February 18, 2016
~~~~
Probiotic Gherkins
Ingredients
- 1 kg gherkins
- dill or fennel flower heads
- 1 teaspoon mustard seeds
- 2 tablespoons (30g) unrefined salt
- 1 litre cold filtered water
- 2 tablespoons cultured whey*
- 2 grape vine leaves optional
Instructions
- Wash the jar making sure to rinse off any soap thoroughly. Pack the whole gherkins snugly into the jar. Add the fennel flower heads and mustard seeds.
- Make the brine by stirring the salt in the water until it is dissolved. Pour this over the produce to come within 2cm of the top of the jar (if there is extra brine set this aside for topping up the jar later). Pour in the whey and pack the grape vine leaves into the top of the jar. Secure the lid and gently turn (don't shake) the jar to distribute the whey.
- Place the jar on a tray (to catch any drips) and leave at room temperature for 2-3 days. The liquid may bubble over a little during the fermentation simply top up with extra brine to within 2cm from the top of the jar.
- Once this initial fermentation has taken place store the pickles in the fridge. Wait at least 1 week before eating and consume within 2 months.
Notes
Our fridge is currently in a crisis state, and I take complete responsibility. You see, this summer on top of preserving all our homegrown fruit to fill the pantry shelves, I have also gone a little lacto-fermenting mad. Any excess garden vegetables or seconds from the farmers’ market are being transformed into probiotic goodness for our bellies.
However, with this hot weather, I haven’t been able to store the large jars of fermenting produce in the cold store (aka the laundry cupboard). Hence the fridge is currently bursting at the seams with around 16 litres of lacto-fermented goodness and I’m not ready to stop yet. Discussions of a second fridge have begun as every journey into our kitchen fridge entails an emptying of half the contents to find what you are looking for! My family is not impressed. I am beginning to understand why they built houses with cellars several generations ago. Surely I was born into the wrong era…
In case you are wondering what is the term ‘lacto-fermenting’, I will explain. It is a traditional method of preserving without the use of sugar or vinegar. It relies on the lactic acid-producing bacteria (lactobacilli) naturally found on the surface of vegetables with the addition of salt, and time, to preserve produce. The slow fermenting is similar to sauerkraut and microbial activity is created during the process. Although these pickles need to be refrigerated after the initial fermentation they do keep longer (up to 2 months) than fresh produce.
In years gone past lacto-fermenting was carried out in large ceramic crocks. These were rarely washed so the natural cultures would build up on the surface of the vessel so an added culture wasn’t required. In modern-day fermenting where most of us don’t have a large well cultured crock in our cool store room, we need to rely on large glass jars and the addition of a small amount of culture. These can be purchased in a powdered form online, however, I find the easiest and most cost-effective way is to strain cultured whey from homemade milk kefir or yogurt (unsweetened good-quality yogurt can also be used, or coconut yogurt for dairy-free).
Some recipes for lacto-fermenting don’t use whey – and I don’t when making sauerkraut because there is more surface area to take advantage of the naturally occurring lactobacilli – however, when brine preserving as with this recipe I prefer to provide a little culturing assistance. If whey is not available then double the salt quantity and fermenting time – and also wait double the time before eating the pickles… see why I like the help of whey!?
Lacto-fermentation tips:
- For best results use homegrown or organic produce to ensure plenty of lactobacilli is present on the skins/surface.
- Adding cultured whey (see above) helps to speed up the fermentation time without using a powdered culture and increases the shelf life.
- Probiotic pickles can taste a little effervescent this is completely normal, however, if there is black or coloured mold on the surface of the brine and a bad odour discard the pickles. Use your instinct and common sense here.
- Don’t overfill the jars, leave at least 2cm between the top of the liquid and the top of the jar so there is room for movement during the active fermentation stage.
- Make sure all produce is completely submerged in brine, packing tightly will help keep everything in place. Any exposed produce can potentially grow mold and in turn, affect the whole jar rendering it unusable.
*Find a detailed chapter on Preserving and Fermentation, including Seasonal Sauerkraut and Lacto-fermented Brine Pickles in my latest cookbook – The Homemade Table – available in bookstores around New Zealand and personally signed copies HERE.
Hi Nicola. I have tried your method with a red cabbage sauerkraut and had great results. My family loved it. Now have a couple jars of gherkins started about 10 days ago but the brine has gone slightly cloudy and there is a white precipitate settling at the bottom of the jars. Do you have any advice or cautions here? Would hate to put my family off with a bad experience!
Hi Kirstie, that is completely normal. The gherkins I photographed were freshly made so still very green, however, they do lose their vibrancy after a few days and the brine becomes milky. The most important thing is that the gherkins are completely submerged as any poking above the surface could begin to grow mold. Otherwise it all sounds on track. You can give them a taste in the next day or so to check. They do start to soften over time so if you prefer them crunchy then consume within a month.
Hi Nicola! Me again. I am love your blog and philosophy of food- big fan over here! I am wanting to do more pickling of vegetables like the gherkins above. But I am wondering, can I leave them at room temperature for longer? Is it beneficial to do so? Or is 2 days sufficient? Kind regards, Emma xx
Hello Emma! I hope you got my insta reply. Yes, they can be left for 3-4 days in summer and even longer in winter until they are sour to taste. Once they are sour the lactic acid is in full production so the beneficial bacteria will begin to proliferate, all good stuff. I go into more detail in my book which will be available very soon! Good luck, Nicola xx
please send me notice of updates
Hi BJ, would you like me to add your email address to my blog newsletter? Thanks, Nicola