Probiotic Powerhouses: Fermented Veggies

Summer is still in full swing here, the long, hot days dragging on. My thoughts are already turning to autumn and cooler temperatures! Late summer and autumn were traditionally the harvest season for our ancestors. These were the months to preserve the harvest for the cold, winter months ahead.

Our ancestors had so many ways to preserve food, it is hard to count them all! From drying, to pickling, to smoking, to freezing there were many ways to make sure that the abundance from your harvest lasted!

One of the most interesting ways that I have been studying about for the last several years, is fermenting. It has become a larger forgotten method of preserving food in our culture today. Fermenting is a food preservation process by which you allow a natural food, like cabbage in sauerkraut, to break down slowly over time preserving the vitamins and minerals. Unlike pickling, the food is not often heated and heavy spices and sugar are not often added, so the food stays fresh and natural.

There is nothing wrong with pickling and drying, but fermenting does tend to help the value of the food last longer. Also, fermented foods are better for our guts giving us probiotics that help us digest our food better.

Here are some examples of fermented foods that you might have tried before!

• Sauerkraut
• Kimchi
• Pickles
• Yogurt
• Kombucha
• Miso
• Vinegar
• Kefir