Pea, Parsnip, Beet, Fennel & Yam Lacto-Ferment - Made Nov 22/24

 

- 1 large zip lock bag (2 lb.) of chopped frozen fennel leaves and stalks 

- 1/2 a sweet potato (my parents called them yams), coarsely grated

- 2 med (3/4 lb.) red beet coarsely grated

- 1 med. onion diced

- 3/4 of a cup of dried dwarf grey sugar peas soaked and then chopped in my food processor
- 1 lb. of frozen parsnips chopped in my food processor

- 30  chopped sorel leaves & stems  (leafy greens) from my garden

- a 4 lb. green cabbage finely chopped

- 4 Tbsp of Himalayan pink salt

After I chopped the peas in  the food processor I thought I would cook them but decided they were soft enough as they were so I didn't... Also after chopping the frozen parsnip in the food processor I was so pleased with the result that I decided to chop the beet and yam this way too... So aside from chopping the sorel, onion and cabbage (I've tried this in the food processor before and was unhappy with the result) by hand I just had to mix everything together... SO nice and SIMPLE and EASY...  Certainly easier than grating by hand and even easier than shredding with the food processor... We'll see how it ends up... It filled 6 liter mason jars firmly packed to the shoulder. Heat does make a HUGE difference in the speed of fermentation... I only left them covered on top of my hot water heater for one day...  before moving them to the fridge to stabilize and be eaten... 

Mainly Onion & Leek Lacto-Ferment - made Oct. 19/24

 

- 19 med. onions diced

- 2 large leeks white and green part chopped

- 2 large carrots coarsely grated

- 2 med. rutabaga coarsely grated 

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

- 1 smallish green cabbage (2 3/4 lb.) chopped finely

- 5 Tbsp of Himalayan pink salt

I've REALLY enjoyed the onions I've fermented each year...  They have been 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... I've used leeks again but added a little rutabaga and carrot and again used the sorrel leaves (which has grown HUGE in my new garden).  I've also used a whole small green cabbage instead of just a few leaves... I find I'm not using cabbage quickly enough, so I think from now on I'll be buying what I think will be the right size to use whole for a single ferment...  

I packed the mix firmly to  just below the shoulder of 8 liter mason jars, then left them beside my hot water heater to begin their fermentation process.  This mix has taken FOREVER to strongly ferment... After leaving the jars for more than 10 days, I finally decided I wasn't going to use these for a few months so it would be OK if they were SLOW.... and moved them to the fridge to stabilize and be eaten anyway...  However, I've learned something... Fermentation seems to require a temperature above about 21 degrees Celsius to proceed quickly.  I had that when I began fermenting this batch, and I almost moved them to the fridge after 3 days... but because I hadn't filled the jars as full as I usually do, there was plenty of head room available for expansion... so I left them... and the temperature dropped... It wasn't cold in my apartment, but it was mostly between 18 and 19 degrees Celsius and it just didn't seem to be warm enough...  As soon as the temperature climbed above 20 degrees Celsius they fermented more rapidly again...  Since the floor around my hot water heater wasn't warm, I also moved them to around the top and this supplied a little more heat... Well... now I know... I need to make SURE they are warm enough!!!

Sweet Pepper, Celery Vegetable Medley Lacto-Ferment - Made Jul 15/24

 

- 1 large bunch of celery with leaves chopped

- 3 cups of frozen chopped cauliflower

- 1 sweet potato (my parents called them yams), coarsely grated

- 7 sweet orange, yellow & green peppers chopped

- 3 meal sized pieces of pumpkin - skin finely grated and flesh diced

- 1 1/2 cups of frozen chopped fennel leaves

- 20 sorrel leaves finely chopped

- 1 med. onion chopped

- 1 clove of garlic minced

- 4 leaves of green cabbage chopped finely

- 4 leaves of red cabbage chopped finely

- 3 Tbsp plus 1 tsp. Himalayan pink salt

I mixed everything together; then firmly packed it into 5 liter mason jars, filled to the shoulder and one partially filled 500 ml. jar. I think this has been my fastest ferment ever...  Probably due to the very hot humid weather we've been having. They sat beside my hot water heater for less than a day before it was clear they were fermenting well so I moved them to the fridge to stabilize and be eaten... 

