Eric Bakker ND
Have you tried to regularly eat foods which have been cultured, other than yogurt? There are many different types of foods from many different culture which are preserved in these methods such as sauerkraut, kimchi, kombucha tea, miso and many more.
Fermented foods are foods produced or preserved by the action of microorganisms. They can come about either by fermenting sugar with yeast and produce alcohol, or by way of an other fermentation process involving the use of bacteria such as lactobacillus, which includes the making of foods such as yogurt and sauerkraut.
Since the by-products of digesting meat and dairy products actively inhibit the growth of beneficial lactobacillus bacteria in your digestive system, and since these congestive foods are responsible to a degree for the accumulated, impacted debris in the lower intestine and colon, fermented foods such as sauerkraut and kimchi should especially
be eaten with meat and often are.
Be aware of budget fermented products
Many pickled or soured foods are fermented as part of the pickling or souring process, but be aware that many are simply processed very quickly and cheaply with brine, white sugar, white vinegar, or another cheap acid such as citric acid. When you buy vinegar, for example, my advice is to spend a bit more and buy a glass bottle of vinegar which you may find on the bottom shelf (if you buy in the supermarket with a good selection), or ask the person at the counter of the health shop for a good organic fermented vinegar. pickled olives, goats cheeses, miso, and many gourmet pickled and soured vegetables in the delicatessen section. This is good news for health-conscious consumers looking to increase their digestive, cardiovascular and immune health, since these traditionally lacto-fermented foods belong to some of the best foods you can eat to build good health.
Many cultured foods today are produced on a large commercial scale like cheese. if you get the chance, try a "boutique" home-made cheese and you will be very surprised at the incredible flavour. Commercially prepared cheeses just don't come anywhere near the flavour.
Technically, anything that is "pasteurisation a salt stock is fermented, but that’s where the similarity ends, as each type of fermented food has specific, unique requirements and production methods.
Fermented foods are great for your health
Increasing your overall health by optimising your nutritional status
Promoting the growth of friendly intestinal bacteria
Aiding digestion and supporting immune function
Increase in B vitamins (even Vitamin B12), omega-3 fatty acids
Increase in digestive enzymes, lactase and lactic acid
Increase in other immune chemicals that fight off harmful bacteria and even cancer cells.
Have you tried kombucha, kefir, or cultured vegetables?
Probiotics are popular these days, in fact so popular that you may think that fermented foods containing beneficial bacteria will be just another one of those quick health fads like the Atkin's diet or those food combining diets. The fact is that cultured foods have been consumed for many hundreds of years around the world, and those who have consumed these foods were most probably oblivious to the fact that these foods contained simply loads of probiotics. These beneficial live bacteria are found in abundance naturally in fermented foods, and through observation it has been found that those who regularly consume these foods are less likely to suffer from colds or other immune problems, amongst other numerous health benefits.
Home grown probiotics
In addition to buying the many quality probiotic products today, you can make your own tasty and nutritious probiotic foods with surprisingly little effort or expense. It is well worth the effort you put in to create these wonderfully nourishing foods. Your family's health will improve and you may well have some fun in making these preparations. I have made yogurt as well as kombucha tea for many years and also enjoy making kim chi, one of Tracee's favourite condiments, at times.
I first started to make Kombucha when I was a naturopathic student in the 1980's. Kombucha certainly is no health fad, it has been used for thousands of years in China, having only recently become popular with Australians and New Zealanders in the last twenty or thirty years. Kombucha is basically a fermented mixture made from the kombucha culture added to a black or green tea made with plenty of sugar. The end result is a kind of sweet, pancake-like structure that floats on top of the container where it is made and generally stored. Don't worry out about the sugar - it is all consumed (fermented) by bacteria and turned into a lactic acid ferment which is fantastic for the large and small intestine in particular. The fermentation floating on top of the mixture is often referred to as a "mushroom." The tea is said to be a "miracle cure" by some of its fans, but these claims have not been scientifically validated.
Kombucha is a living tea that is fun to make, especially if you have kids. Kombucha will never become main stream because you have to look after it. Your kombucha mushroom is really like having a live pet, and because it reproduces itself every two to three weeks you can give your extra cultures away to friends or family. Kombucha tea costs only a few pennies a glass to make as you just need quality tea and white sugar and clean water, how easy is that! You can choose to use any water you are comfortable with, boiled tap, bottled, filtered, well. Avoid distilled water, it is not fit for human consumption. You may like to read my article on water filtration to understand why I am no fan of distilled water.
