We love to ferment, and for good reason.  But what is fermenting, and how easy is it to do at home?

Fermenting foods and drinks has long been a tradition in many cultures, especially Asian and North European cultures.  Today, many foods are fermented that you might not even think about necessarily being fermented, like Yoghurt, and other less popular ones are making a huge comeback.  Think of traditional things like Miso for instance, and Sauerkraut, both popular fermented foods for thousands of years.  Others that are taking over our cafes and kitchens are things like Kombucha, Kefir, Tempeh, Kimchi, Pickled Vegetables, Sourdough, Sprouted Seeds and Grains, like Chickpeas for Hummus, and even fermented Fish. 

Fermenting foods and drinks introduces beneficial live bacteria into the diet, both pre and probiotics.  These all result in a healthy digestive system.  The benefits of introducing fermented foods and drinks into your diet include less bloating, fewer food intolerances, improved skin health and reduction of inflammatory conditions, a more efficient circulatory system, reduction of body odour, and most importantly the ability for your digestive system to assimilate food efficiently, resulting in more essential nutrients being absorbed by the body.  The digestive system is the core of good health systemically, as all of your nutrients must first be assimilated well after eating, and is directly linked to increased immunity.

Some foods require beneficial bacteria, a 'starter', to be introduced to the initial mix, and includes things like Kombucha and Kimchi.  Others, like sprouting grains and seeds, or activating nuts, just require soaking.  This process breaks down the hard outer layer making it easier for digestion, and encourages the nutrients of that particular seed to be absorbed in the correct place within the digestive system.  A seed also contains its highest concentration of protein when it has just begun to sprout. 

Fermenting at home is easy, but you do have to maintain it, otherwise your culture will die.  There are numerous online resources that guide you through how to ferment different things, but we love to get interactive at The Kitchen, and offer Fermenting Workshops to guide you through each step.  To start off, why not try sprouting some chickpeas, and making your own Raw Hummus, like we do.  Here's the Recipe:

2 Cups of Dried Chickpeas

4 Cups of Filtered, Spring, Rain, or Alkalised Live Water (available at The Kitchen)

Soak the Chickpeas in the Water for 24 – 48 hours.  They should swell to the level of the water. 

Drain the Chickpeas and rinse them in a Colander.

Continue to change the water and drain/rinse your Chickpeas twice a day until they form little tails.

Once you have your Sprouted Chickpeas, you are now ready to blend them in a Vitamix, Blender, Food Processor, or Thermomix.

Add:

1/2 Cup Olive or Avocado Oil

1/2 Cup Water (the same options as above, or we sometimes use a brine)

1/2 Cup Tahini (optional)

2 Garlic Cloves

1/2 Onion

Himalayan Salt to taste (if you haven't used brine)

Herbs to Flavour such as Chilli, Basil, Coriander, Sundried Tomatoes, Thyme, Turmeric, Rosemary...the list goes on.

Nutritional Yeast (if you want a cheesy flavour and some B vitamins)

You literally can't go wrong with Fermented Foods, and your tummy will thank you for it, especially right throughout the Winter to build your immunity, and when eating Raw foods throughout the Summer. 

Written by Melly Lou, Naturopath.