to make a fairly firm paste.  However, I won't do this the same way again... The beans and the barley cooked at VERY different rates.  I should have cooked them separately.  As it is the barley absorbed all the water and the beans are cooked but still firm.  I used my biggest pot and couldn't add ANY more water, so I'm trusting the beans will soften a little more with fermentation.   The kombu was mixed with the rest of the ingredients and except for the cabbage these were all added to the bean/barley mix when it had cooled a little .  I added the cabbage  last when the mixture was just warm (NOT hot).  After mixing it well, I packed it into 6 one liter mason jars filled to the shoulder .  It makes a very pretty rose colored mixture with dark green specks... Having spent less than 3 days covered by a cardboard box in front of a rad (my "warm" cupboard over my stove isn't so warm these days) I could see they were fermenting well, so I moved them to the fridge to stabilize and be eaten...  

Carrot, Rhubarb & Celery root (celeriac) Lacto-Ferment - Made Apr. 12/22

 

- 1/2 a large zip-lock bag of frozen cucumber chopped

- 1 leek (both white & green parts) chopped

- 1 large clove of garlic minced

- approx. 1 1/2 cups of frozen "wild" apples chopped

- 5 med. carrots grated
- approx. 2 cups of chopped frozen rhubarb

- 1 med/large celery root (celeriac) grated

- 4 leaves of green cabbage finely chopped

- approx. 1 1/2 cups of frozen chopped celery leaves from my garden

- 2 Tbsp Himalayan pink salt

I mixed everything together; except the cabbage, in my large glass bowl,  I mashed it down best I could, then I let it sit for awhile to warm, before adding the cabbage. After mixing the cabbage in well, I transferred it to 3 liter mason jars, firmly packed to the shoulder.  They only spent 2 1/2 days in front of a rad covered by a cardboard box.  At this point I could see they were fermenting well, so I moved them to the fridge to stabilize and be eaten.

Chard Stem, Rhubarb & Celery root (celeriac) Lacto-Ferment - made Apr. 4/22

 

- approx 2 cups of chopped  frozen rhubarb

- approx 2 cups of frozen wild Apples chopped
- 2  large zip-lock bags of frozen chopped chard stems

- 5 leaves of green cabbage  finely chopped

- 1 med/large celery root (celeriac) coarsely grated

- 1 med/large onion chopped

- approx. 2 cups of chopped frozen tree spinach from my garden

- 2 cloves of Garlic minced

- 2 Tbsp pink Himalayan salt

I began mixing everything together, however, when so much of this mix was frozen, for ease of mixing I separated it, using both of my 2 large glass bowls -  1/2 of the mix in each bowl... except for the cabbage.  I let the mix sit for a few hours to warm before adding the cabbage.  It was still COLD when I added the cabbage but clearly NOT frozen, so I transferred it to 4 liter mason jars, firmly packed to the shoulder.  When the mix starts SO cold it may take a little longer to ferment...   After 4 days covered by a cardboard box in front of a rad, I could see they were fermenting well, so I transferred them to the fridge to stabilize and be eaten.

Yam, Rutabaga, Fennel Lacto-Ferment - Made Mar 4 /22

- approx. 2 cups of frozen chopped rhubarb

- 8 med/small "wild" apples chopped (approx 2 cups)
- 8 slices of frozen  Zucchini chopped

- 3 small rutabaga coarsely grated

- 1/2 cup frozen chopped fennel leaves

- 1 cup chopped frozen chard leaves
- 1/2 a large zip-lock bag of chopped frozen fennel bulbs
- 3 med. sweet potato (my parents called them yams), coarsely grated
- 1 medium/large onion chopped

- 2  garlic cloves minced

- 4 leaves of green cabbage chopped finely

- 2  Tbsp + 2 tsp. Himalayan pink salt
- 2 Tbsp. fennel seeds  crushed

I mixed everything together, slowly because so many of the ingredients were frozen... I mixed the frozen things with the salt together first.  Then let this warm before adding the rest except the cabbage, which was added last when the mix had clearly thawed.  After mixing everything together well, I transferred the entire mix to  4 liter  mason jars, packed firmly to the shoulder. I left them covered by a cardboard box in front of one of my rads (my "warm cupboard" over my stove isn't so warm these days)  for 4 days when I could see they were fermenting well.  I moved them then to the fridge to stabilize and be eaten...

Pea & Oats Lacto-ferment - Made Mar 3/22

 

- 2 cups dried Split Green Peas - well they were supposed to be green, but arrived with a lot of  yellow mixed in... so they've obviously been exposed to a lot of light...  I thought they might be old, so I'd try using them this way... rather than using them for soup as I'd planned...
- 1 1/2 cups Oat Groats

- 1/2 cup rolled oats

- 4 small pieces (approx. 1 1/2" by 1") of kombu seaweed broken up

- 1 med. onion chopped

- 2 cloves of garlic minced

- 4 small pieces of frozen squash - skin grated finely and flesh diced finely

- about 1 1/2 cups of chopped frozen chard stems from my garden

- about 1 cup of frozen chopped tree spinach leaves from my garden

- 10  - 1/2" slices of frozen cucumber chopped

- 1 1/2 cups of chopped frozen rhubarb

- 3 leaves of green cabbage chopped finely

- 2  1/2 Tbsp Himalayan pink salt

I  cooked the peas and oats for about 1 1/4 hours, adding the rolled oats for the last 20 minutes of cooking.    When they were  soft, I mixed both together making a fairly firm paste.   The kombu was mixed with the rest of the ingredients and except for the cabbage these were all added to the pea/oat mix when it had cooled a little .  I added the cabbage  last when the mixture was just warm (NOT hot).  After mixing it well, I packed it into three one liter and  one 500 ml. mason jars filled to the shoulder .  I left them covered by a cardboard box in front of a rad as my "warm" cupboard over my stove isn't so warm these days, for 3 days.  At this point I could see they were fermenting well, so I moved them to the fridge to stabilize and be eaten...  

Squash, Zucchini, Rutabaga & Apple Lacto-ferment - Made Jan 6/22

 

- 5 smallish leaves of green cabbage chopped finely

- 1/2 a large zip-lock bag of frozen zucchini chopped
- 1 1/2 cups (approximately) of frozen chopped rhubarb

- 2 smallish cooking onions chopped

- 1 large clove of garlic minced
- 1 1/2 cups (approximately) of frozen chopped tree spinach

- 2 cups of chopped apples
- 2 med./small rutabaga coarsely grated
- 4 meal sized pieces of frozen winter squash flesh chopped and skin grated finely
- 2 Tbsp.  Himalayan pink salt plus 1/8 tsp. sprinkled on the top of each jar

I mixed everything together except the cabbage and then let it sit for a couple of hours to warm up... . When it had warmed a little, I added the cabbage & stirred everything well.  Then I transferred the mixture to 3 liter & one 750 ml. mason jars, firmly packed to the shoulder.  After filling the jars I sprinkled the extra 1/8 tsp of salt on top of each jar.  I think they may ferment slowly as they start their fermenting process already quite cold from all the frozen ingredients and this is a precaution to keep mold from forming...  I left them covered by a cardboard box in front of one of my rads (my "warm" cupboard over my stove is no longer SO warm) for only 2 1/2 days.  At this point I could see they were fermenting well, so I moved them to the fridge to stabilize and be eaten...