As a microbiologist I'm all for the science. The tastier the better. You two do an excellent job sharing the important details of how to do this all safely.
Starting to wonder if sour candies were meant to mimic fermented foods, at least initially, and our craving for these sour candies are actually just cravings for fermented foods...
That's a really good observation! I've always wondered why I'd crave sour foods, mine being salt and vinegar chips or store bought, vinegar-doused pickles, but I never had anything truly fermented with a salt brine until I made my first batch of sauerkraut. I'm absolutely in love with homemade fermented kraut now, and I've noticed my desire for unhealthy sour treats disappear!
probably the acids in a round flavor profile are attractive and feel different. Our taste and cravings are probably some sort of adaptation to a correct diet, and most cooking has some balance of two flavors and maybe tastes good because our bodies are seem to keep track of what we need. Like why sugary soda goes well with salty pizza. I'm sure there is actual history behind sour candy but I wouldn't be surprised if it was just inspired from lemonade and the citric acid it has.
most fruits before modern hybridzation were much more sour than todays produce. it's maybe just that your body is accustomized to the sweet-and-sour profile of something like currants, crab apples or gooseberries.
Hey all, hope you enjoyed the video and have a good start to your week! Drop a like on this comment if you have tried a fermentation project before or comment something you want to try to ferment in the future
This is a very common practice to naturally extract fruit essences in Korea, and probably lots of other cultures. My aunts and uncles do this every year with all sorts of seasonal fruits and annually make an essence with a stone fruit called maesil. It might be the same fruit as the Japanese ume, the tart green plums. They use these essences as sweeteners when cooking, in salad dressings, mixed with hot water as tea or cold water or chilled sparkling water as a refreshing drink. They’re GREAT digestion aids!
graceatbaker Very cool! Yea fermentation has been around for hundreds of years, but thankfully it’s starting to become a more well known thing you can do at home (like your aunts and uncles already do!)
Just a notes. The white stuff on the berries is yeast. Salt kills the yeast and leaves the bacteria to thrive. Good video tho. I really enjoyed it and just ordered that book. I heard of noma from the rich roll podcast
Yes, you are right about that, and yeast fermentation happens even easier with fruits, without any salt. What I want to know is how can we get the fruit to ferment its own vinegar to preserve them in vinegar. There's no information on the internet whatsoever about that.
Its not recommended to use a plastic bag as a weight, since the acids created can leach plastic into your ferment. This is especially true if using a water brine.
As well as not using a newspaper with toxic ink to funnel the blueberries into the glass container. As well as not using a steel fork to scoop out the fermented blueberries. I’ve had my ferments spoil due to people digging into them with steel forks. You can always weigh down the blueberries with a ramikin.
Thank you. I was wondering about the plastic, this is the second recipe tonight I've seen using a plastic bag filled with water to use as a weight for lacto fermentation
depends on the quality of the bag, but also, fruit acids are not generally powerful enough. when recycling plastic, much stronger acids like sulfuric are used.
The flavors options are good, but the health benefits are amazing. Fermented vegetables and even some fruits are probiotics and the best form you can buy. There are people out there paying anywhere from $20-$300 a month to buy probiotics, things like sauerkraut and kimchi and fermented vegetables and fruits are the best probiotics you can possibly get, it’s what the expensive medical style probiotics try to mimic. With fruit it’s not as effective as the vegetable probiotic but it still has probiotics in them. The reason fruit is different is because it has a lot of sugar in it, that can promote yeast and mold growth. Usually the fermentation you get a little yeast or cloudiness in the water on top, it’s not horrible unless it gets way out of hand but you wanna keep as much air in oxygen out of there as possible. Vegetables are kind of the same with flavor, if you cut them up into small bite sizes. You could also mix vegetables but a lot of them are really good like carrots. And you can mix, I like to put jalapeños and garlic or different peppers in with the carrots. You can do cucumbers and they’re like pickles but they get pretty soft. Peppers celery cabbage beets. A lot of people will mix cabbage and beets to add a little sweetness. I hate kimchi/sauerkraut, But if you can break it up with other flavors it can make it better. I really like to experiment with the peppers and you can also use herbs and different spices as long as they don’t have a lot of salt in them. With the vegetables you’re basically making a brine solution with salt, so if you had a salty spice like a Cajun spice that have salt in it you want to adjust and take a little of the salt out of your brining solution. Carrots are really good and if you cut them up in a little bites you can just throw it in with salads or eat it straight. A little garlic and a little pepper in there for spice is a great option. Medicinally it’s amazing food. I love the idea of the bag to displace the oxygen. In canning supplies they sell little glass pucks that you can use but they’re kind of expensive. One thing I would suggest, you removed the seal on your jar to let the gases escape. You don’t want the seal to be open because that lets oxygen in. They sell what they call burping lids or gassing lids that are basically a one-way valve or just a rubber tip that allows the expanding gases to escape, or you can do what’s called burping where you loose in the top of the jar a couple times a day to let those gases out but you don’t want to let oxygen have a way in, that’s when you get the bacterial growth and yeast problems. They sell the stuff on Amazon and almost anywhere where they do canning and it just makes it a lot easier, it just works with mason jars. The only other thing I can think of is to use distilled water or good purified water, you definitely don’t want tapwater because chlorine will kill off the natural enzymes in the fruits and vegetables which is what you’re promoting the growth of in the fermentation process.
Hi Ethan, I got the Noma book from my library, it was intriguing, to say the least. I am currently fermenting hot peppers, garlic, sour kraut, and onions separately. I am excited to try fruit next.
Im excited to learn about this and come up with some new recipes. I especially love working with contrasting flavors to create something else entirely.
Just a note: for fermenting in warm climates (or houses) you should add more salt, like 2.5-3%. In my area, many houses are typically 80-85 degrees inside.
