vegetable | The Rambling Epicure

Food Art from Simple Sustenance: Brussels Sprouts, a food photography exhibit

Published by Renu-Chhabra + Monday, December 17, 2012 Permalink 0

by Renu Chhabra

All the gifts are nothing. Money gets used up. Clothes you rip up. Toys get broken up. But a good meal, that stays in your memory. From there it doesn’t get lost like other gifts. The body it leaves fast, but the memory slow.–Meir Shalev

Brussels sprouts, the tiny cabbage-like vegetable!

We all know what they are. Right? The ones that show up at the holiday table among other delicious and indulgent dishes. Some of us wonder why are they here when we have so many other goodies to enjoy.

Yes, it’s our love hate relationship with brussels sprouts.

But they come to us with good intentions and mean well for our health.

Brussels sprouts are from cruciferous family of vegetables like cauliflower, broccoli, cabbage, and bok choy, known for several health benefits. These vegetables are big players in cancer prevention and lowering cardiovascular risks. And brussels sprouts are the proud members of this respectable family.

Give them a little love and they will treat you well.

Enjoy this simple recipe with choice of your favorite flavors and garnish.

Part 6 on Fermentation: Sauerkraut Success

Published by Diana Zahuranec + Friday, August 31, 2012 Permalink 0

Part 6 on Fermentation: Sauerkraut Success

by Diana Zahuranec

I filled two scalloped blue bowls with homemade sauerkraut and kimchi, sat down, and taste-tested.

I was hesitant, but I was encouraged by the lack of mold.

Kimchi wanna-be and sauerkraut

After two weeks of pushing down the bottles that weighed on my sauerkraut and “kimchi” (which was not actually kimchi, but will be referred to as such because that’s what I wanted it to be), I balanced the heavy, full bowls of vegetables on a flimsy, plastic tray and carried them to the kitchen counter.

I removed the bottles filled with water, the plates, and then the bags (why all this? Here’s why in Step-by-step Fermentation). I began to pour the mix into large containers of what once held 1 kg of yogurt, but I stopped when I lost too much liquid.

I assumed that the liquid of fermented vegetables contains all the healthy nutrients that can be found in the vegetables themselves. I didn’t want to lose that, although I remain baffled as to what I could do with it, and haven’t found great sources backing up my Water-From-Fermented-Vegetables-Is-Healthy Theory (yet).

So I stuck my hand in and scooped it all out, pouring the liquid over top at the end. The liquids also help to preserve the vegetables when you store them in the refrigerator, and many say that the flavor improves as the fermentation slowly continues. And another reason to save the water: use a bit mixed in with the brine the next time you ferment vegetables, helping to jump-start the fermentation process.

According to Nourishing Days, ferments with 1-2% salt content will store for 4 to 9 months.

I filled two of those yogurt containers and some glass jars, or about roughly 13 cups of sauerkraut and kimchi from almost the same amount of vegetables. I had read that the vegetables will shrink as they lose their water, but the before:after ratio was nearly the same.

Success! They were both delicious. There was not a hint of rot. In fact, although many sources claim that it’s highly probable that you’ll lose some of your batch – especially a small one, like mine – due to air or uneven fermentation, I lost no more than a few shreds of cabbage.

Both were crunchy and flavorful. The pure cabbage had a more delicate flavor, and a bit of lactic acid tang. When I made the brine, I also added a teaspoon or two of yogurt whey to help . Sauerkraut naturally has a lactic acid flavor, so I’m curious to see if fermented vegetables without added whey would give off that taste as strongly. Fermentation Project Number 2?

The kimchi was spicy from the chili pepper flakes and chopped hot peppers I added, and the mix of vegetable textures was delightful. The tastes all ran together – a carrot didn’t taste much different from a chard stem. And the chard stems were tougher than I wanted; but on second thought, it’s great that everything retained its crunchy structure. Mushy vegetables can be the result of not adding enough salt; I also read on Nourishing Days that tannins keep the structure of the vegetables intact, so you may be able to add grape leaves, for example, to retain crunch.

And now I’ll admit that I tentatively drank the fermented water, out of curiosity and refusal to waste something healthy. Its flavor wasn’t offensive, just mostly salty. I decided it might be healthier to forgo the salt than to absorb the other nutrients in there. And drinking fermented water just doesn’t sound very appetizing.

Part 3: What is Fermentation?

Published by Diana Zahuranec + Monday, July 30, 2012 Permalink 0

“Fermentation is one of the oldest and simplest means of preserving foods. It requires no particular kind of climate, no cooking, and so no expenditure of fuel: just a container, which can be a mere hole in the ground, and perhaps some salt or seawater,” quoted from the ever-insightful Harold McGee, author of On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen.

Harold McGee’s “On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen”

vegetable

The third article in this mini-series is going to be scientific and a little bit nerdy. Get ready to learn the nitty-gritty behind fermentation.

