My First Experience with Fermentation
Fermenting is a fascinating culinary practice that has gained significant attention in recent years, especially with the rise of interest in gut health and natural preservation techniques. As someone who’s always on the lookout for more ways to keep tasty food and ingredients preserved and ready-to-eat, this technique caught my eye. In the past years, I was also following the channel of Johnny Kyungwho, who does amazing fermentation experiments and has very helpful videos to get started on fermenting! In my last summer break, I finally found the time to get started and try out my first ferments myself. Here is how it went!
Specifically, I’m trying out lacto-fermenting—an age-old process that uses salt water to preserve vegetables and enhance their flavors. What intrigued me most was how simple yet effective this method seemed to be. In this post, I’ll share my experiences, the different fermentation methods, and why I chose lacto-fermentation to begin with.
I started with three simple fermentations:
- Fermented chilies for a hot sauce
- Fermented Cucumbers
- Ginger fermented Honey (This one is a bit different than the others)
Understanding Fermentation: The Different Methods
Fermentation is the process where microorganisms like bacteria, yeasts, or molds break down sugars and starches in food. These microorganisms can be naturally occurring or added to the food intentionally, and the process results in the creation of beneficial probiotics, which support gut health. There are several types of fermentation, each with its own unique benefits and methods. Let’s take a closer look at the most common types of fermentation:
Lacto-fermentation is one of the oldest and most popular methods of preserving food. It involves using salt and water to create an anaerobic environment in which lactobacillus bacteria thrive. These bacteria convert sugars in vegetables into lactic acid, which naturally preserves the food and adds a tangy, sour flavor. This method is used for fermenting vegetables like sauerkraut, kimchi, pickles, and more.
Alcoholic fermentation is what happens when yeast breaks down sugars in foods like grapes, barley, and other fermentable materials to produce alcohol. This type of fermentation is responsible for making beer, wine, and spirits. While not commonly used for vegetables, it plays a significant role in beverages and some baked goods.
Vinegar fermentation occurs when acetic acid bacteria convert alcohol (like wine or cider) into vinegar. This type of fermentation is used to make vinegar, which is used for pickling, as well as in the production of sauces and dressings. It’s a slightly different approach from lacto-fermentation, as vinegar fermentation involves introducing alcohol into the process.
Wild fermentation involves fermenting foods with naturally occurring microorganisms in the environment. For example, when you leave vegetables out at room temperature, the naturally occurring wild bacteria (lactic acid bacteria) will begin the fermentation process. Many sourdough breads are made using wild fermentation, and the process often requires less control than other methods but takes longer to produce consistent results.
Why I Chose Lacto-Fermentation with Salt Water
Among the various methods, lacto-fermentation with salt water stood out to me as one of the easiest, most beginner-friendly options for fermenting vegetables. Here are a few reasons why:
1. Simple Ingredients and Tools
Lacto-fermentation only requires a few basic ingredients: vegetables, water, and salt. There’s no need for fancy equipment like airlocks or fermentation vessels that can be required for other types of fermentation. Salt and water are the core ingredients that kick off the fermentation process, which makes it accessible even for those new to fermenting.
2. Minimal Hands-On Effort
Unlike other methods that may require you to regularly check, stir, or manage yeast cultures, lacto-fermentation is fairly hands-off. Once the vegetables are prepared, they simply need to be submerged in a saltwater brine and stored in a cool, dark place. The beneficial bacteria do all the work. The only thing you need to do is to open the container every now and then to make sure there is not too much CO2 buildup in the containers which could make them burst. In my setup, I just left the lids loosely on top of the containers so that air could still escape.
3. Probiotic-Rich Foods
The lactobacillus bacteria that thrive during this process are known for promoting gut health. Lacto-fermented foods like sauerkraut, pickles, and kimchi are naturally rich in probiotics, which are beneficial for digestion and overall health.
4. Flavor Development
Saltwater fermentation produces a unique, tangy flavor that enhances the natural taste of vegetables. The longer the fermentation process, the more complex and sour the flavor becomes, which adds depth and variety to your dishes.
5. Health Benefits
In addition to providing probiotics, lacto-fermentation also preserves the nutrients in vegetables. Unlike other preservation methods, such as canning, which can cause the loss of vitamins, lacto-fermentation helps retain many of the vitamins and minerals, making it a highly nutritious option.
My Process
As mentioned earlier, I tried out three different ferments: Fermenting chilies to use as a tangy, spicy hot sauce, fermenting cucumbers to have a new type of “pickles” to try out, and fermenting ginger slices in honey to create a strong remedy against a cold during the winter months. – The last one is kinda just a “ginger infused honey” I guess but due to the properties of the ginger and the high amount of wild yeast on them it still was more of a ferment. But more about that later.