I have not heard that before. What is the science behind it? Noma does their ferments at 82 degrees and recommends starting at 2%. LAB are going to be different around the world, so it may be less a temperature thing and more a localized LAB population thing.
I wonder why the fermentation here turned into a *Lacto fermentation* not an *Alcohol fermentation*? Also, yes you did cover the berries with a bag of water. but there is plenty of empty space in between the berries. Isn't that supposed to cause mold growth? Third question, is the result liquid = lactic acid? It's not ethanol nor acitic acid right?
This is what I'm thinking about preserving fruits: make a jam, which requires a bad amount of sugar, and then ferment the jam with yeast to convert the sugar to alcohol, making an alcoholic jam. What do you think?
You would need to water the jam down to ferment it wouldn't you.. and at that point you might as well go straight to making alcohol from the fruit wouldn't you. This is intended to cut down on sugar .. By making alcohol instead. Confusing idea
Solid information I’ve done this with sauerkraut and tomatoes garlic and onions but never thought about fruit even though tomatoes are fruit but not really
You guys are GREAT! Question: do you find the acid from the ferment is a problem with the metal lids? I've been told it can be, and so use BPA free plastic lids (there are also not QUITE as airtight as the metal and so serve a similar purpose to removing the gasket on the type of jar you use) Now I will switch to Mommy moe: I think the newspaper is a smart way to use what you have - but dang guys - get a canning funnel! LOL!)
I would like to cast a vote for a sourdough starter series You could walk us through day by day how to start it, feed it, what the mixture looks like each day and then bake with it 🤘🏻🤘🏻🤘🏻🤘🏻🤘🏻🤘🏻🤘🏻🤘🏻
I was really into sourdough about 2 years ago, but my starter has long died, so a new sourdough series would be great idea, maybe in November or December!
Cook with E Cool 😎 I bought a starter when I as in California for sourdough that was around during the gold rush lol I started it and a regular starter, made some bread then got lazy and let them die 💀
If I’m using a regular mason jar with a screw on top to ferment the fruit, do I just put the whole lid on or do I need to use something else to cover the lid?
I was wondering the same thing. I have a few jars of home made apple sauce in them. The tops started to bulge so I cracked the tops until I heard the gas bleed out and put them in fridge. Looking for tips so I will watch some of these how to's.
Sarah Fewkes Thanks for watching! I’ve definitely considered it. Likely this fall or winter. I was really into sourdough like 1-2 years ago, but then let my starter die :( it may be time to renew it!
@@EthanChlebowski it is devastating loosing a starter. I had one for over 2 years and one day when I was introducing some air to it with my handheld whisk I blew the bottom of my jar off and lost my starter across the floor. No starters I have created since have been the same, moved house and the local flour mill I used is no longer local. Sigh
Can you try to Lacto ferment Pomegranate ? Google a research paper by the terms "Pomegranate Lacto ferment" and it's said to be 10 times more potent and better at DPPH scavenging and 4 times at SO- scavenging antioxidants. Also, I wanted to ask if it would be okay if I don't add salt to ferment the blueberries ?
Sounds interesting, I could give it a shot. The salt is necessary in order to lacto ferment the blue berries. It creates an environment that will help ward of bad microbes and let the LAB survive.
Hey ethan, it's normal to feel a little sparkling in my tong when I made a lacto fermentation ? In this case was a cucumber lacto fermentation, 2%, 6 days, doesn't smell bad and has a good sournes too
Overall good information. I Love fermented lacto foods and of course ethanol ferments as well. One small detail, organic foods do contain pesticides. They are just are organic ones. I dont know why this myth persists. As a general rule, they have to use more of them in greater quantity as bugs have developed resistance to them.
When I first found your channel I assumed you were associated with a larger company due to your production value and your presence, I found that wasn't the case. But I like seeing the more casual side of some of your earlier videos.
This is new to me. You put fermented blueberries on top of pancakes... That means they don't taste salty??? I must try to make this and find out! Thanks for the great video.
Great video guys thank you. As I have been on the carnivore diet for a while, now slowly I am introducing the vegetables in my diet. I am wondering if we can fermented organic frozen blueberries instead of fresh as it is not always easy to find them?
Glad you enjoyed. Frozen blueberries should work if you thaw them ahead of time. Since LAB is all around us, it should be introduced through handling the berries.
@@EthanChlebowski thank you so much, I will try to fermented some frozen berries today, and summer is almost here in New Zealand so it is better to stock some blueberries from organic farms 👍
No need to wash them, you want all of the lactic acid bacteria on the skin! If there is any noticeable dirt, you can lightly rinse them with water, but do not scrub.
I don't understand this salt thing, my grandmother did the same with wild cherries but with sugar instead and it came out sweet and decently alcoholic, and it didn't spoil even in many years, isn't better than using salt?
This video is about lacto fermentation which creates sour flavors by transforming sugars into lactic acid. I would assume your grandma made maraschino cherries, which are *first preserved in a salt brine* and then rinsed and sweet syrup or sugar is added where they can be canned (or jarred), but they first had to use a pickling solution with salt. One is not better than the other, it's just about what flavor you are looking to create and use the ingredient in.
Not really maraschino, it was a wild cherry well known in eastern europe as "visine" here in ita is called visciola which is small, bitter and with little flesh, and i assure you no salt whatsoever was used, not trying to be polemic, i just wanted to share, ive seen it many times, just sugar and cherries on a glass jar under the sun for the first month then bottled and it came out a strong and sweet cherry wine 😋😋
@@tombal7408 Interesting, I've not heard of such a thing. I just read a little piece on visinata and it says the mix sour cherries, sugar, and alcohol. Pretty cool. But yea it's different 'cooking' method depending on what flavor you are going for.
