Fermented Foods are so good for the gut, and for many people, not appealing. But who doesn't like a good pickle?! Not all pickles are created equally- fermented pickles play double duty of being a yummy snack or condiment, and being healthy for your gut. Wendy and I teach how to make fermented pickles in this video.
First, a bit about the microbiome –
· We have healthy intestinal bacteria and other bacterial microbes all over our body.
· From the top of head to tips of our toes we are covered in TRILLIONS of invisible microbes.
· every external facing structure of our body, and intestinal tract and colon.
· these microbes outnumber our human cells by 90%!!
· For every human cell we have, there are 10 microbes in existence in or on our body!
· We rely on these microbes to keep us healthy.
· Damage to our microbiome results in illnesses like diabetes, crohns, colitis, cancer, heart disease, IBS, infertility, rheumatoid arthritis, Parkinsons, depression, anxiety, and even erectile dysfunction!
So, we want to keep them healthy and build them up.
Fermentation does the following for us:
creates more polyphenols and vitamins in our foods,
reduces gluten,
makes food easier to digest and
reduces pesticide residues in the foods.
The food is more nutritious after fermentation than it was before!
Eating fermented foods:
increases microbiome diversity,
produces benefits to the immune system,
reduces inflammatory markers in our body,
improves our gut health and overall health.
Let’s make PICKLES!
Always use PURE salt- not iodized table salt or any salts with additives. Pink Himalayan or True Sea Salt are best. The bacteria works with the minerals and cannot handle the chemical additives.
Jar with burping lid (or not)- clean with very hot water. Wash hands.
Make your brine: 4 cups filtered water, 3 tbsp salt.
Wash your cucumbers- leave whole for best result, but trim off the stem end.
Follow ingredients.
Garlic Dill pickles
Put pickles in jar,
Add garlic
Fresh dill
Can add dill seeds if you like more dill
Peppercorns
Bay leaf
Garlic Dill then Spicy Lacto-fermented pickles.
Put pickles in the jar
Add 1 TBSP Tamari, 1 TBSP pure maple syrup, 1-2 jalapeno pepper sliced, 4-5 cloves garlic, 1 TBSP minced ginger
Slip a Bay leaf down the side of the jar to make them stay a little crisper.
Pour brine over whole thing.
Seal the jar (make sure everything is under water)
Can use a weight or a spring
Sit on counter for 2-4 days- when you see bubbling you are done.
Optional ingredients:
Fresh onion
Fresh turmeric
Caraway seeds
Celery seeds
Coriander seeds
Fennel seeds
Mustard seeds
Red chili peppers