
Just published: The Art of Fermentation
Fermentation makes foods more nutritious, as well as delicious. Microscopic organisms – our ancestors and allies – transform food and extend its usefulness. Fermentation is found throughout human cultures. Hundreds of medical and scientific studies confirm what folklore has always known: Fermented foods help people stay healthy.
Many of your favorite foods and drinks are probably fermented. For instance: Bread, Cheese, Wine, Beer, Mead, Cider, Chocolate, Coffee, Tea, Pickles, Sauerkraut, Kimchi, Salami, Miso, Tempeh, Soy Sauce, Vinegar, Yogurt, Kefir, Kombucha.
Latest News
April 27, 2012
Vegetable Fermentation Further Simplified
Excerpted from The Revolution Will Not Be Microwaved… A head of cabbage forgotten on an obscure shelf of your pantry will not spontaneously transform itself into sauerkraut. Vegetables left exposed to air start to grow molds, and if left long enough, … Continue reading →
Making Sour Pickles
Excerpted from Wild Fermentation… Growing up in New York City, experiencing my Jewish heritage largely through food, I developed a taste for sour pickles. Most of what is sold in stores as pickles, and even what home canners pickle, are preserved … Continue reading →
This site is maintained by Sandor Ellix Katz, aka Sandorkraut. I have been fermenting since 1993. In order to share the fermentation wisdom I had learned and demystify home fermentation, I wrote a book called Wild Fermentation, published in 2003 by Chelsea Green. Since the book's publication, I have taught hundreds of fermentation workshops across North America and beyond, taking on a role I describe as a "fermentation revivalist." Newsweek called Wild Fermentation "the fermenting bible." Inspired by people I met talking about fermentation, I wrote a book about diverse activist projects to reclaim food, called The Revolution Will Not Be Microwaved (Chelsea Green, 2006). In 2012, with a decade more experience behind me, the unique opportunity to hear countless stories about fermentation practices, and answering thousands of troubleshooting questions, I shared an in-depth exploration of the topic, The Art of Fermentation. All three books are available for sale on this website, but the larger purpose of this website is to connect interested people with the abundant resources for learning about different fermentation practices that exist on the World Wide Web.