@@EthanChlebowski visinata? Cool, here in lazio region is called visciolata, some people added chocolate or in other regions wine to the concoction, a couple of times i tasted bottles aged around 30 years, the best thing ever!
It's salt only, the recipe is straight from the Noma book. After a day the liquid leeches out from the berries in effect creating a brine. Are you talking freezing before fermenting or freezing after they have been fermented?
@@EthanChlebowski I see, but the book or not, the thing is, that they don't ferment at least that fast because they are left to leak the juices, which does not happen as fast as, for example, with veggies, which can take several tens of minutes only. As for freezing and sweetness, it is difficult to say, because it depends on how long one will pickle for after being frozen or how long they will be eating after freezing (so it can continue fermenting or not). The sweetness after freezing comes from the plants' cellular membrane breaking and leaking sugars out. So if those ferment, they will make it a bit more sour rather than sweet. If frozen after, things will get a bit sweeter but only for the 1st period, before the microbes ferment the sugars again. So you decide
aregst I’m not sure I’m following you. A brine isn’t necessary for fermentation to occur. It is used to help create the anaerobic environment. That in addition to the salt is what allows the LAB is to thrive. In this method the water bag is used in place of the a brine to establish the anaerobic environment so that fermentation can occur. Noma has done extensive research on fermentation, and in the testing of the these methods. These fruits will ferment using this method. If you wanted to use a brine you could do so, however part of the benefit of not using is the liquid that comes from the berries which can be used for drinks, vinaigrette’s, purées, etc.
I would like to make a vegan cheese of cashew nuts, but how do I start the ferment or create ferment for that? Or Can I use some of the ferment that was made within this Video?
That's a really cool idea. Getting enough pectin would be the issue though haha. I may try using the lacto juice for a jam though, you have me thinking!
Will it affect the berries if you split them into separate jars after mixing with salt? Thought I had a bigger jar at home and realized I didn't after mixing lol.
tried it after getting the boom last week , not sure if i left it too long but got a serious alcohol/ ethanol smell from them , has to be binned . is it essential to keep the oxygen out ?
Thanks for the video. I just fermented mine for 7 days using the book, but not watching this video first. I did not taste every day and mix it up. I see what looks like white mold in a couple of places up high. The brine has not filled the jar like it should by now. Should I throw this out or try mix the brine up and let it keep going?
I am pretty sure that any batch with signs of mould is straight out ruined and should be tossed out. Remember to carefully wash the container afterwards before using it again.
Actually, I looked into this a bit and there is a good chance the white stuff is kahm yeast that can be skimmed off safely. Anything green or bluish would be a huge no-go, though.
If you purchased non-organic store bought fruits or veggies for fermentation, could you just leave them sitting out overnight to collect bacteria in the surrounding air?
Wouldn’t be advisable as the fruit including inner layers has absorbed all the chemicals and carcinogens from the plethora of vile pesticides and fungicides etc… It’s never really advisable to eat any fruit or veg that isn’t organic and non GMO. There is a reason that almost everyone has chronic health conditions these days and many many people get cancer. Nearly all food is a toxic hazard. Try to eat non GMO and organic wherever possible.
Maybe it’s a different breed or something Edit: So I did a quick internet search, and it’s possible that the Blueberries that you’re thinking of are actually Bilberries (whose Swedish name actually does mean blue-berry) which have very similar berries, but different plants.
Spaide man This is perfectly fine for Lacto fermentation. Bacteria is all around us both good and bad. During the first stage of the fermentation is when the good bacteria (LAB) will take hold in the salty environment because it can tolerate it, unlike bad bacteria like clostridium botulinum. If you sterilized everything for Lacto fermentation, you would essentially kill all the microbe life including LAB and may not be able to ferment. This is why for Lacto fermentation, Noma says you do not need to use gloves to handle and actually using your hands could help in part some of that good guy bacteria we are after. There is likely bad bacteria on your hands too, but due to the anaerobic and salty environment it will should not take hold. It was a new newspaper, not an old cruddy one run through the dirt or something ;)
What this means is that the environment likely has too much oxygen wear mold can grow. 1. Remove oxygen - Likely the #1 culprit. The water in the ziploc bag and crock jar method isn't the most ideal for removing oxygen compared to 1. Vacuum Sealing the berries and salt or 2. Using a fermentation airlock lid over the jar. These are the lids I have started using: amzn.to/2OjlUh3 2. Try fermenting the berries in a brine. Obviously, you lose out on the potentness of the berry juices, but you still get the berries. My video on that is here: th-cam.com/video/Jg5LSeVleDU/w-d-xo.html
You made and error when explaining the release of gasses from the jars @about 4:19 carbon dioxide is not the dangerous gas that needs to be released. The gas that presents danger and promotes rot is ethylene gas - a byproduct given off by produce as it ripens. This gas is also responsible for accelerating the decay of food. like the vid keep up the good work!!!
Loudin Clear Glad you enjoyed. Ethylene is not a product of Lacto fermentation. The chemical products of Lacto fermentation are lactic acid and carbon dioxide. The carbon dioxide causes carbonation which is why we want to release it. If left too long that carbonation will build up which isn’t what we want here or at worst it could actually explode your jar. Ethylene is a gas that is let off naturally as fruit ripen on their own. This isn’t what we are doing here since we are creating an environment for Lacto fermentation. I’m not sure of any sources that speak of any sources that specifically speak to how fermentation affects ethylene for given fruits. The primary reason to let gas release is to avoid carbon dioxide build up.
