What are you fermenting today?

Abi got to read my wild fermentation book while she was visiting. She also got to taste the ginger carrots and my kraut :D

I got a thumbs up on both, but her and hubby says the kraut needs to be a little stronger next time. Since I was a kraut newbie I took it easy. Next time I will make a jar of mild for me and some extra tangy stuff for those two.
 
4:13 AM? Go to bed, girl!!! :P Talk about insomnia!! You need a massage!

I have a couple pounds of cheese hanging from my kitchen cupboard door handle, made from Sandor Katz' recipe in his book, Wild Fermentation.

I used 6 quarts of goat's milk and 2 quarts of kefir, let it sit at 95-100 degrees for an hour and a half, then put in 20 drops of calf rennet and let it set up for an hour or so. Continued to hold it at body temp all this time, in a sink of hot water. Cut the curds and stirred occasionally (after a ten minute rest) for a while....close to an hour, maybe? Then scooped out the curds into a collander lined with muslin and layered them with red sea salt. Tied the cloth up and hung it overnight over the sink. Changed the cloth in the morning, salted the damp side, and re-hung. Same again that evening, with a little trimming and a little tasting for me, dh, and the dogs. Pretty good for such a simple, relaxed recipe!

I saved two quarts of whey for fermenting projects and soaking the critters grain. I love the sweet smell the barley gets when fermented with whey.

I plan on trying the recipe again with kefir only, and skipping the first step, since the kefir is pretty acidic from the start. I will go strait to renneting it after warming it up. The batch that is hanging now will not be aged, as we will eat it up fresh. It seems like it would cheddar very well, as there is quite a squeak on the teeth when you bite into it. Maybe I will wax and age the next batch, and practice that elusive virtue, patience! :P
 
Last night I bottled up two quarts of beet kvass for the goaties and put all the beets back into one big jar for the second "pressing."

I strained my usual quart of kefir and started another.

I bottled a little over six quarts of kombucha and started another two gallons.

I ate some of the new cheese for supper and put the rest in the fridge. I think I have fully achieved my goal to have fermented foods and drinks become a regular part of our diets....now the animals are all getting some, too.

I have a very long list of recipes to try from Wild Fermentation! Even things I don't like, just because I want to try making them....is that a sign of an obsession? :rolleyes:
 
LOL

Well, who knows? You might actually end up liking some of them. I thought it hated sauerkraut. Turns out I just hate commercially, over-processed canned sauerkraut. The fermented stuff is yummy.
 
Is it possible that I am doing my kombucha wrong because Dh & I have started drinking it straight. It taste like tart Martinelli's sparkling cider!

I bring 3 quarts of filtered water to a boil, add one cup of white sugar, stir to dissolve, remover from heat, add 5 organic black tea bags and steep until cool.
Does that sound right?
 
Depending on the temp in your fermenting area, it may need to go longer. A lot of people like it straight, but if it tastes sweet and not sour, it is not quite done. I just bottled a batch that took three full weeks. It is chilly here! It takes 7 days when it is in the 90's, 21 days when it is in the 50's for me.
 
The last batch I let go an extra day or so and it lost a little fizz. The house averages about 70.

It is definitely more tart than sweet, with a nice little fizz.....maybe I need to give it more time.
 
The correct answer is.....bottle it up whenever you want to! People with sugar issues just need to be more careful and wait for the sour.
 
I think I'm going to try my hand at sauerkraut! I just have to get some jars first. We are going to the store tomorrow so I might pick up a few there.

I looked at the wild fermentation guy's video regarding making it and it seems really easy. It saves us one less thing we have to buy and my husband eats that stuff all the time.
 
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