Stupid title.
Last week, I read Mark Sisson's post about naturally fermented pickles. In a nutshell, the stuff in the stores is heavily sweetened, and even if you buy the variety that
isn't full of HFCS, the rest is soaked in vinegar. This preserves the pickles longer and imparts that classic, or should I say "vlassic" (derp), sour taste.
The "problem" with pickling with vinegar is that it stops fermentation. Instead, he recommends fermenting in a simple salt water (plus spices) brine. Mark has written about the benefits of fermentation many times before, mainly that it helps promote digestive health via probiotics (lots of gut bacteria), and it makes certain nutrients more available for our bodies to use. Yogurt, sourkraut, kimchi, chocolate, and alcohol are all fermented to varying degrees.
All that is fine and dandy, but I was mostly attracted to the idea of DIY. I own a jar, I can buy salt and cucumbers, and water is free. I went with a little garlic and a splash of apple cider vinegar for flavor. Here you go:
I let this batch sit for 9 days on my desk, and now they are sitting in the fridge. I cut out a small piece to test: very salty, not quite as crunchy as I would like, but not a terrible taste. I've been having some stomach problems the past few days, so I'm going to wait for that to clear up before I really jump into the world of probiotics. I'll have a full taste review in a few days.
Thanks for reading!
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