What Have You Learned from Home Fermentation?

Published on Friday, February 5, 2010, by Lessley Anderson / Edit Post

If you've ever pickled, made your own sauerkraut, or experimented with growing your own sourdough starter, you've probably read Sandor Katz's book, Wild Fermentation, or been helped by someone who did. Now the granddaddy of today's DIY fermentation craze (and one of our inaugural CHOW 13 food trend influencers) is penning a follow-up. Katz, who lives in an intentional community in the hills of Tennessee, is collecting anecdotes and info for his new book, and would love to hear from fermentation hobbyists and pros. He sent out this questionnaire this morning. You can email him with your responses at sandorkraut at wildfermentation dot com.

QUESTIONS FOR FERMENTERS

1. Can you think of any practical tips you wish you had had when you
embarked upon a fermentation project?

2. Are there any common misunderstandings or fears that you have
encountered talking to people about your fermentation projects?

3. Can you describe any unusual flavor, ingredient, or process
variations that you have tried and especially liked?

4. Can you articulate any important life lessons you have learned
from your fermentation practice?

QUESTIONS ABOUT COMMERCIAL FERMENTATION

1. Please describe your fermentation business: type of products,
scale of business, geographic location.

2. Can you describe any special scrutiny or hurdles you faced in
commercial licensing because you are producing fermented products?

3. When you scaled up to commercial production, were there any
specific challenges related to fermenting at a larger scale, or
maintaining consistency? Could you articulate some of what you
learned from that?

4. What do you use for fermentation vessels? Please describe your
physical set-up.

4. What advice or reflections would you offer to someone thinking
about starting a fermentation venture?

Thanks, and happy fermenting!

ALLFood Media
POST A COMMENT |2 Comments

COMMENT

  • In Vancouver, I worked at a French restaurant that partook in the wild game and mushroom festival. 2 months ahead of time we made choucroute (sourkraute) which spoiled in the last week of its fermentation. This, after putting up with the smell in the wine cellar for two weeks. Reason turned out to be that the salt quantity had been incorrectly calculated: too much will kill the process, too...+READ

    In Vancouver, I worked at a French restaurant that partook in the wild game and mushroom festival. 2 months ahead of time we made choucroute (sourkraute) which spoiled in the last week of its fermentation. This, after putting up with the smell in the wine cellar for two weeks. Reason turned out to be that the salt quantity had been incorrectly calculated: too much will kill the process, too little and it will take over. My tip is to be very exacting and use a good recipe, meaning the right environment, container, salt etc. its a long way to back peddle as we found out.-COLLAPSE

  • As a home fermenter who started before Wild Fermentation was published (thankyouverymuch) . . . :

    I find that a teaspoon (or more) of unpasteurized miso is a great starter for kim chi and sauerkraut.

    You can easily make kim chi/sauerkraut without grinding into a coarse meal, as the Katz/Chow recipe suggests--big, chewy chunks work just fine, and are much nicer to eat.

    I do sterilize the...+READ

    As a home fermenter who started before Wild Fermentation was published (thankyouverymuch) . . . :

    I find that a teaspoon (or more) of unpasteurized miso is a great starter for kim chi and sauerkraut.

    You can easily make kim chi/sauerkraut without grinding into a coarse meal, as the Katz/Chow recipe suggests--big, chewy chunks work just fine, and are much nicer to eat.

    I do sterilize the jar I'm using, but otherwise I think giving a thorough washing to your work tools (knife; cutting board; bowl, if used) is sufficient; it's not necessary to sterilize everything, as some recommend.

    Cucumber pickles are always the hardest for me; they turn out very mushy every time I make them, regardless of salt concentration, temperature, or grape/cherry/oak leaves. (I've even tried sterilizing everything first.) This is a topic on which I'd like some thorough guidance.-COLLAPSE