FERMENTATION Thread

Hey All,
Since more people are at home cooking and making things they’ve never made before, I thought I would start a fermentation thread.
As those of you who know me know, I and a (not working right now) winemaker, so I have always been into fermentation, but I’m putting that knowledge to food use now.
Some fermentations I have been doing up 'til now (pre-Covid)

Kombucha
Sourdough
Sake

What I am about to start:
Hot Sauce
Gochujang
Kim Chi

I am not on Reddit a lot, but I saw a thread today that caught my eye. Someone posted a pic of a pasta dish that they had made with the brine of a porcini ferment they had done. WHAT!! Fermented mushrooms?! The brine got me thinking, because when I do my hot sauce, I definitely want to use the brine. But mushroom brine sounds like pure umami.
Anyone here into fermentation? Ever do mushrooms?

Ever been to Russian deli? Shelves of various pickled mushrooms. Great with vodka, Russians/Poles/Belorussians have been doing that for centuries now. Mushrooms, in general, are not really “well known” food in the West when compared to Eastern Europe, plenty of mushroom based recipes there, not just simple “fry up some” theme. Have 3-4 jars of pickled mushrooms in the pantry. Salt as main ingredient, but then allspice, black peppercorns, cloves, sliced white onion, bay leaf.

I ferment a number of veggies, not just Napa cabbage but a number of different veggies, mostly Korean style, but also some old school Jewish recipes (cucumbers, sour cabbage, etc.). Try pickled watermelon, excellent with BBQ meats, takes a few days to pickle. And pickled/sour apples are great as well.

And we have been fermenting/pickling lemons, Moroccan staple, for a few years now to use when making slow cooked meat dished (stews, etc.), they add a very faint, subtle note that greatly enhances the dish without being too obvious.

I ferment hot sauce every year with the garden. Been fermenting kimchi lately with the Mother in Law’s recipe, I
adjust with a longer fermentation. Also do the fermented lemon, essential staple. Lots of sourdough lately.

I have not tried mushrooms but very interested to once I get some fresh stuff.

Sandor Katz The Art of Fermentation, is the go to guide.

I love fermented stuff!!!

I’ve got a fantastic Chai Tea Kombucha going, red wine vinegar that I started from scratch (no mother), and various peppers that I’m using to make hot sauce.

But the best thing I’ve got going right now is sauerkraut from red cabbage. It’s about 6 weeks in. Just so tangy and alive with flavour but still got a bit of crunch to it. Will let it go a couple more weeks but it’s fine where it’s at.

Linda, do you strain your hot sauce at all?

I’m just getting it started, but I probably won’t.

I normally don’t either but I’ve recently read about dehydrating the remaining pulp and using it as seasoning. Apparently it’s supposed to be quite delicious.

I’ve made kombucha for years. It’s incredible how much $ you save making your own
Lots of kim chi, but a gallon batch goes a long way and it’s easy to get burnt out.
Mead - probably the most hassle free of things I’ve made, and fermented in a chardonnay barrel
Beer - I sold my brewing kit but it’s fun. Last batch was a NE IPA that came in at around 7% ABV.
hot sauce fermented in a whiskey barrel is my current project

Hi Greg!
I’ve had brined mushrooms. I just never thought of actually fermenting them. I have a couple of mushroom growing kits on order, so I’ll have to try doing that with some of them.
I did some lemons years ago. I’ll have to do that again, too. I love Moroccan food. Thanks for the reminder!

I’ve also been pickling mackerel and sardines (herring style), as well as lox and smoked salmon as extension of that (same dry rub for ~3 days, but then smoked), both cold and hot. Heck, the more I think about it, the more I recall of other pickled food I do. And I make lardo, jar fermented for about 5 days, completely covered in salt with as little air inside as you can, forcing it to ferment, then washed off and stored in freezer. In small amounts, very healthy.

Good topic Linda.

But pickling is different from fermenting, although I’d very happily eat those fish!!

I’m OK at pickling since I kind of grew up watching my grandparents and my mother do it. But fermenting is something else.

I’ve tried several times with Kim Chee and always end up with some rotting fruit. So what’s the mistake?

Most of the time pickling is fermentation. Some differences, sure, but in general, same. I never use vinegar/brine, in any pickling, so fermentation. Salt, spices, time.

Several possible issues: product not fresh, not enough salt, you’ve washed the product of culture, or you are not protecting it from air ingress so you get mold.

Hi Linda,

Sorry - I didn’t see this thread before I posted the Sourdough one. I hope you don’t mind.

No! Different thing really!
But your black garlic reminded me of that. I need to find a recipe to ferment some. Although I have been having problems getting garlic the past couple of times I have picked up groceries.

Oooh! I’d love to see how you would ferment the garlic!

Here’s an interesting book that I’ve been wanting to explore

https://www.amazon.com/Koji-Alchemy-Rediscovering-Mold-Based-Fermentation/dp/160358868X

I’m a consumer of his products locally but have been wanting to explore the methods behind the most interesting creations.

Thanks for the recommendation! I just ordered it yesterday!

I know Christine had posted about using shio koji on Facebook, and I intend to make some. I have been making koji rice for my sake, but I think I was cooking the rice for too long. It should be steamed and slightly al dente rather than fully cooked. I bought a steamer tray for my rice cooker, but it is going to severely limit the amount of rice I can steam at one time. The first time I made sake I steamed the rice on the stove top, but the pot I have with a steamer also doesn’t allow for much volume.

Cool! Keep us up if you try/find anything spectacular.

Yes! Please post on the Koji. We love it.