@@EthanChlebowski You are correct I apologize... I mistakenly stated ethyline rather than ethanol ... H₂SO₄,dehydration takes place to give ethylene. This reaction involves protonation of ethanol to form protonated alcohol,which loses water to give carbocation. On deprotonation, carbocation gives ethylene. I am just learning that despite their complexity, the whole basis of lactic acid fermentation centers on the ability of lactic acid bacteria to produce acid, which then inhibits the growth of other non-desirable organisms. All lactic acid producers are micro-aerophilic, that is they require small amounts of oxygen to function. Species of the genera Streptococcus and Leuconostoc produce the least acid. Next are the heterofermentative species of Lactobacillus which produce intermediate amounts of acid, followed by the Pediococcus and lastly the homofermenters of the Lactobacillus species, which produce the most acid. Homofermenters, convert sugars primarily to lactic acid, while heterofermenters produce about 50% lactic acid plus 25% acetic acid and ethyl alcohol and 25% carbon dioxide. These other compounds are important as they impart particular tastes and aromas to the final product. The heterofermentative lactobacilli produce mannitol and some species also produce dextran.
I have fermented many different vegetables but not fruit. I was wondering why you didn't crush the berries to remove all the air space between them. I would worry that it would grow mold. Does the salt help to kill the wild yeast on the berries? Otherwise you may end up with hooch instead. Great video!
The liquid that leaches out of berries fills in the air space in between them and the ziploc bag on top will keep out any more oxygen from getting in! Then the salt level will promotoe LAB growth will killing off other unwanted microbes. The main reason not to crush them is to keep structural integrity, that being said, if you know you are going to be mashing or pureeing the berries anyway, you could crush them. Alternatively, you can ferment in a vacuum sealed bag to ensure there is not any air, but I have not had issues using the crock method with the ziploc water bag on top!
Shelly Pfluger For lacto fermentation to occur you need the lactic acid bacteria (LAB) that exists on the berries naturally. I would suspect frozen blueberries would have killed all LAB. That being said, I would just try a small batch anyway and see what happens! Thawing the berries ahead of time (before applying salt) in open air may reintroduce LAB to the skin of the berries.
James Bowens That’s a great question. The fermentation does change glucose into acetic acid, so it should lower the sugar, but by how much, I’m not sure.
As a microbiologist I'm all for the science. The tastier the better. You two do an excellent job sharing the important details of how to do this all safely.
Starting to wonder if sour candies were meant to mimic fermented foods, at least initially, and our craving for these sour candies are actually just cravings for fermented foods...
That's a really interesting thought. I wonder if anyone has done research into the area!
That's a really good observation! I've always wondered why I'd crave sour foods, mine being salt and vinegar chips or store bought, vinegar-doused pickles, but I never had anything truly fermented with a salt brine until I made my first batch of sauerkraut. I'm absolutely in love with homemade fermented kraut now, and I've noticed my desire for unhealthy sour treats disappear!
probably the acids in a round flavor profile are attractive and feel different. Our taste and cravings are probably some sort of adaptation to a correct diet, and most cooking has some balance of two flavors and maybe tastes good because our bodies are seem to keep track of what we need. Like why sugary soda goes well with salty pizza. I'm sure there is actual history behind sour candy but I wouldn't be surprised if it was just inspired from lemonade and the citric acid it has.
U just did something
most fruits before modern hybridzation were much more sour than todays produce. it's maybe just that your body is accustomized to the sweet-and-sour profile of something like currants, crab apples or gooseberries.
Hey all, hope you enjoyed the video and have a good start to your week!
Drop a like on this comment if you have tried a fermentation project before or comment something you want to try to ferment in the future
You can leave the rubber gasket in place and it will self burp.
I ferment my vegetables in Fido jars with the gasket ❤️
This is a very common practice to naturally extract fruit essences in Korea, and probably lots of other cultures. My aunts and uncles do this every year with all sorts of seasonal fruits and annually make an essence with a stone fruit called maesil. It might be the same fruit as the Japanese ume, the tart green plums. They use these essences as sweeteners when cooking, in salad dressings, mixed with hot water as tea or cold water or chilled sparkling water as a refreshing drink.
They’re GREAT digestion aids!
graceatbaker Very cool! Yea fermentation has been around for hundreds of years, but thankfully it’s starting to become a more well known thing you can do at home (like your aunts and uncles already do!)
Just a notes. The white stuff on the berries is yeast. Salt kills the yeast and leaves the bacteria to thrive. Good video tho. I really enjoyed it and just ordered that book. I heard of noma from the rich roll podcast
Yes, you are right about that, and yeast fermentation happens even easier with fruits, without any salt. What I want to know is how can we get the fruit to ferment its own vinegar to preserve them in vinegar. There's no information on the internet whatsoever about that.
@@lukejones1244 i think if you wait until your fruit ferments to alcohol, then wait some more, it will go vinegar.
Its not recommended to use a plastic bag as a weight, since the acids created can leach plastic into your ferment. This is especially true if using a water brine.
As well as not using a newspaper with toxic ink to funnel the blueberries into the glass container. As well as not using a steel fork to scoop out the fermented blueberries. I’ve had my ferments spoil due to people digging into them with steel forks.
You can always weigh down the blueberries with a ramikin.
Thank you. I was wondering about the plastic, this is the second recipe tonight I've seen using a plastic bag filled with water to use as a weight for lacto fermentation
depends on the quality of the bag, but also, fruit acids are not generally powerful enough. when recycling plastic, much stronger acids like sulfuric are used.
Can’t wait to try. Never thought of doing it with fruit this way
Give it a shot, plums are another awesome fruit to try. My favorite simple thing to do is add the fruit to yogurt!
