The other day, I volunteered with some of my co-workers at a local food bank. Our job was to sort donated shelf-stable goods, throwing away items that were damaged, opened or past their expiration date. Five years ago, I did the … Read more
Author Archives: Austin
It Takes a Viili
Viili (spelled with two i’s) is a cultured milk drink– a Scandinavian version of yogurt. It’s milder tasting and stringier than yogurt, but still contains loads of helpful lactic acid bacteria. I felt privileged when my good friend Niina (spelled with two i’s) … Read more
Links on the Science of Fermentation
I’ve combed the interwebs to come up with some interesting links relating to the scientific and biological processes involved in fermentation. In researching these links, I aimed to steer clear of any articles which make specific health claims. Just the facts. … Read more
Making Miso (A Recipe in Pictures)
Recipe adapted from Sandor Katz’ Red Miso recipe from his book Wild Fermentation.
Traditional Kimchi (made with pepper powder)
A spicy and relatively short ferment, kimchi offers an unlimited canvas on which to paint different flavors. By varying the amount of ginger, garlic, fish sauce, and red peppers (or by adding any other ingredients!) you can customize the taste … Read more
Connecting our Guts
I recently had the pleasure of co-hosting the first meeting of the Sonoma County Fermenters Club. There were folks from all fermenting skill levels, and we were gifted with the use of a wonderful space– the tasting room at Old … Read more
♫ Podcastin’ USA ♫
I recently had the pleasure of chatting about fermentation with Sam Coffman of The Human Path. I love the work he is doing promoting self-sufficiency and teaching survival skills, and fermenting foods can play a part in the self-sufficient lifestyle. … Read more
Yogurt
Culturing dairy products adds enzymes and provides probiotic benefits. This is an especially helpful process when using pasteurized milk, where the original enzymes and living biota have been cooked out. Use raw or pasteurized (but not ultra-pasteurized) cow or goat’s … Read more
Year-Round Gratitude: Top 5 Ways to Give
With it being the last day on the calendar to make your charitable contributions this year, I thought I would share some ways that I give back to all those organizations that fight the good fight. And if you are … Read more
Kimchi (made with fresh peppers)
A spicy and relatively short ferment, kimchi offers a unlimited canvas on which to paint different flavor variations. Many kimchi recipes use pepper powders/mixes to slather every last morsel of the veggies. This recipe uses only fresh peppers with some … Read more