Fermenting spinach and lettuce

[Annemieke]

As we regularly have a glut of (perennial) spinach/chard and lettuce I
wonder whether you can ferment them? I can't find it in books or on
the internet. Thanks! Love, A.

[alice magooey]

Hi..well, chard was discussed here at the group last year as i remembered.
The red chard turns the fermenting liquid an interesting color.

i would think that perhaps spinach and lettuce are too limp an item to ferment.
I wonder if you shredded them and mixed them with a firmer substance, like shredded cabbabe or carrotts of that would make it a better finished product./

But i also remember having read that kale is often mashed and mashed and mashed and then  fermented. It is a pickle ( ferment ) which is apparently made in Tibet.. can't remember the name.. It is in the old posts also.

maybe there are more replies to this.
i can't remember if this group has a search function on the main page.
But there are not THAT many posts to go through.

best wishes,
alice

[Dan]

I have fermented taro leaves and other greens and they turn out nicely
so chard and spinach should as well. Basically I just cook the greens
well then mash roughly and inoculate with kefir whey (or a couple
spoons of kefir if I don't have the whey). Then I let sit at room
temp for two days with a bag of water on top. Makes a tangy "spinach
dip" which has a lot of good uses (the best being a cold snack right
from the fridge). Just follow the process at
http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Cookbook:Sour_Mashed_Sweet_Potato but
leave out the ginger and used mashed greens instead of the sweet
potato. I always use the kefir instead of the yogurt since kefir is a
room temperature ferment - and since I always have it around.

[Ross McKay]

G'day Annemieke,

>As we regularly have a glut of (perennial) spinach/chard and lettuce I
>wonder whether you can ferment them? I can't find it in books or on
>the internet.

As mentioned by others, you'll find some things about chard in the
archives (check Google). Also, there's mention of fermenting chard stems
in the book "Keeping Food Fresh", which has been reissued as the
following book (but hopefully still has most of the same stuff):

"Preserving Food without Freezing or Canning: ..."
by The Gardeners and Farmers of Centre Terre Vivante
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1933392592/

I've done it with beetroot stems (very similar to chard) and they make
for a nice crunchy vege to add to soups and stews.

When you say "spinach/chard" are you talking about one vegetable or two?
If one, i.e. spinach == silverbeet == chard, then note that you have to
be *really fastidious* about keeping chard leaves away from oxygen if
you want to ferment them like a kimchi. I did it once, just a simple
silverbeet and garlic and chili kimchi, with salt and water, and the
surface stuff went quite brown from the oxalates oxidising or something.
The stuff underneath was very tasty though, so worth the effort *if* you
can keep it all submerged well.

If by spinach you really mean spinach (known as English spinach in
Australia due to the habit of vege shops calling silverbeet spinach),
then yes, you can ferment that too. I've made a simple kimchi of spinach
and garlic, extremely tasty! Spinach and garlic seem to be made for each
other (much lamented favourite Chinese takeaway used to sell it often).
Mince the garlic, roughly chop the spinach, mix together with some salt
and leave to wilt for an hour or so in a bowl. Then pack into a jar with
something to weight it down, and leave to ferment. Yum!

Lettuce -- never tried it. I imagine it would work much the same, but
you'd want to wilt the chopped leaves in a bowl first before packing
into a jar.

However, note that lettuce makes for a good cooked vegetable too if you
just need another way to dispose of the stuff. We use it in some
stir-fries and hot pots. Favourite way is to make up a nice stew in a
big pot, chop the lettuce and layer it on top of the simmering stew, and
put the lid on. The lettuce steams nicely, and you just mix it into the
stew before serving. Works just as well in a pressure cooker. (We tend
to do that with coz lettuce, but I imagine it would work as well with
other types)
--
Ross McKay, Toronto, NSW Australia
"Let the laddie play wi the knife - he'll learn"
- The Wee Book of Calvin

[Gypsy Andrews]

I have also fermented greens, making a kale and collard "kraut" and
even did some beet tops. No pre-cooking though... just the usual
squeezing by hand or pounding with meat hammer to release juices and
salting it. If not enough liquid within a few hours, I add a little
water, which I guess is more like making a brine. All have turned out
wonderfully, although not always as crunchy as cabbage kraut/kimchi.
Experiment away! Your tastebuds will tell you if it's just not gonna
work out (or your friends you feed it to as guinea pigs : )

[Annemieke]

I've only just started, having found Sandor's Wild Fermentation, and
am overwhelmed with all the responses. I had the impression the group
ran a bit slow: how wrong I was. I may have to come back to you for
some details as I get stuck in! Thanks! Love, A.

[alice magooey]

THANK YOU GYPSY AND ROSS AND EVERYONE ELSE WHO IS POSTING HERE.

