Ferment Your Way to Good Health: Vegan Edition

By Elisabeth Fekonia

Ferment your way to good health is a result of becoming food self-sufficient on the farm. This book covers a wide range of fermented foods especially written for vegan and dairy free diets. The resulting recipes and instructions are brought into a basic and easy to understand book that anyone with a desire to increase their overall health can follow.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris AU
• Release date: Jun 13, 2021
• ISBN: 9781664105423

Elisabeth Fekonia

Elisabeth Fekonia has been practicing self-sufficiency on their 6 acres at Black Mountain in southeast Queensland for thirty years. For the past eighteen years she has been teaching home food production to help others achieve the same skills on living of the land. www.permacultureproduce.com.au

Book preview

Ferment Your Way

to Good Health

VEGAN EDITION

Elisabeth Fekonia

Copyright © 2021 by Elisabeth Fekonia. 827085

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or

transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,

including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage

and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the

copyright owner.

Xlibris

AU TFN: 1 800 844 927 (Toll Free inside Australia)

AU Local: 0283 108 187 ([phone] from outside Australia)

www.xlibris.com.au

ISBN:      Softcover     978-1-6641-0543-0

               EBook          978-1-6641-0542-3

Rev. date: 06/01/2021

Contents

Ferment your way to good health

Vegan Cheese and Cultured Dairy Substitutes

Almond milk

Cheddar

Havarti

Brie

Halloumi

Meltable Cheddar

Blue Vein

Camembert

Mozzarella

Rich Creamy Sauce for Pasta or Lasange

Cultured Cream Cheese

Sour Cream

Cashew Cream for Cooking

Cultured Butter

Cultured Raw Buttermilk

Yoghurt

Fermented Grains

Sourdough Bread

Sourdough Crackers

Indian Steamed Bread Idli

Pancakes Made from Fermented Rice and Lentils – Dosa

Sourdough Wraps

Ogi

Fermented Polenta Fingers

Soured Porridge

Five Grain Cereal Mix

Five Grain Fermented Porridge

Ama Koji ~ Sweet Koji

Thin porridge to make Ama Koji

Fermented Brown Rice

Fermented Legumes

Making Tempeh

Miso- How to make old-fashioned koji (starter)

Miso – making the modern starter (koji)

Shoyu Sauce

Natto

Tofu

Fermented Bean Pate

Fermented Fruit and Vegetables

Fermented Apricot Spread

Fermented Raisin Chutney

Fermented Pineapple/ Mango Chutney

Fermented Fruit Paste

Sauerkraut

Kimchi

Cucumber Pickle

Carrot and Ginger

Fermented Tomato Sauce

Nuka Doca

Fermented Beverages

Fermented Rice Milk

Rejuvelac

Ginger Beer

Ginger Beer

Lactic Fermented Ginger Ale

Water Kefir

Water Kefir Soft Drink

Orange-Ginger Carrot Kvass

Kombucha Tea

Beet Kvass

Ferment your way to good health

What are fermented foods?

In days of old, people knew how to extend the life of their food without the advantage of our modern storage methods. Organisms were employed to do the job of preserving or pickling foods and beverages. These organisms consist of certain types of bacteria, yeasts, moulds or fungi or a combination of these. Most ferments are made with lactic-forming bacteria, and this will give the food a slightly sour taste. Other foods such as miso, soy sauce and tempeh are mould-based ferments, and fermented tea or kombucha is an example of a fungi- or mushroom-based ferment.

Health benefits of fermented foods

Fermented food added to the daily diet is the best way of preventing disease. These powerhouse foods will help to eliminate inflammation, which is the cause behind many illnesses such as cancer and heart disease, excess cholesterol, and Alzheimer’s. Eliminate inflammation and you will cut down the risk of disease. Modern research shows that beneficial bacteria, otherwise known as probiotics (the opposite of antibiotics), help balance the gut flora in your digestive system and reduce the levels of toxic pathogens that cause ill health. Other research also suggests that the regular consumption of live lactobacilli bacteria can improve your gut flora and reduce the number of infections by reducing pathogens.

Fermented foods enhance digestion

There are many digestive enzymes found in fermented foods and these will spare your own enzymes. Enzymes will aid digestion, increase vitamin levels, they are bowel cleansing, and result in the general improvement of our good health. Many people suffer toxicity from stress, exposure to chemicals and pollutants from the environment and/or a poor diet. All these factors affect our gut and digestive health, and these live probiotic foods are the first line of defence to build up a healthy immune system. Allergies can also be corrected with these probiotics; they can also help to prevent migraines, lethargy, or just feeling tired. Fermentation breaks down the nutrients in foods by the action of beneficial microorganisms and creates natural chelators that are available to bind toxins and remove them from the body.

Some examples of fermented foods

Sourdough bread, vegan cultured cheese, and cultured foods such as sauerkraut, kimchi, miso, tempeh, soy sauce and wine are but a few examples of fermented foods and beverages. As you can see in this book from the many and varied types of ferments that are available, any food or drink can be fermented and there is nothing to stop you from experimenting and creating your own. In times of old before the industrial age, people naturally knew to ferment a proportion of their food and drinks to enhance flavour, extend the life of their foods, and for a general feeling of good health. Since modern-day food storage, the old ways have been largely forgotten but in recent times a huge revival is taking place and many people are waking up to the taste and health benefits of fermented foods. I can’t imagine a day going by without eating or drinking something fermented as it keeps me feeling ‘just right’. I would really miss it after a few days of going without, so watch out – fermented food can become addictive!

Where to get fermented foods

Unfortunately, live fermented foods are ridiculously hard to find in retail outlets, the exception being kimchi which can be found in Asian supermarkets. Coconut yoghurt is another example, but some contain too much sugar. Sauerkraut is mostly pasteurised unless you can find the organic varieties, and a lot of sourdough breads are not true sourdoughs either. The fermentation process involves time, and the manufacturer always looks for shortcuts to reduce overheads and consequently there are many fake fermented foods around.

I think you may be concluding that fermented foods and beverages need to be made by you, at home, in your own kitchen. This is not necessarily a scary thing, although often newcomers to fermentation are rather worried of getting it wrong and think they may make their friends and family sick with their fermenting efforts. The reason for this fear is understandable as leaving food at room temperature to ferment instead of keeping it cold in the fridge for safe keeping, seems like a very contradictory thing to do. Therefore, the purpose of this book is to demystify the art of fermentation, so you the reader, will have a greater understanding of how it all works and won’t be afraid of doing it for yourself.

Safety aspect of fermented food

I am often asked how can you be sure that fermented foods are safe to eat? This question is easily answered. No matter how civilised we deem ourselves to be, we still have that inherent little voice inside us that will tell us if something smells and tastes healthy or not. So do trust your instinct. Is the smell healthy or not? Fermented foods all have their own particular aroma and though they may smell unfamiliar to you, you can still tell if that smell is healthy or if it has gone off. Do not be afraid to trust your own instincts when it comes to fermented foods. You can decide if it is safe to consume when you see that it looks and smells healthy. I recommend you make a habit to smell and taste any fermented food you come across to become familiar with how they should look smell and taste.

Acidity is what keeps food safe – just like with making traditional chutneys and relishes, the presence of vinegar creates an acidic environment that keeps the pickled food from spoiling. Lactic fermentation also