How to Make Cultured Vegetables
You first must choose the vessel you will want to use to ferment the vegetables. You can use a canning jar with a lid, a crock with a lid, a clamp-down jar that has a gasket, or my favorite is a jar with an airlock lid. Airlock jars create a low-oxygen or anaerobic, environment in which lactic-acid bacteria may thrive. It creates the best results with less chance of mold, but airlock jars are not absolutely necessary.
Decide Which Method to Use
You will then choose to use a starter culture to ferment or you may choose to ferment without one. You can certainly make them without a culture, but the good bacteria will stay at a higher level longer if you add a culture. This will also increase your own body’s ability to use and grow these good bacteria inside of you. The one that I believe does this the best is Cutting Edge Cultures.
The three fermenting methods are listed below.
1: Using A Starter Culture
Cutting Edge Cultures is my favorite starter culture. It ferments my veggies perfectly every time and gives me tons of probiotics. I’ve tried making veggies in many ways using kefir whey, salt, and other cultures, but I found this product works the best. I actually helped design this product to give you more L. plantarum (super bacteria) than anything else on the market. That being said, you don’t have to buy my product to make cultured veggies. You can make cultured veggies with kefir whey, salt, or another brand of starter culture, but I’ve simply found that Cutting Edge Cultures works the best. I just want you to make really good cultured veggies so you can reap the many health benefits that they offer.
2: Without A Starter Culture
The method of using just salt to make cultured veggies has been around forever. Most methods using salt will ferment them for 3-6 weeks. I don’t recommend fermenting them for this long since it diminishes the probiotics as the bacteria run out of food and the acidifying bacteria turns to a more vinegar type of brine over time. It’s important to use extra salt (3 tablespoons per gallon of veggies) if you’re not using a culture. You need to drop the pH and without enough salt you won’t achieve the safe and proper balance to allow them to ferment properly. I also don’t recommend fermenting other veggies with just salt. Cabbage works very well, but other veggies don’t ferment properly and don’t have the proper pH so I recommend only doing cabbage recipes.
3: Using Kefir Whey
If you make a lot of kefir cheese and have extra whey then you can use it to make cultured veggies. You need to make sure the kefir whey is freshly strained (within a day of straining) before using it. Otherwise, the culture won’t have the proper bacteria strains to culture your veggies properly. One of the reasons I don’t use kefir whey is because there are a lot of different bacteria in kefir that aren’t specific to cultured veggies. Lactobacillus plantarum (L. plantarum) is the one that you’re looking to get the most of in cultured veggies. The diverse bacteria and yeasts in kefir whey compete for dominance as to which one will rule. This makes L. plantarum diminish. Sometimes this can change the taste of the veggies over time but not always. It just depends on what’s going on with the bacteria in your batch. Each batch has a mind of its own! Kefir whey still makes good cultured veggies, I’ve just gotten more picky over time and want to get the most L. plantarum I can. It’s got superpowers!
Gather Your Ingredients
Buy the freshest veggies you can find. This makes summertime ideal, although I’ve cultured a lot of vegetables in the winter too. You’ll get less kahm yeast which is a harmless white yeast that can occur if your veggies aren’t fresh. You’ll want to remove it if you see it because it can make your veggies taste bad. You can culture almost any vegetable. As a general rule of thumb, cabbage takes six days, while most other veggies like carrots, tomatoes, asparagus, etc., can take two to three days. Check out my recipes to see more detailed instructions.
Choose Your Recipe
Let’s get started! We have over 100 cultured veggie recipes to choose from. Be creative! Mix and Match!! Turn your kitchen into a culturing haven!!! We have a basic recipe listed below, as well as this video:
Here is a basic kraut recipe to get you started:
Basic Kraut
Watch How to Make It
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 package Cutting Edge Cultures - or you can use ½ cup kefir whey
- filtered water
- 1 large head cabbage
- 1 tablespoon Celtic Sea Salt
Instructions
- If using the starter culture, stir together the culture and ½ cup of water. Let the mixture sit while you prepare the ingredients—around 10 minutes. If using kefir whey, add it when the recipe calls for culture.
- Remove outer leaves of cabbage. Cut out the core on the cabbage.
- Shred cabbage into desired length. You can use a food processor or by hand. You can chop it finely or in thicker pieces it's up to you!
- Add your cabbage to a large bowl and add salt and toss with cabbage to combine evenly.
- Add in extra veggies, fruit or seasoning if desired at this point and toss together to evenly combine.
- Pack cabbage into a canning jars. Make sure you save two inches at the top of the jar for the cabbage to expand.
- Add the Cutting Edge Cultures or kefir whey to the jar or jars. Spread it evenly.
- Fill the jar with water. Leave 2 to 3 inches at the top of the jar for kraut to expand.
- Place secure lids or airlocks on jars. Set in a cool place, out of sunlight for 6 to 7 days. After 6 days taste them and if they're tart tasting they're ready, and you can eat them or place them in the refrigerator.
Notes
Here are basic recipes for using Kefir Whey or no starter culture:
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