What is food fermentation and why should you care?
Fermentation is taking foods and drinks and enriching them nutritionally. It is a metabolic process which uses bacteria, yeast, and sometimes even molds to break down carbohydrates. It is such an easy and inexpensive way to increase the nutritional value of foods in your home. Eating fermented foods are unbelievable probiotics that boost your gut health which leads to so many other amazing properties like jump starting your immune system, better assimilation of nutrients, and can help lower cholesterol.
It sounds complicated, but guess what? You do not have to be a microbiologist to do it at home! So come along with me and let’s walk through the 2 easiest, delicious, and family friendly fermented items!
If you want to learn more about fermentation and the assimilation of nutrients i HIGHLY highly recommend this cook book by Sally Fallon. Nourishing Traditions. Seriously, I cannot recommend this book enough!
SOURDOUGH
If you ferment anything you should definitely make a sourdough starter. When my husband and I started eating sourdough bread regularly instead of store bought bread we noticed an enormous difference in our energy levels, mood, and in our gut health. Not only was it delicious and nutritious, but we also realized how inexpensive it is to make without all the junk and unnecessary ingredients. A typical loaf of bread you buy from the store is packed full of empty carbs, especially white bread, and has 30+ ingredients in it. Most of which you can’t pronounce. On top of that it costs around $3-$6 a loaf. Sourdough bread on the other hand has only 4-8 ingredients, is full of good carbs, probiotics, and can cost less to make between $1.50-$3 per loaf, if even that much.
Sourdough starter is extremely versatile. You can make bread, cookies, muffins, pancakes, pizza dough, french toast, biscuits, brownies, and so much more. Additionally, you increase the nutritional value of each item you make with it and that is a huge win when it comes to feeding your husband and your kids delicious and nutritious foods.
To make sourdough starter you only need a few ingredients. Such as a jar (I like the kit with the spatula, thermometer, and feeding band. I talk more about this here.), a scale that measures grams, unbleached flour (King Arthur or Montana Wheat are both great options), and distilled or pure water. Click on any of the above and it will take you to items I recommend. If you don’t want to spend days starting a new sourdough starter, you can ask a friend for some or easily find dried starter like some you can buy from here. Check out this blog on sourdough where I explain each term and process for sourdough starter and a super easy recipe for sourdough bread. It is not complicated and does not have any crazy things like stretch and folds.
YOGURT
Yogurt is my absolute favorite fermented product to make. It is so easy, and IT IS DELICIOUS. I made a gallon yogurt on a Monday and my husband and I finished it off quickly on a Thursday. We were simply shocked at how delicious it was and with much excitement ate it for breakfasts, snacks, and as a dessert! I wouldn’t recommend eating it that fast every time but our taste buds and bodies LOVED us. The best part is you can make plain greek and add what you want to it. Honey, homemade vanilla extract, granola, fruit, chocolate, etc. The options are endless. Our favorite is using the leftover whey for prebiotic soda! More on that later!
So what do you need? All you need is 1 gallon whole milk, ½ cup greek yogurt, a pressure cooker or yogurt maker, a spatula, and a yogurt strainer or you can use a cheese cloth or tea towel. There are many recipes to choose from. I recommend you look for one with the same brand of pressure cooker you have. Mine doesn’t have a yogurt button however lots do!
Stay tuned! I will walk you through my process that I absolutely love!
The links on this blog are affiliate links, meaning I may earn a small commission if you make a purchase through these links at no extra cost to you. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. This helps support the maintenance and development of this blog. I only recommend products and services that I believe will add value to my readers.
Thank you for supporting this blog!