The ideas are invaluable and are not found in any books i have seen.
Personal experience is fantastic.
I should be as bold as you all and just try it.
( but do not have any guinea pigs to try the stuff on, except me)
I have had lots of success on kale and chard and cucumber and carrots ..That is about as far as i have gone..I will not go to beans or many other veggies..but i imagine i could shred almost any and add it to my briney mix..
i love this stuff.

and so healthful.

cheerio.and thanks again to all of you folks for posting your questions and responses.

much appreciated
alice

[Dan Culbertson]

Yep - for some reason we don't seem to post much until someone asks a question.  I think it is because we are all in the kitchen fermenting stuff all day long and eating it all night.  No time left for computers... :-)

Dan

 

Annemieke wrote: I had the impression the group

[alice magooey]

Dan said:

Yep - for some reason we don't seem to post much until someone asks a question.  I think it is because we are all in the kitchen fermenting stuff all day long and eating it all night.  No time left for computers... :-)

THAT IS SO FUNNY.. AND PROBABLY SO TRUE !!

OK NEW QUESTION:
the answers may be found for this elsewhere, and if so, please direct me.
I realise that time is very precious to all of us, and rather than take away from anyone's pickling time, i am more than happy to go find answers in other places..
But i think expertise may be first be found here..

Has anyone any ideas about either pickling fruit in a salt brine, or fermenting fruit in a Water Kefir  environment.?

I have had a batch of water kefir going for about a year.. and i usually use a dried apple slice to promote the delicious daily batches.

I think EVERYTHING fermented is far better for our digestive health than not fermented.
I eat a fair amount of fruit in my diet and would like to eat it in a fermented condition.
(not booze.. he he) UNPASTURISED.

anyone have any suggestions?
i was thinking of shredding apples and pears maybe greenish ones in a salt brine, with perhaps a touch of kale to help the fermentation process...and see how that goes.

also thinking about using shredded apples and pears in my kefir..I would use the sweetener i usually use in this one.

thoughts?
many thanks
alice

[Dan Culbertson]

Here is one for lacto-fermented kumquats ( http://sarahs-musings.blogspot.com/2008_06_01_archive.html  ).  It is adapted from Sally Fallon's book Nourishing Traditions.  I suspect you can use it for pretty much any fruit.  As soon as my kumquats are ripe in a few months  this is definitely on my list.  In fact I put in five more kumquat, calamondin, and limequat trees just to feed the hungry maw of the fermeting jars!  At least some of my plums next year are also getting fermented into plum sauce (or "duck sauce" but since I don't eat animal folks I just call it plum sauce).  Almost everything I fermet by this sort of whey process I use kefir whey since kefir does a good job of fermenting home-made say milk which, after straining, makes a nice white cheese with lots of whey left over.   Gotta make cheese to get that whey!  In all probablility you can just add a couple tablespoons of kefir if the final product doesn't need to be clear (like maybe a fermented milky jam?).  I think shredded apples would work great since they have a good bit of sugar.  However, kefir has some yeast that likes sugar along with the lactic acid so I hear there is always a bit of alcohol.  You can also use the juice or dried fruits.  See http://bearmedicineherbals.com/?p=376 for using dried elderberries - I've used this same recipe for fermenting ripe elderberry juice and other juices diluted half and half with water.  Finally, there is a beet kvass recipe at http://editor.nourishedmagazine.com.au/articles/beet-kvass which ought to be usable for a lot of fruits.  Basically just cut up into 1/2 to 1 inch chunks and add about two cups to a half gallon of water then the whey and a little salt.  Works really well for beets - maybe good for fruits that get cut up into chunks like apples.  I cooked and ate the beet chunks after storing the kvass juice since I hate wasting stuff so maybe the left over apple chunks from an apple version would be a pie filler or apple butter starter.

 

Dan 

[alice magooey]

Dan..THANK YOU ..this is FABULOUS INFORMATION..for my purposes also..
oh, ,i ,like you ,"do not eat animal folks"..he he..so fermenting animal things does not appeal to me, but everything else is 'fair game.' he he ho ho ha ha.
sorry.
THANK YOU ONCE AGAIN FOR THE POST AND THE LINKS AND THE INFO,
(shouting ,)
alice

[Dan Culbertson]

Here is another fruit recipe  I just found (in someone's blog - http://nourishingthewhole.blogspot.com/).   looks super duper!  I was actually looking for a fermented plum sauce recipe - this looks like a pretty good substitute.  :-)

 

Dan

Lacto-fermented Seasonal Fruit Compote
Packed with enzymes and digestive helpers, delicious over plain whole yogurt, or on toast, or even on fish.

5 plums
5 apricots
5 peaches
1/2 c whey
juice of 1 lemon
raw honey to taste
1/2 tsp sea salt
mint to garnish

Cut up fruit into a glass container. Add rest of ingredients, except mint. Mix, and cover for 1-3 days in a warm spot. Mix, taste and see if fermentation has occurred, will taste a bit zingy or tangy. Refrigerate

 

Alice wrote

[alice magooey]

WOW..ANOTHER FANTASTIC ONE.MANY THANKS
alice