Kombucha tea is a slightly effervescent, tangy drink you can easily make yourself with very basic ingredients:
Tea - black or green tea (I use tea bags, you may want to experiment with 2 to 3 tea bags per litre of water.
Water & Sugar (1 cup sugar for 4 litres of tea). I just use plain white sugar and have found this to work fine.
One Kombucha culture. This is a round and rubbery "mushroom" which floats on your culture.
The ingredients are combined and fermented at room temperature for about 1-2 weeks, this is how long it takes for the sugar to be consumed. I recommend to always maintain scrupulously clean conditions when home-brewing the drink, or if you can't be bothered then perhaps stick to mass-produced kombucha-tea in bottles.
You can buy a mushroom (which can be re-used indefinitely), and get detailed instructions for easily preparing your own Kombucha
through various health food shops. Sometimes you have to hunt around a little to get one, but they are available if you make genuine enquiries. The amazing thing about the mushroom is that you can dry them out, slip it in a book or in a filing cabinet, then some time later - revive it once again in the tea and sugar solution. I have verified this myself with a small dried out kombucha mushroom I once kept for over three years in an old copy of Dr. Vogel's Nature Doctor. It revived perfectly well after being placed in a bucket of tea sweetened with white sugar, though it did take many weeks to produce the tea.
Kombucha Health Benefits
Kombucha tea beverage contains dozens of healthful elements including natural probiotics
, B vitamins, acetic acid, amino acids, glucuronic
acid, lactic acid, and lots more. Give it a go, you may be surprised at the results this simple beverage can give you. Here are a few of the health benefits:
Kombucha is known for its detoxification abilities. The tea has been said to help the elderly and HIV patients and even to assist in curing hangovers. Because of its acidic properties, Kombucha tea has been found to kill bacteria in the body.
Kombucha has a positive effect on the immune system, increases energy, stimulates hair growth and assists in the prevention of cancer. According to a New York Times article, Kombucha has also been said to restore hair colour, help arthritis patients and improve skin, although some of these claims remain unfounded and untested in humans. Personally, I have found that patients who remain on K-tea seem to have excellent digestive health which just gets better over time.
Longevity? Studies on lab mice that were given the drink for three years found that the mice lived nearly a month longer than the mice in a test group not given the drink. The Los Angeles Times article also cited studies showing the positive effects on the mice's livers and DNA even after exposure to outside negative influences. Unfortunately, no clinical trials have been conducted on humans and probably won't be because this is a drink everybody can make for pennies and therefore it can't be monopolised by drug companies.
Cultured vegetables are raw vegetables that are allowed to ferment for about a week at room temperature in order for beneficial lactobacilli bacteria to grow and then refrigerated until eaten. Vegetables such as cabbage, carrots, beetroot and even garlic can be fermented into delicious cultured foods that maintain their lactobacillus count for as long as 6 months after preparation. Vegetables can be cultured with whey or Himalayan salt, and taste like pickles or sauerkraut. Some of the health benefits associated with cultured vegetables include reducing symptoms of conditions such as colic (give your baby a bit of the vegetable juice to build up their beneficial digestive bacteria), peptic ulcers, food allergies, constipation and many other digestive tract disorders. Those with candida yeast infections can safely eat cultured vegetables without fear of eating any of the "bad" yeasts commonly associated with commercial bread and alcoholic beverages.
One 5 to 8 kilogram green cabbage (10 - 16 lbs)
Salt (½ to ¾ teaspoon per 500gr (one pound) of cabbage)
1 tablespoon juniper berries (optional but gives a great taste)
2 teaspoons cumin seeds (optional but gives a great taste)
2 bay leaves (optional)
Salt water to cover (1 tablespoon salt per quart of water)
There are as many ways to make sauerkraut as there are sauerkraut recipes, but here's how I do it. Try to get a ceramic crock or you can even use a small wooden barrel. I use a round wooden lid (covered with a clean damp cloth) which sits inside the pot and rests on top of the cabbage. This lid is weighed down by a few heavy (clean) stones.
Shred the cabbage finely (with a serrated bread knife) into a large bowl; add salt and optional spices. Gradually add mixture to a large container, crushing to release juices (I use a wooden stick about two inches wide). Place the wooden lid on top of the crushed cabbage then add the weighting stones and push down firmly.
Top off with (chlorine and fluoride free) salty water to cover stones by 1 inch. Ferment 4 to 6 weeks at a reasonably warm temperature. One way to achieve the arm temperature is to place the container in your hot water cupboard.
