Fermentation update

This is just a little post.  I wanted to share with you some recent fermentation successes.

1. Kefir – part 1 – with some trepidation, I left my kefir in the fridge while we went away for almost a fortnight.  Wondering if it would still be ok when we got home.  Well, it was just fine.  I refreshed it when I got home, and it continues as good as ever
2. Kefir – part 2 – after re-reading the section of The Art of Fermentation dealing with kefir, I’ve taken to leaving the drained and ready to use kefir in the fridge for a day or two before drinking it.  For what Sandor Katz calls  the ‘second fermentation’.  It seems to become thicker and even more delicious (but bear in mind I like it quite tart and sour.  This may be a minority taste.  My son and daughter-out-law don’t like it like that)
3. Sauerkraut – the two vegetables ferments I made in September (white cabbage and caraway; beetroot and carrot) are both delicious.  I have been adding spoonfuls to the mixed salads I have for lunch most days.  I’m ready to make some more white cabbage sauerkraut, as it’s almost all used up now.  Bizarrely I often see white cabbages (which keep for ages and ages) marked down with yellow stickers in Waitrose, presumably because of the pointless ‘use by’ date on them.  So my sauerkraut is very cheap to make – about 50p for a large jar like this

4. Growing winter salad leaves – I know this isn’t fermentation, but I was reminded by the salad photo above of my latest experiment.  I hadn’t got round to sowing salad and oriental leaves to overwinter in the greenhouse, but then I remembered that in the past I’ve had some success with buying ‘living leaves’ in the supermarket and planting out some of the individual plants.  I bought two packs (one of lettuces, the other oriental leaves) in Sainsbury’s (£1 per pack).  I planted out a dozen or so of each.  They were pretty puny plants.  The rest I cut and used in my salads.  So far (1 week on), so good.  We’ll see how well they grow. (And I know, all that plastic wrapping etc etc.  But I will reuse the seed trays, and next year of course (??) I’ll be better organised and sow the seeds…..)