Where to try fermented food
Fermented foods have gone from being a relic of diets gone by to trendy additions to restaurant menus and Kiwi home fridges. Joanna Nolan says we have never needed fermented foods in our diets as much as we do now.
Founder of Be Nourished, a Kiwi company creating ‘‘living foods’’, Nolan is an enthusiastic promoter of raw organic fermented vegetables.
Our modern diets mean our gut is particularly in need of a good dose of health bacteria. Nolan says the enzymes created in these foods are essential to the human ‘‘microbiome’’ – the array of bacteria present in our bodies.
Her passion for fermentation is mirrored in the number of restaurants serving fermented foods – some focus their menus around this preparation method alone.
Breweries can find pairings between their fermented beer and fermented food options. In Wellington, The Fermentery is the eatery attached to Whistling Sisters Beer Co. It serves beer, of course, complemented by pickled and fermented foods, as does The Fermentist in Christchurch, where dishes include black bean and walnut koftas with fermented pico de gallo and quinoa.
However, Kiwis are not reliant on restaurants to provide living foods. Fermentation can be done at home.
Recipes can be found online, and Nolan says the best results come from organic, unpasteurised ingredients. Organic because pesticides can compromise the effectiveness of the bacteria being cultured, and unpasteurised because heat creates ‘‘dead’’ foods, rather than living ones.
The two most known fermented foods in New Zealand are kimchi and sauerkraut, and both use bacteria to create living cultures that act as a healthy kickstart for the gut.
Kimchi is typically made from cabbage, radish, carrots, onions, and seasonings to taste. Sauerkraut, on the other hand, is made from cabbage. Both have their uses, but kimchi is typically hotter than sauerkraut.
They are versatile, and can be added to salads, smeared on a sandwich, or eaten with crackers and cheese. The options, are endless.
The Be Nourished website even shares a recipe for a salted caramel smoothie with sauerkraut. A small amount is all you need.
Forage and Ferment, at Clevedon Farmers’ Market in Auckland, and from stockists including Whole Heart in Hamilton and Moore Wilsons in Wellington. Living Goodness, from Red Kitchen in Te Awamutu, Fresh Choice Merivale in Christchurch, and Bel Mondo in Wellington. The Urban Monk is based in Woodbury in Canterbury.