How I got started
If you’re interested as to why, I recommend you the book “The Salt Fix” by Dr. James DiNicolantonio or if you’re lazy the YouTube Videos to this topic by What I’ve Learned like for example this. In short, regular table salt only contains Sodium Chloride while other salts like the Redmond Real Salt contains a blend of different minerals like magnesium, calcium, and potassium, along with trace elements of zinc and iron which therefore offer your body much more essential minerals that will keep you energized throughout the day.
Some people also recommend using filtered water instead of regular tap water but living in a region that has very good tap water, I did not see the need of doing this.
Ferment 1: Red Chilies
I decided to use the chilies to make a fermented hot sauce out of them. For this, I used a big hand full of green, red and yellow chili peppers for the spiciness, a pointed red pepper for sweetness, one tomato for depth of flavor, half a red onion to add a bit more sharpness, as well as a couple of garlic cloves to make the sauce more savory.
Now, the first steps to making this ferment are just washing and cutting the vegetables. As everything will be blended up in the end anyways, you can just roughly chop everything to be about the same size so its easy to layer it in the container later.
I also de-seeded and cut the white skin of about half of the chilies as I didn’t know how hot they would turn out after fermenting and all and I wanted a sauce that I could use for dipping stuff in without burning my mouth with every bite or giving me a stomach ache after eating too much^^
At first I thought about cutting all of the red onion but to make sure it wouldn’t turn out too sharp/ onion-y I decided to go with half, but that’s up to everyone’s taste of course as well as the ratio to the chilies you have on hand.
Quick detour: How to use everything of your chilies
I didn’t want to let the de-seeded seeds and the white skin (did you know? This part of the chili is actually the spicy one!) go to waste, so I put them to dry on a paper towel and a sieve for better air circulation at a sunny spot of my dining table. This way, once they are completely dried, you can grind them to make your own chili powder!
Next, I was preparing my container. For this I used old glass jars I had lying around from jams and whatnot. I find the easiest method to sterilize jars and their metal lids is to just put them in the oven at 100°C for about 10 mins. That should kill all the bacteria. For next time, I’ll remember to do this step in the beginning so I can use the time while the jar cools down to prepare the rest.
Other methods you can use to sterilize is boiling them in water, getting them fresh out the dishwasher or using some food safe disinfectant spray to spray the inside and wait for it to dry.
Now for the “tricky” part: In order to successfully lacto ferment something, you need to have the correct ratio between water and salt. Usually a 3% salt water solution is used for these ferments, but I’ve also seen recipes ranging from 2 – 3.5%. I guess it depends what you are fermenting, but that is already getting more advanced for now. The rule of thumb is that at a 3% water solution no harmful bacteria can grow and so that is what I went with for all my ferments so far.
I’ve seen different approaches to get to know the amount of water you need for your container, but by far the easiest method is again the one I’ve seen Johnny Kyungwho do:
- Put your vegetables in the sterilized container
- Place the container on a scale and zero it out
- Slowly fill the jar with water (filtered or tap, I just use tap) until all you vegetables are covered
- Read the weight and use it to calculate the 3% you need in salt (so weight x 0,03)
- Sprinkle the salt into the jar
(It might be confusing on the pictures but between the first and the second picture I zeroed the scale and only then filled it with water. The second picture also shows the glass jar with the water inside, that might be a bit hard to catch on the pic)
You won’t really need to mix it around as the osmosis should do the trick over the next minutes/hours, but you can also use a clean chopstick or something to stir. Or you just close the lid shut and turn the container a couple of times to help disperse the salt. But as I said, its not really necessary.
Lastly, especially with lighter vegetables like these chilies, it would be good to have something on top of your veggies to keep the submerged under the water. I’ve seen people use small ceramic dishes, cabbage leafs or these fancy glass fermentation weights. I had none of that on hand and because the glass jar was a very good and tight fit anyways, I just made myself a little puck out of tinfoil and wrapped it in some clingfilm (in case there could be any chemical reaction between the ferment and the aluminum, I don’t know, I’m not a chemist ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ )
Lastly, especially with lighter vegetables like these chilies, it would be good to have something on top of your veggies to keep the submerged under the water. I’ve seen people use small ceramic dishes, cabbage leafs or these fancy glass fermentation weights. I had none of that on hand and because the glass jar was a very good and tight fit anyways, I just made myself a little puck out of tinfoil and wrapped it in some clingfilm (in case there could be any chemical reaction between the ferment and the aluminum, I don’t know, I’m not a chemist ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ )
In the end, I screwed on the lid tight and stored it on a shelf in the halway where no sunlight could reach it. After one day, I unsrcrewed the lid and placed it loosely on top of the jar so the developing CO2 gas can escape. It is important that there is a way for the CO2 gas to escape, otherwise your container will explode. You can either unscrew and screw the lid back on every day (this process is also called “burping”) or do what I’ve done and leave it on loosely.
