My new experiment: Lactofermentation

Ok, so anyone who eats yogurt enjoys the benefits of lactofermentation, it's basically growing good bacteria, the kind that your tummy likes, in a milk medium.  I've found out that it can be used for preserving foods, too, and still with all the benefits to your tummy!  Not to mention, there's no cooking involved, so the food remains nutritionally dense during preservation, unlike canning or to a lesser extent, freezing.  So, because so many of us like to eat pickles on a regular basis, I've begun with those.  Here is a recipe from Sally Fallon's Nourishing Traditions, which I highly recommend (and it costs a lot less now than it did when I first bought it).

Pickled Cucumbers

Makes 1 Quart

4-5 pickling cucumbers or 15-20 gherkins
1 T mustard seeds
2 T Fresh dill, snipped
1 T sea salt
4 T whey (or substitute another T of sea salt)
1 cup filtered water
Also, I added 1 clove of garlic

Wash well and place in a quart sized, wide mouth mason jar.  Combine remaining ingredients and pour over cucumbers, adding more water if necessary to cover the cucumbers.  The top of the liquid should be at least 1 in below the top of the jar.  Cover tightly and keep at room temperature for about 3 days before transferring to cold storage (read refrigerator).

Dude, that's like so many times easier than normal pickles I can't even describe it... I mean, liming, sanitizing, heating vinegar and spices, salt, processing, and all in a hot kitchen is the normal modus operandus.  So, here are mine!

 

I used the extra salt because we've been using yogurt for soaking grains for eating and I'm running short of whey...  also, mine seem to be slightly foamy, which I fear may be detergent residue from washing them out?!  I'm trying sliced jalapenos next!

Anyway, with all this yogurt consumption, I'm thinking I need the big yogurt maker, so I can make like  a quart at a time, without having to wrap my jar in a towel and put it in a warm oven and hope for the best!  One like this:

 

Or, I could make kefir, which incubates at room temperature and can be used for soaking grains, too.

Or, I could make both, some yogurt for yogurt cheese, whey, and sauces, and the kefir for when I need the bacteria to predigest and counteract enzyme inhibitors in grains.... hmmmmmm....  so many little microbes to farm, so little time!