Asparagus and red cabbage: two recipes to keep them long with fermentation
The world of fermentations is as old as it is vast, impossible to summarize in a few words. The texts that deal with the topic, in fact, are often encyclopedic, also because it is a vitally important topic, especially for our health. Fermentations are a food preservation technique, which brings great benefit to man, in particular to the immune system: this is related to the bacterial populations of the intestine, the same ones that are enriched by fermented foods. Preparing them at home is not impossible, but it requires a lot of study and a lot of knowledge: for this reason we asked an expert on the subject, Dr. Maurizio Mazzocchi.
Remove or add?
To preserve food there are mainly two philosophies: one is removed, the other is added. The first, more widespread in the West, is that of sanitization and sterilization; examples are pasteurized milk, canned tuna or the obsession with plasticizing fruit and vegetables according to the equation closed therefore safe. From this point of view, everything external is considered dangerous, but in reality it is not always the case: the important thing is to know how to use external bodies in the correct way, just as happens with fermentations. In the second perspective, in fact, food or substances are added which, thanks to a process of digestion of microorganisms, avoid the proliferation of other potentially dangerous organisms, such as salt, the primordial ingredient of humanity, from which everything starts, perfect for to preserve; or garlic that contains allicin, a sulfur-based compound that is fungicidal, that is, that kills possible fungi.
An ancient story
Today the fermentations seem to us a distant world, a more oriental technique, but in reality it is not quite so. Fermentations have always been part of us, Maurizio Mazzocchi explains; «Just think of the beer of the Egyptians or the Carthaginians and the Romans with their garums, not only the Japanese katzubushi. As early as 2500 years ago, in fact, the Phoenicians fermented fish waste in large tanks in the sun, using the enzymes of the fish itself to transform them into a powerful condiment. As well as jiang, a type of fermented condiment, precursor of miso and soy sauce, based on meat, fish and vegetables instead of beans, very popular in China for more than 2000 years. Furthermore, Confucius' dialogues report that he only ate food accompanied by his jiang, as shown in The great book of fermentations, the bible of home brewing from all over the world, a book that anyone should read if interested in this topic . He then cites the Christian Eucharist in which bread and wine (two fermented foods) are the protagonists. In short, it is impossible to find the origin of fermentations since they occur in many foods from the dawn of humanity, moreover in many different ways.
Types of fermentation
There are various types of fermentation. The most famous is the alcoholic one which, for example, has wine, bread or beer as final products; then there is the acetic one, with vinegar, pozol or cider; or, again, the enzymatic one, as happens in cheese, in the maturation of meat or in the anchovy sauce. Another interesting fermentation is that caused by fungi and molds, such as with koji and kombucha. Finally, there is that lactic yogurt or the well-known Korean kimchi, from which we will take inspiration to prepare it Italian-style. "In fact, we are not here to graduate in biology," jokes Maurizio Mazzocchi, "as much as to prepare something good. So if you follow all the steps with precision and knowledge of the cause, the result will be surprising, otherwise it could also be dangerous, since remember that we are talking about food, bacteria and live organisms, which often occur together, playing in a subtle balance . Our advice is to proceed with the fermentation of seasonal vegetables; for this we propose the cabbage recipe for the winter (in case you still find the last ones in this period); or asparagus in spring, to be eaten in summer or until the following autumn.
The "Italian" kimchi recipe
For this recipe we chose the red cabbage (also beautiful chromatically), with a preparation inspired by that of the traditional Korean kimchi, as well as we replaced the fish sauce with anchovy paste or anchovy sauce, for a kimchi Italian.
Ingredients
1 red cabbage
200 g wheat flour
100 g brown sugar
salt to taste
150 g garlic
200 g chili pepper (variable according to taste)
to taste anchovy paste or anchovy sauce
water (for quantities see in the procedure)
Method
Cut the cabbage julienne, then wash it very well.
Prepare a brine with water and 30 grams of salt for each liter of water.
Soak the cabbage in the brine, so that it is completely covered and leave at room temperature overnight. From now on, be aware that the kimchi will begin to give off a strong smell, which may not be liked by everyone.
Then rinse the cabbage and drain. In a saucepan, heat a liter of water with the flour and mix with a whisk; after a few minutes, when it reaches a density similar to béchamel, add the sugar and continue stirring. Turn off the heat and cool.
In the meantime, prepare a mixture of crushed garlic, chilli pepper, anchovy paste or anchovy sauce. Combine with water, sugar and flour and mix all the ingredients well.
Cover the cabbage with the mixture and put it in a container, being careful to press well so that there are no air bubbles.
Leave in the fridge for three days, then taste our Italian kimchi: if ready, it can be kept for months, or rather the more time passes, the better it will be, perfect as an accompaniment to bruschetta or other dishes.
The recipe of fermented asparagus
This recipe was taken from the book The Noma Guide to Fermentation of the well-known Noma restaurant in Copenhagen, experts and precursors in terms of fermentations (and not only). Also in this case it is better to proceed with a digital scale.
Ingredients
500 g of white asparagus tops
water
non-iodized salt, 3 percent of the weight of the water
half a lemon cut into slices
Method
Place an empty two-liter container on the scale and reset.
Wash the asparagus and place them in the container completely covered with water.
Based on that weight add 3% salt.
Remove the water from the container and mix with the salt until it dissolves.
Pour the obtained brine into the container with the asparagus and distribute the lemon slices on the surface.
Leave the asparagus completely submerged with the help of a weight (a cookie sachet filled with water is also fine).
Close the lid, but not tightly so that the gas produced by fermentation can escape.
Leave to ferment at room temperature for two weeks.
After a couple of days, taste to check that the taste is pleasing and if necessary repeat the operation. After two weeks seal the container and keep it in the fridge, where it will last for months and months.
Be kind to yourself, the first homemade fermentation may not be a success. So, more than good appetite, we just have to wish you good luck!
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