This week, Fermented Foods.
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-JT
I’m looking at bread made from spelt ... grains of leftovers from making beer.
I have been experimenting with pickles lately too. If you want more dill flavor you need WAY more dill, both fresh and seed. Inpack in as much as I can and still have room for cucumbers and I still think it’s not enough for my taste.
You can use coffee filters or several layered cheese cloth placed over the jar opening and them screw down only the band. This keeps ‘stuff’ out but keeps you from having to burp the jars all the time.
The last batch I made was probably my best. The straight lactofermented pickle is considered a sour pickle. After it’s done fermenting I add a few tablespoons of white vinegar for the flavor.
Also, the longer you can ferment, which means keeping temp as close to 60 but not below, as you can, the crisper your pickles will stay.
I don’t know if you would call this a fermented food, but I have been experimenting with shrubs. You can check out various recipes on the internet, but the bottom line is one part fruit, one part sugar and one part vinegar.
Mix the fruit with the sugar and let it macerate in the fridge for a couple of days. Smush it through a fine sieve or food mill and then add vinegar. Let it sit in the fridge at least a couple of weeks and then use as a base for a beverage, usually alcoholic.
You can mix and match fruits with various flavors of vinegar and add seasonings.
I am not a huge vinegar fan, so I reduce the vinegar by half. I like to add it to crushed ice and tonic water or a strong ginger ale. Endless combinations. There is a good recipe book by Michael Dietsch entitled, “Shrubs— An old-fashioned drink for modern times”
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