The flavors options are good, but the health benefits are amazing. Fermented vegetables and even some fruits are probiotics and the best form you can buy. There are people out there paying anywhere from $20-$300 a month to buy probiotics, things like sauerkraut and kimchi and fermented vegetables and fruits are the best probiotics you can possibly get, it’s what the expensive medical style probiotics try to mimic. With fruit it’s not as effective as the vegetable probiotic but it still has probiotics in them. The reason fruit is different is because it has a lot of sugar in it, that can promote yeast and mold growth. Usually the fermentation you get a little yeast or cloudiness in the water on top, it’s not horrible unless it gets way out of hand but you wanna keep as much air in oxygen out of there as possible.
Vegetables are kind of the same with flavor, if you cut them up into small bite sizes. You could also mix vegetables but a lot of them are really good like carrots. And you can mix, I like to put jalapeños and garlic or different peppers in with the carrots. You can do cucumbers and they’re like pickles but they get pretty soft. Peppers celery cabbage beets. A lot of people will mix cabbage and beets to add a little sweetness. I hate kimchi/sauerkraut, But if you can break it up with other flavors it can make it better. I really like to experiment with the peppers and you can also use herbs and different spices as long as they don’t have a lot of salt in them. With the vegetables you’re basically making a brine solution with salt, so if you had a salty spice like a Cajun spice that have salt in it you want to adjust and take a little of the salt out of your brining solution. Carrots are really good and if you cut them up in a little bites you can just throw it in with salads or eat it straight. A little garlic and a little pepper in there for spice is a great option. Medicinally it’s amazing food.
I love the idea of the bag to displace the oxygen. In canning supplies they sell little glass pucks that you can use but they’re kind of expensive.
One thing I would suggest, you removed the seal on your jar to let the gases escape. You don’t want the seal to be open because that lets oxygen in. They sell what they call burping lids or gassing lids that are basically a one-way valve or just a rubber tip that allows the expanding gases to escape, or you can do what’s called burping where you loose in the top of the jar a couple times a day to let those gases out but you don’t want to let oxygen have a way in, that’s when you get the bacterial growth and yeast problems. They sell the stuff on Amazon and almost anywhere where they do canning and it just makes it a lot easier, it just works with mason jars. The only other thing I can think of is to use distilled water or good purified water, you definitely don’t want tapwater because chlorine will kill off the natural enzymes in the fruits and vegetables which is what you’re promoting the growth of in the fermentation process.
Hi Ethan, I got the Noma book from my library, it was intriguing, to say the least. I am currently fermenting hot peppers, garlic, sour kraut, and onions separately. I am excited to try fruit next.
What a gem of a channel
Im excited to learn about this and come up with some new recipes. I especially love working with contrasting flavors to create something else entirely.
Please share
You have accidentally told us all how fast your beard grows and the answer is FAST lol
@championchap Much be a hot topic to those who can't grow them
@@mvpandrew93 You're damn right it's a hot topic to me. I can barely grow scruff in a month.
So long as nobody thinks about fermenting beards...
Just a note: for fermenting in warm climates (or houses) you should add more salt, like 2.5-3%. In my area, many houses are typically 80-85 degrees inside.
I have not heard that before. What is the science behind it?
Noma does their ferments at 82 degrees and recommends starting at 2%. LAB are going to be different around the world, so it may be less a temperature thing and more a localized LAB population thing.
@@EthanChlebowski Interesting. I was told that by an old timer, and I've had better luck with it, personally.
@@LarsSveen Whatever works for the one making it is what counts in my book!
The bloom on fruit is just the thing for sour dough
I wonder why the fermentation here turned into a *Lacto fermentation* not an *Alcohol fermentation*?
Also, yes you did cover the berries with a bag of water. but there is plenty of empty space in between the berries. Isn't that supposed to cause mold growth?
Third question, is the result liquid = lactic acid?
It's not ethanol nor acitic acid right?
More videos in shorts & flip-flops please. It helps to properly digest the quality content! 🍇 😋
LOVE THE WATER WEIGHT BAGS!!!!! Thank you fermentation is BOMB!!!! oxox TY
Very very helpful video and good explained ! Keep on going you channel is great !
I appreciate it!
still quite new here (have done the pickled onions already) - cool to see your bro contributing.
Does this fermentation produce alcohol?
This is what I'm thinking about preserving fruits: make a jam, which requires a bad amount of sugar, and then ferment the jam with yeast to convert the sugar to alcohol, making an alcoholic jam. What do you think?
You would need to water the jam down to ferment it wouldn't you.. and at that point you might as well go straight to making alcohol from the fruit wouldn't you. This is intended to cut down on sugar
..
By making alcohol instead. Confusing idea
The bigger issue in conventional fruit for fermentation is the fungicide
Solid information I’ve done this with sauerkraut and tomatoes garlic and onions but never thought about fruit even though tomatoes are fruit but not really
this was like watching a highschool presentation
Grade = C
@@nealb2285 heyyyy why
New flavours is just the tip of the berg. It's effects the microbiome for the best!
Dudes! Awesome! Gonna get on some of these and stick some in my fermented millet porridge. Hell. Yep!
In Korea, they do this but with sugar. It’s called cheong
Using a plastic bag with water as a weight is INGENIOUS!!! Wish I had thought of that!
Its actually not recommended since the acids created can leach plastic into your ferment. This is especially true if using a water brine.
If the bag leaks it ruins your concentrations and destroys your ferment
You guys are GREAT! Question: do you find the acid from the ferment is a problem with the metal lids? I've been told it can be, and so use BPA free plastic lids (there are also not QUITE as airtight as the metal and so serve a similar purpose to removing the gasket on the type of jar you use) Now I will switch to Mommy moe: I think the newspaper is a smart way to use what you have - but dang guys - get a canning funnel! LOL!)
