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This article is part of the Main Preservation Methods Overview series. Check out the rest of the series here!
Why Ferment?
Put simply, fermentation is the process of microorganisms breaking down the sugars and other components of a food.
What this means for you is a tangy taste, benefits for your digestive and immune systems, and extending the life of your fermentable produce and herbs. Fermented foods actually have more benefits after fermentation than they did as raw produce.
Of course, there are other types of fermentation in addition to the methods mentioned below, including sourdough starters as well as beverages like kombucha, beer, wine, mead, and more. But these are not primarily used to preserve garden harvests, which is the focus of our discussion.
Let's get into the types of fermentation you can use to extend, preserve, and even improve your harvest.
Fermentation Methods
Traditional sauerkraut strictly uses cabbage and salt, but today there are many other krauts and creative twists on sauerkraut. Most other members of the Brassicaceae (cabbage) family like kohlrabi and radishes are suitable as a kraut base.
Other wild and cultivated foods can be mixed in with your kraut base as well. Purslane, lambs ear, root vegetables like carrots and beets, and herbs like thyme and sage are a few more common additions. But feel free to get creative!
Ideally your produce mixture at least 50% Brassica before adding salt. Krauts do not use water.
Kimchi is another fermented food native to Korea. It uses lactic acid to ferment cabbage and other ingredients. Some kimchis are prepared similarly to kraut, while others have more in common with pickles.
Per the book Fermented Vegetables (find it here), certain relishes, chutneys, and salsas qualify as fermented condiments, and many of them use a similar process to sauerkraut and kimchi. Other condiments can be made using fermented ingredients as a base and then adding an oil, vinegar, extract, or honey – including the herb-infused versions of these – to this base.
Forms of pickling (also mentioned in our canning overview article) that use a salty brine also fall under the category of fermentation. Not all pickles fall into this category since some do not use salt. Quick pickles are not fermented.
Fermentation Containers
A few different types of containers can be used for fermentation.
Mason jars are a common vessel. Just be sure to use a non-metal lid since fermented foods are highly acidic and can react with metal. These Burp Lids are very popular, and they use a type of plastic that also does not react with the fermented mixture.
I'm also a huge fan of Harvest Guard reusable lids (wide mouth and regular mouth) for canning in general. They can work well for fermentation as well, though they must be unscrewed to "burp" them since they do not have a special flap for that purpose like the Burp Lids do.
Ceramic vessels with lids are a traditional, time-tested option. Be sure that your vessel is lead-free, especially if it is older. This crock comes in gallon and half-gallon sizes. Both sizes include fermentation weights as well.
Ziploc bags can also be used since they do not contain BPA or other leach-likely toxins that other plastics contain. I like these freezer bags since they have the strongest seal, but these storage bags work fine as well.
The last article in our Main Preservations Overview series will discuss another preservation technique, root cellar storage. Check out the root cellar storage overview here!