Sunday, May 05, 2013

Experiments in Fermentation

After tiring of the poor aging of my beengs, I experiment with a more gratifying form of fermentation. Yes it's sauerkraut Sunday and two Sundays in a row I've been busily chopping up red cabbage and red onion.  For the initial ferment to get started, Lactobacillus needs an anaerobic environment.   Koreans used to bury their urns in the ground to keep the air out. I just have these Fido jars with an air tight seal. 

Does sheng really need air to age?



Last week's batch is chock full of bio activity and ready to eat although it's still on the slightly crunchy side. Sauerkraut is a living food and it's taste will transform daily.  





11 comments:

  1. You know.. I ought to start at some new fermenting experiments myself.. been dabbling with making my own Kefir and Hongchajun (红茶菌) which i must say was pretty lovely.. Still trying to find a place where I can get Yak milk so I can make some fermented yak butter for my Tibetan tea bricks.. that's a project for this spring I believe.. where did you get your starter culture for your Sauerkraut?

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    1. Starter culture? My hands? There's plenty in the cabbage itself and the air to get it going.

      Dear Mighty Tea Monster, what exactly is Hongchajun (红茶菌)? Please do elaborate.

      H
      p.s. Do not buy powdered Tibetan yak milk on ebay. It was vile.

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  2. Good to know! I will give it a try then. 红茶菌 is a fermented sweetened tea. I believe you need a starter to get that going. It makes a vinegary tasting brew which tastes to me a bit like cider. Its English name is Kombucha, health food stores often sell it. All you need to make it is a good culture of it, a big glass jar you can cover with several layers of cloth or paper towels to keep out unwanted mold spores etc and some good quality tea sweetened with sugar (not honey..honey will kill it apparently). It needs a certain acidity level to grow well so you start it out with a live culture and maybe some vinegar.. or a large proportion of live 红茶菌. Once it gets going it turns into a jelly like monster that keeps growing rapidly. You simply siphon out the finished tea and add more as needed.

    Don't worry we have Yak ranches around here. I am hoping to get it fresh.

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    1. Oh yes- Kombucha. I've been meaning to get a SCOBY off of someone. I also have a MOV(mother of vinegar) from vinegar making that I thought I would try to use as a starter as well- there's discussion over whether or this is real Kombucha or not.

      I like ginger Kombucha best so I had planned to use whatever left over hongcha or green tea I had in my cabinets but I'm very interested in what you teas you think produces an interesting end product.

      H

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    2. Had a lot of success with mixing these two..

      http://www.yunnansourcing.com/store/product.php?id_product=2386

      http://www.yunnansourcing.com/store/product.php?id_product=1975

      Although this year I will just be using the spring buds. I might mix it up if I get some interesting greens later.

      Those two at least do not produce a bitter brew and add a very fruity and complex flavor in the end product. I am sure you couldn't go terribly wrong using other types of greens or black tea. Still trying to be brave enough to use Pu'Erh again but the last time I used Pu'Erh it was a bit of a disaster. Pu'Erh doesn't seem to do well with over brewing.. maybe if I patiently extracted brews gong fu style etc.. but that is a lot of work..

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    3. Also you don't need to buy a SCOBY to get it going. A bottle of GT's Kombucha (if available where ever you are) works for me. It's got enough live culture already in it to get it going. Just start with a smaller batch so you don't over dilute the acidity until it gets going.

      http://synergydrinks.com/index.php/products#enlightened-kombucha/enlightened-kombucha-organic-raw-kombucha-original

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  3. I forgot to add it seems to do well in a certain temperature range. I have a friend from Shanghai who has gone to great lengths to make sure her's retains optimal temperatures at all times. She even has a special electric warmer she wraps around the glass jar she brews it in. Around 80-90 F or 26-32 C. I am still trying to figure out the best tea to make it out of. I have been using white tea from the spring buds from Dehong for the slight pine needle taste and low bitterness, mixed with other green teas. Tried Pu'Erh and it was too unruly.. I use raw sugar as it has a bit of the molasses still in it for flavor too.

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  4. By the way do you have a recipe you would be willing to share? What spices if any etc? I see you mentioned red onion.

    I am thinking of starting a batch this weekend or next along with a batch of 红茶菌!

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    1. Dear MTM,

      I only use 1.5 TBSP per head of red cabbag. I used red onions as I'm keen on anthocyanines. You could embellish with herbs but I really enjoy the classic flavor. I tried adding caraway on the second batch and I didn't like it as much.

      H

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  5. Thank you! I found this in my search.. it seems interesting.. I am fairly tempted to purchase one and find out..

    http://www.wisementrading.com/foodpreserving/harsch_crocks.htm

    I will probably dabble with mason jars and whatnot. Thank you for the feedback.. I will surely be experimenting soon.

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    1. Dear Tea Monster-

      I have seen and desired such serious crocks. But for the home micro-fermenter- I think smaller jars are wise in the beginning. If anything goes bad, throwing out ten heads of cabbage surely will be a heartbreak.

      H

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