Fermentation begins in the vegetable or fruit. The naturally-occurring microbes in the food proliferate under the right conditions – namely, under the lack of air. At the same time, these beneficial microbes suppress the growth of harmful microbes that rot the fruit or vegetable. The good microbes metabolize the plant’s sugars and carbohydrates before the bad microbes get a chance. In a way, fermentation is a “controlled-rotting” process: the difference between sauerkraut and rotting cabbage is which microbes are allowed to grow.

When protected from air, these microbes get to work producing lactic acid, alcohol, carbon dioxide, and other compounds and nutrients.

Ferments can be made by crushing the vegetables or fruit until enough liquid is let out, ensuring that the vegetables are covered and protected from the air. Usually, though, the vegetables need a little bit of help: salt draws out the liquids, sugars, and other nutrients, and so ferments are often dry-salted or submerged in a salt-and-water brine before being stored in a covered container.

Crushing: wine is also a form of fermentation

As the plants ferment, much of the material remains intact, hence crunchy kimchi and sauerkraut as opposed to being mushy or slimy (two problems which usually signify contact with air; check out a great troubleshooting link). As the vegetables ferment, not only do they retain their vitamins, but additional nutrients are formed in the process: namely Vitamin B, folate, and the production of enzymes. New flavors and aromas begin to develop, and continue to age and change for as long as you ferment your food.

The salt concentration of the brine and the temperature during fermentation are the two main components that determine which beneficial plant microbes flourish and, consequently, the flavors and aromas that result. Vegetables with a low-salt brine and fermentation under low temperatures will produce mild but complex flavors with Leuconostoc mesenteroides. Fermentation done in high temperatures will produce almost exclusively lactic acid bacteria, from the Lactobacillus plantarum microbe. Also, fermentations undergo a dual process: they produce the first microbe, Leuconostoc mesenteroides, which is then taken over by Lactobacillus plantarum during the second stage of fermentation.

Spontaneous Cuisine: Parsnip Velouté with Aged Mimolette Cheese

Published by Jonell Galloway + Thursday, December 15, 2011 Permalink 0

Itsy Bitsy History of the Parsnip

In the Middle Ages, Geneva was running over with parsnips, which they referred to as “white carrots”. It was almost always included in their “eternal pots” of soup, which consisted of seasonal vegetables that they just kept adding more vegetables to as needed, and a piece of meat once a week.

After World War II, many root vegetables went out of fashion in Europe, because people had had to survive on them and nothing else during the war, so farmers eventually stopped growing them. The same went for pumpkin. People in the north of France who had lived through the war and eaten pumpkin every day couldn’t bear the thought of eating pumpkin ever again.

In recent years, these old-fashioned vegetables, including parsnips, have again become available, and chefs are going crazy with new ideas on how to use them.

Parsnips are plentiful at the moment and there’s nothing better than soup to warm you up on a cold winter’s day. Eric Burkel, former financial analyst, entrepreneur and now president of his local food coop in Paris, got this recipe from one of the farmers who supplies vegetables to the coop.

Parsnip soup recipe

Health Challenge: The Hot Soups of Winter, Nourishment of Body and Soul

Published by Jonell Galloway + Monday, November 28, 2011 Permalink 0

by Tamar Chamlian

There are many reasons to love winter. For some, it might be gorgeous change of colors as the new seasons ease in; for others it’s festivities that bring celebration and lots of activity. I like both the colors and the festivities, but most of all I like the abundance and versatility of vegetables available that can be used in endless combinations to make hot soup.

What makes fresh fruit and vegetables go bad, and how to separate them so they’ll keep longer

Published by Jonell Galloway + Wednesday, October 26, 2011 Permalink 0

by Jonell Galloway

“Many fruits and vegetables produce ethylene gas, a colorless, odorless gas, as they begin to ripen. Some foods aren’t affected much by ethylene gas, while others are extremely sensitive to it.”

I never knew that it was a natural gas that fruit and vegetables produce that causes this to happen.

One thing I have noted is that when you buy fruit and vegetables that come from large agribusiness farms, they have a particularly high water content and they rot much faster than fresh garden and organic produce.

In any case, it is good to separate the ethylene-producing produce from the non-ethylene-producing. There is actually a method.

Click here for more details.

Food Art for Kids: Approaches to Making your Child Friendly with Fruit and Vegetables

Published by Jonell Galloway + Friday, July 29, 2011 Permalink 0

by Jonell Galloway

Getting your kids to participate in the kitchen is often the hardest task of all, but if you want them to learn that all food doesn’t come out of packages and that food can even be fun, can be like playing or art class, they are much likelier to head for the kitchen. If they have fun, they’ll want to come back for more, and show off their art work to others.

Annabel Karmel on Parenting makes lots of healthy finger foods which make it seem so fun to eat, even though it’s actually a carrot stick or a pea that’s been used for decorating.

Summertime also lends itself to Food Play. Put a basket of multi-colored fruit on the table, and kids can be let wild to build sculptures, make houses, all in the name of edible fun. Or give your kids a chance to do the decorations for a lunch party by letting them create edible fruit bouquets.

First Palette gives loads of ideas for fun food crafts.

Free Kids Crafts also includes lots of fun food projects for children, but you might pick and choose as to which ones are healthier.