Fermented Foods
Sauerkraut and other fermented foods are far more than just traditional dishes – they are true powerhouses for your gut health. Discover how fermentation benefits your body and how to easily make fermented vegetables at home.
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It's slowly getting cooler, and so typical winter dishes are returning to our tables. Sauerkraut, a staple of traditional European cuisine, is one such dish.
Already in ancient Greece and the Roman Empire, vegetables were preserved through lactic acid fermentation. In the 18th century, it was discovered that a barrel of sauerkraut was indispensable aboard seafaring ships – thanks to its high vitamin C content, it was capable of preventing the dreaded vitamin C deficiency disease scurvy.
The principle behind making lactic acid-fermented vegetables is quite simple: lactic acid bacteria, which naturally occur on vegetables and our skin, convert the carbohydrates they contain into lactic acid.
This acidifies the environment and spoilage bacteria and mold have little chance to thrive. Fermented foods are therefore virtually imperishable.
Fermentation improves digestibility, because complex carbohydrates and proteins are already broken down into their components. For example, milk can be fermented into cheese, making it tolerable even for lactose-intolerant people, since the bacteria metabolize the milk sugar and break it down almost completely.
However, it's not only substances that are broken down, but also built up. The microorganisms produce a range of valuable nutrients during fermentation, such as vitamins and antioxidants. These include
Our gut also rejoices in the variety of microorganisms present, which enrich our intestinal flora. Just as in the sauerkraut barrel, lactic acid bacteria can also displace unwanted, pathogenic bacteria in our gut and thus ensure a healthy microbiome.
Ferments typically contain strains such as Lactococcus lactis, Streptococcus thermophilus, Lactobacillus bulgaricus, Lactobacillus acidophilus, Lactobacillus plantarum and Lactobacillus reuteri (2). Do any of these names sound familiar? You'll find some of them in our probiotics as well.
Clinical studies also prove the health effects of ferments. For example, regular consumption of kimchi (fermented napa cabbage) in prediabetic subjects led to weight loss, reduced blood pressure, and improved glucose tolerance in a third of participants (3). Impressive!
Before you stock up on canned sauerkraut at the supermarket, please read on. Because "fermented" doesn't automatically mean alive. That sauerkraut from the can is always pasteurized and contains almost no living bacterial cultures anymore.
If you want to buy fermented foods, you should look in the refrigerated section of your health food store. There you'll find kimchi, sauerkraut, kombucha and more in raw, living form.
The best option – and easier than you might think – is still to make it yourself.
You need:
Dissolve the salt in the water.
Chop the vegetables into small pieces. Carrots are best shredded with a grater. The smaller the pieces, the faster the fermentation. But you can also, for example, just quarter carrots.
Put your vegetables in the preserving jar and pour the salt water over them. The vegetables should be completely covered with the brine. It's best to use a weight (a clean stone, fermentation weight) to keep the vegetables submerged. If the vegetables still have contact with air, mold can quickly form.
If you want to ferment cabbage, skip the water and add the 20 g salt directly to 1 kg of chopped cabbage. Knead or pound the mixture until enough liquid has been released to cover the cabbage. In the old days, cabbage was actually stomped by foot ;)
Put the lid on, but don't screw it down completely so that fermentation gases can escape. A special fermentation airlock with a valve works best here.
Let your ferment sit undisturbed at room temperature and ferment. After a few days it will bubble, which is completely normal.
Depending on the size of the pieces, the ferment will be ready after 1–8 weeks. Shredded carrots should be sour enough after about 2 weeks. When you're happy with the taste, you can now store the ferment in the refrigerator.
And don't be alarmed:
Sometimes a layer forms on the ferment that at first looks like mold. Most of the time it's just harmless surface yeast, which you can simply remove or even eat. In case of doubt, use Google image search and compare ;)
We wish you bon appétit!
Fernández M, Hudson JA, Korpela R, de los Reyes-Gavilán CG. Impact on Human Health of Microorganisms Present in Fermented Dairy Products: An Overview. BioMed Res Int. 2015;2015:412714.
Wang Y, Wu J, Lv M, Shao Z, Hungwe M, Wang J, et al. Metabolism Characteristics of Lactic Acid Bacteria and the Expanding Applications in Food Industry. Front Bioeng Biotechnol. May 12, 2021;9:612285.
An SY, Lee MS, Jeon JY, Ha ES, Kim TH, Yoon JY, et al. Beneficial Effects of Fresh and Fermented Kimchi in Prediabetic Individuals. Ann Nutr Metab. August 17, 2013;63(1–2):111–9.