I would like to cast a vote for a sourdough starter series
You could walk us through day by day how to start it, feed it, what the mixture looks like each day and then bake with it 🤘🏻🤘🏻🤘🏻🤘🏻🤘🏻🤘🏻🤘🏻🤘🏻
I was really into sourdough about 2 years ago, but my starter has long died, so a new sourdough series would be great idea, maybe in November or December!
Cook with E
Cool 😎
I bought a starter when I as in California for sourdough that was around during the gold rush lol I started it and a regular starter, made some bread then got lazy and let them die 💀
Hey how come the blueberries did lacto fermentation and not alcoholic fermentation? Would really really appreciate if you guys responded!
If I’m using a regular mason jar with a screw on top to ferment the fruit, do I just put the whole lid on or do I need to use something else to cover the lid?
I was wondering the same thing. I have a few jars of home made apple sauce in them. The tops started to bulge so I cracked the tops until I heard the gas bleed out and put them in fridge. Looking for tips so I will watch some of these how to's.
nice video, good production, excellent explanation
This is fabulous! I'm a bit in love with you. Have you thought about making a sourdough video? :)
Sarah Fewkes Thanks for watching! I’ve definitely considered it. Likely this fall or winter. I was really into sourdough like 1-2 years ago, but then let my starter die :( it may be time to renew it!
@@EthanChlebowski it is devastating loosing a starter.
I had one for over 2 years and one day when I was introducing some air to it with my handheld whisk I blew the bottom of my jar off and lost my starter across the floor.
No starters I have created since have been the same, moved house and the local flour mill I used is no longer local. Sigh
@@josh2045 HOw could you blow the bottom of y9our jar with a handheld whisk?
Girl same
@@josh2045 hey there! For my starters, I’ve had great luck with kind Arthur unbleached whole wheat flour. Good luck!
If I buy fermentation lids for mason jars , can I avoid the use of the plastic bags ? Thanks
Can you try to Lacto ferment Pomegranate ?
Google a research paper by the terms "Pomegranate Lacto ferment" and it's said to be 10 times more potent and better at DPPH scavenging and 4 times at SO- scavenging antioxidants.
Also, I wanted to ask if it would be okay if I don't add salt to ferment the blueberries ?
Sounds interesting, I could give it a shot.
The salt is necessary in order to lacto ferment the blue berries. It creates an environment that will help ward of bad microbes and let the LAB survive.
Hey ethan, it's normal to feel a little sparkling in my tong when I made a lacto fermentation ? In this case was a cucumber lacto fermentation, 2%, 6 days, doesn't smell bad and has a good sournes too
Could we possibly use this lactic acid liquid to make cheese?
Does inoculating with previously cultivated lacto or lab change the flavor I wonder?
Does the lactic bacteria kill yeast? Or is the juice alcoholic?
Overall good information. I Love fermented lacto foods and of course ethanol ferments as well. One small detail, organic foods do contain pesticides. They are just are organic ones. I dont know why this myth persists. As a general rule, they have to use more of them in greater quantity as bugs have developed resistance to them.
Quite informational indeed. Thanks brosephs.
Wick Wick wicky blueberries y'all!!! Awesome vid guys. I'm going to do this tomorrow
When I first found your channel I assumed you were associated with a larger company due to your production value and your presence, I found that wasn't the case. But I like seeing the more casual side of some of your earlier videos.
Blueberries are so expensive in my country. That Jar's worth alone is probably worth R1000 if not more! That's atleast $80
Wow! Blueberries grow wild in my backyard but the birds always eat them before I have a chance.
Thank you, can I use frozen blueberries?
I actually started this at work before seeing this they still got 2 days to go
This is new to me. You put fermented blueberries on top of pancakes... That means they don't taste salty??? I must try to make this and find out! Thanks for the great video.
The fermented berries will be a mix sweet, sour, and seasoned through. One of my favorites is to mix it with yogurt!
Great video guys thank you. As I have been on the carnivore diet for a while, now slowly I am introducing the vegetables in my diet. I am wondering if we can fermented organic frozen blueberries instead of fresh as it is not always easy to find them?
Glad you enjoyed. Frozen blueberries should work if you thaw them ahead of time. Since LAB is all around us, it should be introduced through handling the berries.
@@EthanChlebowski thank you so much, I will try to fermented some frozen berries today, and summer is almost here in New Zealand so it is better to stock some blueberries from organic farms 👍
Sevim Dogru You’re welcome, let me know how they come out. I’m jealous, summer is coming to an end in the states!
Just stumbled across your channel, super awesome content for such a small channel. Got my sub!
Much appreciated!
Can I use a glass weight to weigh down the blueberries? Like one that is used in fermenting?
Yes it’s much better. Best to avoid plastics as they leach toxins into your food, even BPA free plastic still leaches toxins.
I bought organic blueberries is it recommended to wash the blueberries?
No need to wash them, you want all of the lactic acid bacteria on the skin! If there is any noticeable dirt, you can lightly rinse them with water, but do not scrub.
@@EthanChlebowski tks good info I will work on it tonight. Tks again.
Rich Ruiz Sure thing, glad I could help!
I made fermented carrots, I peeled the carrots and they still fermented
@@stevesbonesai Good to hear! LAB is all around us on hands, surfaces, so it likely got in an alternate way than the carrot skin.
I don't understand this salt thing, my grandmother did the same with wild cherries but with sugar instead and it came out sweet and decently alcoholic, and it didn't spoil even in many years, isn't better than using salt?
This video is about lacto fermentation which creates sour flavors by transforming sugars into lactic acid.
I would assume your grandma made maraschino cherries, which are *first preserved in a salt brine* and then rinsed and sweet syrup or sugar is added where they can be canned (or jarred), but they first had to use a pickling solution with salt.
One is not better than the other, it's just about what flavor you are looking to create and use the ingredient in.