Kimchi is sometimes spelled "kimchee", but I prefer the "chi" spelling because that is the spelling of the oriental word chi
) that means "natural energy" or "vital force". Of the countless varieties of kim chi that are made in Korea, by far the most common version is the one made with Chinese (wong bok) cabbage.
Kim chi that is made with cabbage is loaded with indole-3-carbinol (I3C), a compound that is well recognised as a powerful cancer-fighting compound. Numerous studies indicate that I3C can offer protection against many different types of cancer and may even stop the growth of existing tumors.
I also learned about kimchi when I was a student and completed a Cooking For Health course at the Australian College Of Natural Medicine in Brisbane (Australia) many years ago. A great thing about this dish, like all fermented foods is that it keeps for many, many weeks in your refrigerator, yet still tastes fresh. The garlic and vinegar are natural preservatives that keep the raw vegetables and fruits tasting great for a long time. If you have one of those "keep warm" crock or hotpots in your kitchen, then a wholesome snack or even a full meal, is not far away. Kimchi is like sauerkraut, it is not only a health food, it can be regarded as a convenience food, and both of these foods can be served cold, warm or hot. An important point to bear in mind is that kimchi must be fermented properly.
Cabbage and onions
In my opinion, two of the best ingredients to ferment for promoting beneficial bacteria in your digestive system and inhibiting the unfriendly bacteria are cabbage and onions. There is no doubt, fermented cabbage is the absolute best. Once the cabbage soaked in vinegar has had a chance to age (a day or two in the refrigerator, a few hours at room temperature), the cabbage ferments and produces the nutrients that the beneficial lacto-bacteria thrive on.
When you make kimchi
, be sure to use Chinese cabbage, which is one of the most common Asian vegetables found in Australia and New Zealand and is also known as Peking cabbage, Napa cabbage, or bok.flavoureddhas an elongated head with tightly packed crinkly pale green leaves. Unlike the strong-flavored waxy leaves on round heads of cabbage, these are thin, crisp and delicately mild.
When you make sauerkraut
, use the normal round green cabbage. It has a stronger and sharper taste and suits sauerkraut better. This cabbage is a bit harder to slice because the leaves are more densely packed so be sure to use a sharp serrated knife.
Cabbage is also a known cure for ulcers. I once placed a male patient with advanced ulcers on a diet rich in kimchi, sauerkraut, plain steamed vegetables, fish and rice. He did not have a helicobacter pylori stomach infection. In about 12 weeks, the ulcers that had resisted years of medical treatment were completely healed, I know this to be true because the patient had this confirmed by way of endoscopy. If you eat foods like sauerkraut and kimchi, you may well heal all manner of chronic digestive complaints which have been unresponsive to conventional drug treatments. What have you got to lose?
To make healthy kim chi that still has lots of flavor and health-promoting compounds, start with a whole head of fresh wong bok cabbage:
One wong bok cabbage - about 500gr (one pound)
Fine red chili flakes (Asian shop)
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon minced ginger
3-4 spring onions (scallions), sliced
2 tablespoons anchovy or fish sauce (optional)
1/2 brown onion
1/2 ripe apple
1/2 ripe pear
Separate cabbage leaves and chop into bite-size pieces.
Dissolve a quarter cup of Himalayan salt in a bowl of warm water, then pour salt water over cabbage leaves. Give cabbage a gentle toss to distribute salt water. Allow salted cabbage to sit for at least four hours.
Give cabbage a good rinse to remove excess salt, then transfer cabbage to a large bowl.
Combine a quarter cup of fine red chili flakes with warm water, stir gently with a spoon to create a red chili paste, then transfer chili paste to cabbage.
Add minced garlic, minced ginger, spring onions (scallions), and fish sauce.
Blend brown onion, apple, and pear with one cup of water, then add this natural sweetener to the cabbage.
Give everything a thorough toss and good rubdown. You want to evenly distribute all ingredients, especially the red chili paste.
Transfer seasoned cabbage leaves into a large glass bottle (which you have cleaned previously with very hot water). Be sure to use firm pressure with your hands to push down on cabbage leaves as they stack up inside the bottle.
Transfer any liquid that accumulated during the mixing process into the bottle as well - this liquid will become the kim chi brine. Some liquid will also come out of the cabbage leaves as you press down on them as they are stacked in the bottle.
Be sure to leave about 50ml (2 inches) of room at the top of the bottle before capping it tightly with a lid. Allow bottle of kim chi to sit at room temperature for 24 hours.
