Lacto-fermentation - The Pick Of The Pickles

Iceberg Radish Pickle

Last weekend I prepared four bottles of pickled vegetables to shore up a dwindling supply.

Yesterday, when I prepared a Japanese style breakfast, replete with miso soup and sauteed vegetables, (only the ubiquitous white rice was conspicuously missing) I decided that it was time to sample the vegetables I had pickled.


The Taste Test

Sauerkraut - The sauerkraut, spiked with caraway seed, was crisp and had a fresh pleasing flavor.   I have been making sauerkraut for a LONG time and the thing that I find intriguing about sauerkraut is that no two jars ever taste alike.  Each batch develops a unique subtle flavor that is all its own.  Because the sauerkraut was so fresh it lacked what I call "depth" and so I decided to move this jar to the back of the fridge where it can ripen for 6 months or so.  Yes, you read correctly. If I can keep my hands off it that is.  Six months is not a long time in the life of a pickled vegetable.  In fact, the flavor of pickled vegetables will become better and richer with age.

If you recall from a blog post or so ago I was just finishing up a jar of pickled kale stems vintage 2010.  Those last kale stems were actually the best of the whole batch.

Iceberg Radish Pickle - These elegant slender radishes are a long time favorite of mine.  I think they have a delicate beauty all their own.  I find a jar of pickled iceberg radish particularly pleasing to look at. The flavor of pickled radish stands on its own without additional flavoring or spice.  This jar, made with farmer's market produce, will not last long.

Pickled Turnips - This was a new recipe that I tried for the first time.  I usually pickle turnips just like I pickle iceberg radish - simple and without accoutrement.  This time I sliced beet root and onion into the batch along with the turnip.  I got the idea from Sally Fallon's cookbook "Nourishing Traditions." The result was surprisingly good.  The turnips had a pleasing hint of onion and were crisp and fresh tasting.  The vibrant rosy color is pleasing too.

Pickled Beet - I am inordinately fond of pickled beets.  These beets are baked in an oven for three hours before being peeled, sliced into matchsticks, and packed into a jar.  Spiked with dried cardamom seed, the result is magnificent, the flavor rich and complex.  One of the most amazing things about this recipe for pickled beets is what happens to the brine.  Not only are the beets transformed by the fermentation process, but the brine is transformed too.  The brine becomes as thick and syrupy as jam.  I have never seen that happen before.

In case you are wondering I don't have a favorite.  I like them all.

More detailed instructions for making pickled vegetables can be found in Sally Fallon's cookbook "Nourishing Traditions."  

Japanese Food Tip For The Day

Incidentally, getting back to our Japanese food theme, pickled vegetables are a natural condiment and accompaniment for brown or white rice.  The beneficial bacteria in pickled vegetables help our bodies digest starch more easily.