Category Archives: Pickles
Pickles: Okra and Carrots
Fermented Food experiments #2 -Beet Kanji
Fermented foods are just beautiful not only for the taste buds but also for your gut. Ancients culture have propagated fermented foods for preservation and taste through the centuries. The souring action if microbes that produced fermentation have been critical in our diets throughout the globe. Similar foods can be found in every culture, just called something different.
Indian “Achar” or “Kanji” are great examples and so is the fabulous “Kimchi” from Korea.
My personal story takes me back to the late 1970’s where as a young girl spending lazy winters vacation in Lucknow, India I would watch my grandfather ferment and pickle various vegetables in earthenware and produce the probiotic liquid called “Kanji” in India. It was delicious, tart and healthy and the joy of helping my grandfather while he worked on these beautiful foods is a memory that is permanent ink in my soul.
True to foods that nourish your soul and help you remember your history, in this series I am sharing different fermented food s I am experimenting with.
Click here for a previous recipe of Kashmiri Achar
Click here for a previous recipe of Red Cabbage Pickle
In this edition: Fermented Beet tonic – Kanji
This fermented beet pickle and tonic fascinates and mesmerizes with its deep violet color and tangy taste. There many health benefits of both the beets and these are just amplified through fermenting.
“Kanji” is usually a pungent combination of water, mustard seeds, beetroot and carrots and is full of digestion-boosting friendly bacteria and enzymes. I have only used beets here so the color is quite intense. Beets are high is sugar but the fermentation breaks the sugars down and makes this drink a healthy tonic. Very similar to Kvass which is an eastern European fermented beverage commonly made with rye bread.
Fermented Beets - Kanji
a zesty beet fermented drink and pickle
Credit: https://foodforthesoul00.com/
Ingredients
- 3 – 4 large organic beets
- 3 tbsp mustard seeds
- 3 whole red chilies ( Serrano)
- 2 tsp pink Himalayan salt
- 6–7 cups filtered water
Directions
- Wash and Slice and dice the beets in bite size pieces. I like to leave to skin on for organic beets.
- Crush mustard seeds with mortar and pestle just to a coarse grind
- Place the diced beets and carrots into a half-gallon glass jar.
- Add the Serrano pepper, mustard seeds and salt.
- Add the water, leaving one-inch of air space between the top of the water and the top of the jar. Tightly cover the jar.
- Ferment the kanji for 2-3 days at room temperature.
- Stir with a clean wooden spoon and taste. If it’s tangy – it’s fermented and ready
- You can transfer the jar to the fridge and store for a few weeks.
Enjoy a cup or bowl of this delicious liquid and eat the pickles beet and add them to your salad.
Divine!
Sharing this at Angie’s Fiesta Friday
Fermented food experiments #1 – Red Cabbage quick pickle
Fermented foods are just beautiful not only for the taste buds but also for your gut. Ancients culture have propagated fermented foods for preservation and taste through the centuries. The souring action if microbes that produced fermentation have been critical in our diets throughout the globe. Similar foods can be found in every culture, just called something different.
Indian “Achar” or “Kanji” are great examples and so is the fabulous “Kimchi” from Korea.
My personal story takes me back to the late 1970’s where as a young girl spending lazy winters vacation in Lucknow, India I would watch my grandfather ferment and pickle various vegetables in earthenware and produce the probiotic liquid called “Kanji” in India. It was delicious, tart and healthy and the joy of helping my grandfather while he worked on these beautiful foods is a memory that is permanent ink in my soul.
True to foods that nourish your soul and help you remember your history, in this series I am sharing different fermented foods I am experimenting with.
Click here for a previous recipe of Kashmiri Achar
In this edition: Red Cabbage Pickle
Continue reading Fermented food experiments #1 – Red Cabbage quick pickle
Pickled Vegetables – Kashmiri Achar
Fermented foods are probiotic powerhouses boosting the good bacteria in your gut and helping with overall health and immunity
“Achar” is a form of fermented food in the Indian subcontinent and essentially is a pickling process. It is one of the oldest methods of food preservation, sustaining communities through changing climate and seasons where the life of the crop could be extended by preserving it.
Kashmir with it’s cold winters is very conducive to pickling a variety of vegetables such as Kohlrabi, carrots, radish, peppers etc. There is no vinegar in these pickles. Mustard oil is the main carrier in which fermenting agents like mustard and carom seeds are added. This will last a long while on your shelves.
The basic recipe was for Monji Achar ( Kohlrabi pickle) from which I strayed a bit and added the crunchy turnips and carrots. The Kohlrabi leaves I had already cooked in another dish, otherwise I would have chopped and added them.
The key would be to dry out the cut vegetables in the sun for a day or so just to reduce the moisture. I am in the dead of winter here in Virginia so sunshine is scarce. I left it out for another day….48 hours.
Kashmiri Achar - Pickles
Beautiful fermented winter vegetables
Credit: https://foodforthesoul00.com/
Ingredients
- 1-2 large bulbs of Kohlrabi ( Monji is Kashmiri)
- 1-2 large turnips
- 2 carrots
- 1 table spoon sea salt ( adjust to taste)
- 1 tablespoon mustard seeds
- 1 tablespoon carom seeds ( Ajwain).
- 1 cup mustard oil.
- 2 table spoons red chili powder
- 1 tsp ginger powder
Directions
- Peel and cut the bulbs of kohlrabi into 1 inch pieces.
- Do the same with peeled turnips and carrots
- Wash the veggies and spread them on a cloth to dry out in the sun for one day. This can be 2 days if there is no sunshine.
- In a large glass bowl mix the spices with the oil.
- Add the vegetables and mix well..
- Put it in a large glass pickling jar and seal tight.
- You need to leave the jar in a sunny place for a week to ferment. If you are in a cloudy wintery place like me, then it will take another week.
Sharing at Fiesta Friday which is be co-hosted this week are Jhuls and Ginger