Your kim chi is now ready to eat. Refrigerate and take out portions as needed. The refrigerated kim chi will continue to ferment slowly in the refrigerator over time. So long as you use clean utensils to take out small portions, it will keep for up to a month or even longer in your refrigerator.
Cultured Dairy Products
Fermented milks had been made since early times, when warm raw milk from cows, sheep, goats, and even camels or horses was naturally preserved by using common strains of Streptococcus and Lactobacillus bacteria.With the development of microbiological and nutritional sciences in the late 19yogurtury came the technology necessary to produce cultured dairy products on a much larger scale, on a commercial basis. These “cultures” were generally obtained by including a small portion (seeding) from the previous batch. These harmless lactic acid producers were effective in suppressing spoilage and pathogenic organisms, making it possible to preserve fresh milk for several days or weeks without refrigeration. Cultured products eventually became ethnic favourites and were introduced around the world as people migrated to different countries, for example Greek immigrants started to make yoghurtlarge scale when they migrated to Australia in the 1950's, after World War 2 particularly.
Central to the production of cultured milk is the initial fermentation process, which involves the partial conversion of lactose (milk sugar) to lactic acid. Lactose conversion is accomplished by lactic-acid–producing Streptococcus and Lactobacillus bacteria. At temperatures of approximately 32° C (90° F), these bacteria reproduce very rapidly, perhaps doubling their population every 20 minutes. Many minute by-products that result from their metabolic processes assist in further ripening and flavouring of the cultured product. Subsequent or secondary fermentations can result in the production of other compounds, such as diacetyl (a flavour compound found in buttermilk) and alcohol (from yeasts in kefir), as well as butyric acid (which causes bitter or rancid flavours).
Cultured buttermilk, sour cream, and yogurt are among the most common fermented dairy products in the Western world. Other, lesser-known products include kefir, koumiss, acidophilus milk, and new yogurts containing Bifidobacteria. Cultured dairy foods provide numerous potential health benefits to the human diet. These foods are excellent sources of calcium and protein. In addition, they may help to establish and maintain beneficial intestinal bacterial flora and reduce lactose intolerance.
Yogurt? Why not just buy it at the store? One of the most well known and most readily available probiotic foods, many varieties of store-bought yogurt are high in sugar and not very potent in probiotic content. Homemade yogurt is likely to contain much more beneficial bacteria and less sugar, preservatives and chemicals - plus it’s easy and fun to prepare. Read my yogurt page for much more information on this superfood.
All it takes to make yogurt at home is your choice of milk (preferably organic and raw), a starter yogurt culture for the first batch and some basic kitchen supplies. On the internet you will be able to find many an easy guide to making your own yogurt, and some even with a crockpot. A quick web search will yield many other easy methods too.
Your own homemade yogurt will be a great source of calcium, protein, magnesium and other essential vitamins as well as beneficial digestive tract bacteria without unnecessary additives.
Kefir is a specially prepared, delicious fermented drink. There are 2 types of kefir- water and milk kefir, the latter can be made with sheep, goat or cow’s milk. The liquid is fermented with kefir “grains”- (colonies of yeast and healthy bacteria), and the resulting drink is an excellent source of healthy intestinal micro flora, B vitamins, Vitamin E, and (for milk kefirs) complete proteins. Both water and milk kefir are also usually easily digested by those who are lactose-intolerant.
Scientific research has shown promises that regular drinking of diarrhoeaads to numerous health benefits. Health benefits that you can't get from drinking yogurt. Some of the reported health benefits of ageing are:
Regulating cholesterol, blood pressure, blood sugar
Cleaning the digestive tract and regulates metabolism and digestion
Effectively healing diarrhea, colitis, catarrh, reflux, leaky gut syndrome, irritable bowel syndrome
Improving the body's immune system and resistance to disease
Improving liver and gallbladder function
Effective treating acne and various skin disorders
Has anti-aging effect due to abundance of anti-oxidants in Kefir
Making your own kefir requires nothing more than milk or water, com offersan> grains and some basic kitchenware. com offersorHealth.comoffers an excellent “starter” recipe for Kefir, and you can easily find fun, tasty variations on this recipe online.
Once you become experienced at making your own probiotics at home, you’ll find it’s a great alternative to store-bought varieties. With a small investment of time and effort, you can enjoy the many benefits of cultured and fermented foods you prepare and enjoy as part of your diet for long-term health.