Not really maraschino, it was a wild cherry well known in eastern europe as "visine" here in ita is called visciola which is small, bitter and with little flesh, and i assure you no salt whatsoever was used, not trying to be polemic, i just wanted to share, ive seen it many times, just sugar and cherries on a glass jar under the sun for the first month then bottled and it came out a strong and sweet cherry wine 😋😋
@@tombal7408 Interesting, I've not heard of such a thing. I just read a little piece on visinata and it says the mix sour cherries, sugar, and alcohol. Pretty cool. But yea it's different 'cooking' method depending on what flavor you are going for.
@@EthanChlebowski visinata? Cool, here in lazio region is called visciolata, some people added chocolate or in other regions wine to the concoction, a couple of times i tasted bottles aged around 30 years, the best thing ever!
@@tombal7408 Very cool, maybe one of these days I'll get to try it!
What happens if you don't get the salt percentage exact?
It doesn't have to be exact trust me.
Love that book! I'm gonna get into Koji soon!
Colin Makes All The Things it’s great, so many potential uses!
Wow.... Cool info but did we need that song that only says "OMG" or what it sounds like over and over?!? 😥
guys, are you sure it should be salt and not brine (for berries with skin unlike veggies)?
by the way, if you freeze - they will become sweeter
It's salt only, the recipe is straight from the Noma book. After a day the liquid leeches out from the berries in effect creating a brine.
Are you talking freezing before fermenting or freezing after they have been fermented?
@@EthanChlebowski I see, but the book or not, the thing is, that they don't ferment at least that fast because they are left to leak the juices, which does not happen as fast as, for example, with veggies, which can take several tens of minutes only.
As for freezing and sweetness, it is difficult to say, because it depends on how long one will pickle for after being frozen or how long they will be eating after freezing (so it can continue fermenting or not). The sweetness after freezing comes from the plants' cellular membrane breaking and leaking sugars out. So if those ferment, they will make it a bit more sour rather than sweet. If frozen after, things will get a bit sweeter but only for the 1st period, before the microbes ferment the sugars again. So you decide
aregst I’m not sure I’m following you. A brine isn’t necessary for fermentation to occur. It is used to help create the anaerobic environment. That in addition to the salt is what allows the LAB is to thrive. In this method the water bag is used in place of the a brine to establish the anaerobic environment so that fermentation can occur.
Noma has done extensive research on fermentation, and in the testing of the these methods. These fruits will ferment using this method.
If you wanted to use a brine you could do so, however part of the benefit of not using is the liquid that comes from the berries which can be used for drinks, vinaigrette’s, purées, etc.
@@EthanChlebowski Fine with me. Who believes needs not to know. Good luck
@@aregst what belief?
I would like to make a vegan cheese of cashew nuts, but how do I start the ferment or create ferment for that? Or Can I use some of the ferment that was made within this Video?
Stupid question but do they taste salty ?
can this be done with frozen blue berries? or should i unfreeze them first?
Please can I know from this BlackBerry does it contain any percentage of alcohol and what is it .
Love it! Thanks for sharing! Will try with cherries!
This was just a year back wow!
i am looking for some vegetables or fruit that can create with sweet flavours???
Can I use frozen blueberry instead? Same procedure?
do you include the water weight when measuring salt?
How do you keep the birds out of the blueberry bushes?
You have to net them otherwise you'll have nothing left.
So you can make your own lactic acid, your own pectin (from Cody’s lab) and use these two things to make a jam.
That's a really cool idea. Getting enough pectin would be the issue though haha. I may try using the lacto juice for a jam though, you have me thinking!
Will it affect the berries if you split them into separate jars after mixing with salt? Thought I had a bigger jar at home and realized I didn't after mixing lol.
Nope should be fine!
i want to know if the berries after woud still be good for a jucing?
tried it after getting the boom last week , not sure if i left it too long but got a serious alcohol/ ethanol smell from them , has to be binned . is it essential to keep the oxygen out ?
Yes. It’s an anaerobic process
love the video-excellent info. (music: can't stand the "Oh my god")
I want that frog shirt!!!!
Thanks for the video. I just fermented mine for 7 days using the book, but not watching this video first. I did not taste every day and mix it up.
I see what looks like white mold in a couple of places up high. The brine has not filled the jar like it should by now. Should I throw this out or try mix the brine up and let it keep going?
I am pretty sure that any batch with signs of mould is straight out ruined and should be tossed out. Remember to carefully wash the container afterwards before using it again.
Actually, I looked into this a bit and there is a good chance the white stuff is kahm yeast that can be skimmed off safely. Anything green or bluish would be a huge no-go, though.
How would you know if it went bad (pathogenic microbes)?
Try making kombucha with the blueberries! It may have an interesting flavor profile.
That's a great idea! I'll have to see if I can get a scoby and try it out.
No brine for the fermentation? Most recipes is 2 - 4 % salt based on the combined weights of both water n ingredients.
If you purchased non-organic store bought fruits or veggies for fermentation, could you just leave them sitting out overnight to collect bacteria in the surrounding air?
Wouldn’t be advisable as the fruit including inner layers has absorbed all the chemicals and carcinogens from the plethora of vile pesticides and fungicides etc…
It’s never really advisable to eat any fruit or veg that isn’t organic and non GMO. There is a reason that almost everyone has chronic health conditions these days and many many people get cancer. Nearly all food is a toxic hazard.
Try to eat non GMO and organic wherever possible.
Wait, that's a blueberry bush? Doesn't look anything like the ones that grow in Sweden where I live, it's like a completely different plant
Maybe it’s a different breed or something
Edit: So I did a quick internet search, and it’s possible that the Blueberries that you’re thinking of are actually Bilberries (whose Swedish name actually does mean blue-berry) which have very similar berries, but different plants.
you must keep pathogens out..use newspaper as funnel 3:39.
