Glass Fermentation sets in Weck, Le Parfait and Kilner

Fermentation and lacto-fermentation have been around for a very long time mainly as a means to preserve food over long periods of time when refrigeration wasn’t available. Today more and more people are rediscovering those old methods of preserving food because the taste is amazing, but also because it’s a great way to consume probiotics.

Lacto-fermented foods are fermented by lactobacillus bacteria, which is a category of beneficial bacteria that feeds on sugar and that produces lactic acid as a byproduct. This is why lacto-fermented foods taste acidic.

Just about any vegetables and even fruits can be lacto-fermented, but fruits will need much less fermentation time as they contain much more sugar. You can play around and try all sorts of funky combinations to discover some amazing tastes. Spices and herbs are also often used extensively to give an even greater flavor to the final product. For example, sour pickles are often flavored with dill, garlic and a combination of pickling spices. Some examples of pickling spices are bay leaves, cinnamon sticks, whole cloves, whole peppercorns, coriander seeds and mustard seeds. A popular variation of sauerkraut (lacto-fermented cabbage) is made with apples and Juniper berries.