Bean, Pea, Oats and Vegetable Lacto-Ferment - Made Jul. 10/24

- 1 1/4 cups of dried Speckled peas

- 1 1/2  cups of dried Black Turtle beans

- 2 cups Oat Groats

- 3/4 cup Oat Flakes

- 1 med. yellow cooking onion chopped

- 35 leaves and stems of sorel from my garden

- 2 carrots coarsely grated

- 1 med. chiogga beet coarsely grated

- 2 med. celery roots (celeriac) coarsely grated

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

- 3 cups of frozen chopped fennel

- 8 leaves of green cabbage chopped finely

- 4 Tbsp + 2 tsp. Himalayan pink salt

I cooked the bean/peas and  oats separately. using the same method as I did the last couple of times... which took a little over 1 hour for the peas and beans...  The oat groats and flakes I cooked for 1/2 an hour...  Since I also soaked the oats overnight they were softer and required almost constant stirring to keep them from sticking to the bottom of the pan and burning...  I mixed all of the other ingredients together except the cabbage. I then added the cooked bean/pea mix.  Although it was already a bit like a paste after running it through my food processor (which I did prior to cooking),  I did mash it a little to make it even more of a paste... and then the cooked oats were added to the mixture.  I added the cabbage last after the whole mix had cooled to just warm. The mix filled 7 liter mason jars firmly packed to the shoulder.. These fermented VERY rapidly! They spent just over a day by my hot water heater  for me to see they were fermenting well, so I moved them to the fridge to stabilize and be eaten... 

 

 

Bean, Pea, Oats and Vegetable Lacto-Ferment - Made Apr. 11/24

 

- 1 cup dried Speckled peas

- 3/4  cup of dried Adzuki beans

- 1 cup dried Black Turtle beans
- 2 cups Oat Groats

- 3/4 cup Oat Flakes

- 2 med. yellow cooking onions chopped

- 1 1/2 cups of frozen  chopped rhubarb

- 1 large red beet coarsely grated

- 1 large sweet potato (my parents called them yams), coarsely grated

- 8 stalks of celery chopped 

- 1 1/2 cups approximately of frozen chopped sorrel from my garden

- a small green cabbage (what is left of one I've been using for awhile) chopped finely

- 4 Tbsp + 2 tsp. Himalayan pink salt

I cooked the beans/peas and  oats separately. a little differently this time...  Again, I tried to reduce my cooking time and therefore my use of electricity by soaking the peas and beans overnight first and then chopping them in my food processor before cooking them .. SO... I ended up cooking them  for just over 1 hour, which is a substantial reduction from my previous 2 1/2 - 3 hour cooking time.... so I'll be doing this again in the future... The oat groats I cooked for 3/4 of an hour, adding the flakes for the last 20 minutes of cooking time...  I mixed all of the other ingredients together except the cabbage. I then added the cooked bean/pea mix which was already a bit like a paste so I didn't have to mash it... (another saving with my new method).  I then added  the cooked oats to this mixture,  adding the cabbage last after the whole mix had cooled to just warm. The mix filled 7 liter mason jars firmly packed to the shoulder.. After only a day and a half beside my hot water heater I could see they were fermenting well, so I moved them to the fridge to stabilize and be eaten... 

 I use these oat/bean/pea combination ferments along with some yogurt and fresh fruit , a few nuts or seeds, a little kombu seaweed and some powders such as spirulina, chlorella and ashwagandha for my breakfasts... It makes a  light, small but VERY nourishing feeling meal to start my day...

 

Celery root (celeriac), Celery & Beet Lacto-Ferment - Made Mar. 7/24

- 2 bunches of celery chopped

- 1 sweet potato (my parents called them yams), coarsely grated

- 1 LARGE red beet coarsely grated

- 6 leaves of green cabbage finely chopped

- 1 med. onion diced
- 2 large celery roots (celeriac) coarsely grated

- approx. 2 cups of frozen chopped sorel leaves & stems  (leafy greens) from my garden

- 3 Tbsp  + 1 tsp of Himalayan pink salt

I mixed everything together... filling 5 liter and one partially filled 500 ml. mason jars firmly packed to the shoulder.  This fermented VERY quickly.   In only 2 days it was exploding out of the jars... so I re-packed them, replacing the 500 ml jar with a 750 ml jar and moved them to the fridge to stabilize and be eaten... 

Radish, celeriac, fennel, carrot & beet Lacto-Ferment - Made Feb. 24/24

 

- approx. 1 1/2 cups of chopped frozen rhubarb

- 3 good sized daikon radishes coarsely grated

- 2 carrots coarsely grated

- 3 med/small chiogga beets coarsely grated

- 1/2 a large zip-lock bag of chopped frozen fennel from my garden

- 1 small green cabbage finely chopped (what's left of one I've been using for awhile)

- 3 smallish onions diced
- 1 garlic clove minced

- 1 large celery root (celeriac) coarsely grated

- 1/2 a large zip-lock bag of frozen chopped arugula (leafy greens) (approx. 1 1/2 cups)

- 3 Tbsp  of Himalayan pink salt

I mixed everything together... filling 4 liter mason jars firmly packed to the shoulder. I left them beside my hot water heater for 2 days when I could see they were fermenting well, so I moved them to the fridge to stabilize and be eaten...