Okay we’re done! My first project is ready to start fermenting! ^-^
Oh yeah, I also added a couple white peppercorns and one long pepper corn to the jar.
Ferment 2: Fermented Cucumbers
I will keep this part very short as it is very similar to the first ferment. First, I washed the cucumber thoroughly, then cut it into sticks that were a bit shorter than the jar I used for them. Next I put them in the sterilized jar, added the water and calculated the salt to add to the jar. I sealed it and placed it right next to the chilies. That’s it!
UPDATE: The water was not completely covering the cucumbers at one point as it either evaporated or got soaked off by the cucumbers themselves. After a couple days I noticed that there was some white dots appearing on top of the cucumber. After some research, I figured out that these were harmless kahm yeast particles. I topped of a little bit of water and a sprinkle of salt for good measure and kept the ferment going. In the end, it turned out really good and were still yummy and safe to eat. So keep in mind to check up on your ferments at least every couple of days and react accordingly if you see something.
Ferment 3: Ginger fermented Honey
I read about this honey with fermented honey to be a good remedy during the winter months. Once the ferment is done you can add a spoon or two to your tea or hot water to get all the full benefits of a fermented ginger as well as the honey!
For this, I used ginger and a nice wildflower honey. I peeled the ginger as I want to eat the pieces afterwards and didn’t want them them to bee too hard and woody. But probably the ferment would work even better if you leave the peel on as it contains a lot of natural yeast which accelerates the fermentation process.
As the ginger ferments in the honey, it slowly breaks down, releasing compounds that enhance the flavor and health benefits of the honey. As the honey is rich in natural sugars, it acts as a preservative and provides a nourishing environment for the beneficial bacteria. These bacteria thrive in the anaerobic conditions of the sealed jar, creating a ferment that’s both probiotic-rich and packed with immune-boosting properties.
The resulting ginger-infused honey contains not only the soothing, anti-inflammatory effects of ginger but also the antimicrobial, antioxidant-rich benefits of honey. So this honey should help your immune system during the winter months.
The fermentation process also enhances the bio-availability of the nutrients, making them easier for your body to absorb. So there’s actually a benefit of doing this instead of just putting some ginger and honey in your tea individually^^
This is obviously by far the easiest ferment you cant try out by yourself, so if you want to go for fermenting in baby steps to see how it goes, this is the one to do.
Look at my three beautiful ferments!
In conclusion, I’ve found that fermenting my own vegetables, especially using the simple method of lacto-fermentation with salt water, is incredibly easy, rewarding, and surprisingly fun. While I was initially a bit apprehensive about the process, it became clear that as long as I followed the right salt-to-water ratio and used a clean, sterilized container, I had little to worry about. That said, there’s still a bit of uncertainty at times. You’re never fully sure if your ferments are progressing perfectly unless you see obvious signs like healthy bubbling, a good smell, and no visible mold. But, as long as you keep your ferments in a safe, cool spot, and use the good ol’ “see-smell-taste” rule, you’re likely on the right track. If you don’t notice any unpleasant smells or mold, chances are your ferments are perfectly fine!
Fermentation may seem intimidating at first, but once you get the hang of it, it’s hard not to get excited about the endless possibilities. Honestly, one of my favorite moments was when I tasted the fermented red chili hot sauce—it was absolutely amazing! It quickly became one of the best condiments I’ve ever had, and I can’t wait to recreate it and refine the recipe even further. It’s not just about the flavors, though—fermenting is a fun and creative journey. Whether you’re trying out new vegetables or experimenting with different flavor profiles, the world of fermentation offers endless opportunities to explore.
The internet is a treasure trove of recipes to help you get started or inspire you to create your own. Starting with a small batch and an easy recipe is a great way to dip your toes into the world of fermenting. Once you feel comfortable with the basics, you can dive deeper and get adventurous, experimenting with different fruits, vegetables, or even flavors. Whether you want to make savory side dishes, add depth to sauces, or even create fermented fruit for sweet uses, the options are limitless.
The best part is, once you’re comfortable with fermenting with salt water you can also explore the other ways of fermenting your ingredients! Be it fermented beverages or adding fermented elements to creative dishes like cocktails. There’s so much to discover, and the more you experiment, the more fun and rewarding it becomes. Fermenting is not just a method of preservation—it’s a fun, creative way to enhance your culinary skills, experiment with new flavors, and create truly unique dishes. So, I encourage you to give it a try—take that first step, try a simple recipe, and soon you might be making all kinds of fermented goodies from your kitchen. The world is your fermented yummy oyster 😋
