In almost every country of the world people ferment food, check out how good it can be good for us and how it works
Fermentation is a natural process where food is broken down by microorganisms (like yeasts or bacteria) and decomposed, and we humans are intervening and controlling it to our benefit.
We can say it is a controlled rotting 🙂
Fermentation helps to predigest the food for us making the nutrients in the food easier available for our bodies.
In addition in provides beneficial lactic acid producing probiotic bacteria providing huge benefits for our digestive track.
Lactic acid produced during fermentation decreases pH and this pH is a very safe for human beings, it allows growth of beneficial microorganisms in human body and protects against pathogenic bacteria like E.coli or Listeria.
Fermentation increases the shelf life, it makes food tastes better, it impacts the texture, it impacts the aroma.
Fermented food is an addition to our every day menu and should be consumed on daily basis. It provides beneficial bacteria for our gut flora – helping to grow gut microbiome or it can pass through the digestive track helping prevent overgrowth of pathogenic bacteria or yeast. Nowadays fermented food is not considered probiotic because it might not have therapeutical dose of bacteria but they are still considered as food sources of “live and active cultures„
To ensure you choose the good quality fermented food, look for the words „naturally fermented” on the label (without added vinegar for example), and after opening the jar look for telltale bubbles in the liquid, which shows that live organisms are inside the jar.
Some of the most popular fermented food are :
Kvas – fermented beet juice
Kimchi
Sauerkraut
Cheese, yogurt, kefir
olives
apple cider vinegar
sourdough bread
salami, prosciutto
Sour cucumbers
miso, tempeh