Spaide man This is perfectly fine for Lacto fermentation. Bacteria is all around us both good and bad. During the first stage of the fermentation is when the good bacteria (LAB) will take hold in the salty environment because it can tolerate it, unlike bad bacteria like clostridium botulinum.
If you sterilized everything for Lacto fermentation, you would essentially kill all the microbe life including LAB and may not be able to ferment.
This is why for Lacto fermentation, Noma says you do not need to use gloves to handle and actually using your hands could help in part some of that good guy bacteria we are after. There is likely bad bacteria on your hands too, but due to the anaerobic and salty environment it will should not take hold. It was a new newspaper, not an old cruddy one run through the dirt or something ;)
Perfectly ok as long as you boil the newspaper to sterilize it first
Gathering No Moss And boil the hands too!
So I’ve done this twice now. Following the procedure exactly. Both times I got white fuzzy mold on top.
What this means is that the environment likely has too much oxygen wear mold can grow.
1. Remove oxygen - Likely the #1 culprit. The water in the ziploc bag and crock jar method isn't the most ideal for removing oxygen compared to 1. Vacuum Sealing the berries and salt or 2. Using a fermentation airlock lid over the jar. These are the lids I have started using: amzn.to/2OjlUh3
2. Try fermenting the berries in a brine. Obviously, you lose out on the potentness of the berry juices, but you still get the berries. My video on that is here: th-cam.com/video/Jg5LSeVleDU/w-d-xo.html
Interesting, will definitely try out. Wonder if these would make a nice liqueur, perhaps washing off salt ?
Hi, why did you not fill the jar with water?
You made and error when explaining the release of gasses from the jars @about 4:19 carbon dioxide is not the dangerous gas that needs to be released. The gas that presents danger and promotes rot is ethylene gas - a byproduct given off by produce as it ripens. This gas is also responsible for accelerating the decay of food. like the vid keep up the good work!!!
Loudin Clear Glad you enjoyed.
Ethylene is not a product of Lacto fermentation. The chemical products of Lacto fermentation are lactic acid and carbon dioxide.
The carbon dioxide causes carbonation which is why we want to release it. If left too long that carbonation will build up which isn’t what we want here or at worst it could actually explode your jar.
Ethylene is a gas that is let off naturally as fruit ripen on their own. This isn’t what we are doing here since we are creating an environment for Lacto fermentation. I’m not sure of any sources that speak of any sources that specifically speak to how fermentation affects ethylene for given fruits.
The primary reason to let gas release is to avoid carbon dioxide build up.
@@EthanChlebowski You are correct I apologize... I mistakenly stated ethyline rather than ethanol ... H₂SO₄,dehydration takes place to give ethylene. This reaction involves protonation of ethanol to form protonated alcohol,which loses water to give carbocation. On deprotonation, carbocation gives ethylene. I am just learning that despite their complexity, the whole basis of lactic acid fermentation centers on the ability of lactic acid bacteria to produce acid, which then inhibits the growth of other non-desirable organisms. All lactic acid producers are micro-aerophilic, that is they require small amounts of oxygen to function. Species of the genera Streptococcus and Leuconostoc produce the least acid. Next are the heterofermentative species of Lactobacillus which produce intermediate amounts of acid, followed by the Pediococcus and lastly the homofermenters of the Lactobacillus species, which produce the most acid. Homofermenters, convert sugars primarily to lactic acid, while heterofermenters produce about 50% lactic acid plus 25% acetic acid and ethyl alcohol and 25% carbon dioxide. These other compounds are important as they impart particular tastes and aromas to the final product. The heterofermentative lactobacilli produce mannitol and some species also produce dextran.
I love that frog shirt
can you also use a vaccuum bag instead of a jar?
Great idea
Freezing them is better because my fridge doesn't slow down wild yeast at all, but it depends what temp your fridge is at.. :)
Yep they technically do continue to ferment, but at a much slower rate. The freezer is a great idea, if you know it may be longer before you use them!
im a bit late here but why didnt you use water as i ve seen in your other fermentation video?
How do you ferment grapes to be a fertilizer?
Can u use these to do a second ferment in kombucha
Can I get a pdf copy of the book Secrets of Fermentation
Hi! Did you do 20% salt or 2% ? Cause I think your math was 20% no?
I have fermented many different vegetables but not fruit. I was wondering why you didn't crush the berries to remove all the air space between them. I would worry that it would grow mold. Does the salt help to kill the wild yeast on the berries? Otherwise you may end up with hooch instead. Great video!
The liquid that leaches out of berries fills in the air space in between them and the ziploc bag on top will keep out any more oxygen from getting in! Then the salt level will promotoe LAB growth will killing off other unwanted microbes.
The main reason not to crush them is to keep structural integrity, that being said, if you know you are going to be mashing or pureeing the berries anyway, you could crush them.
Alternatively, you can ferment in a vacuum sealed bag to ensure there is not any air, but I have not had issues using the crock method with the ziploc water bag on top!
Can I use frozen blueberries ?
Shelly Pfluger For lacto fermentation to occur you need the lactic acid bacteria (LAB) that exists on the berries naturally. I would suspect frozen blueberries would have killed all LAB.
That being said, I would just try a small batch anyway and see what happens!
Thawing the berries ahead of time (before applying salt) in open air may reintroduce LAB to the skin of the berries.
Can I use mangoes instead of blueberries?
Im wondering how much alcohol content is in that liquid?
Any idea how this would change the nutritional value of the blueberrys? Possibly dropping sugar content to make them more Keto Friendly?
James Bowens That’s a great question. The fermentation does change glucose into acetic acid, so it should lower the sugar, but by how much, I’m not sure.
Can you ferment organic frozen fruit?