pak thong kuih – lacto-fermented rice honeycomb dessert

you’ll have to see the pictures in the original recipe over at table for 2….. or more to see why this seems so magickal. how do single celled organisms turn rice into a honeycombed dessert? this is amazing!

i just started on this one today!!

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combine
100gm cooled, cooked rice
½ Tbsp Chinese Wine Yeast ( 甜酒饼，Ragi, sweet type) [i just used a pinch of bread yeast..]
1 tsp sugar
½ Tbsp water
Mix everything together, keep in a covered container (not air-tight!)
Leave it in a cabinet or cold room to ferment for 48 hours.

(note: started 9pm may 5. ready on monday night, may 7!)

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after 48 hours, weight out 60gms (~1/4 c) &
(use the extra to make some fermented rice pancakes!)

to that 60gm fermented rice, add
100gm (~1/2 c) rice flour
water (just to moisten)

ferment for 16-18 hours
Weigh out 80gm of this & set aside.

(started 10pm may 7, done 2pm-4pm tomorrow)

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in a separate bowl, combine 220 gm. pure rice flour, 30 gm. tapioca or other starch, and 280 gm. water

in a separate pot, boil 200 gm. castor sugar, 400 ml. water, and 3 blades of pandan leaves tied into a knot (or other flavor). pour half into the fresh water-flour-starch mixture. cool the other half before pouring it in. add the ferment and ferment again for 12ish hours.

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add a quarter teaspoon of baking soda to a teaspoon of water. take a quarter teaspoon of that mixture and add it to the ferment, along with a teaspoon of oil.

pour into a greased steaming tray and steam 15-20 mins over medium heat, or until a skewer comes out clean.

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5/13
well, i accidentally became overwhelmed by responsibilities and found myself extending the last ferment by a few days. at first, i kept up with it, pouring off the rice wine on top and adding fresh flour. then i slacked. when i finally checked it three days later, it looked hopeless. it smelled like vinegar, and a few fruit flies had somehow made it under the lid kept loose for aeration. i added rice flour and sugar and a few hunks of fresh strawberries hoping to kick-start it. after only ten minutes, the smell was already sweeter and healthier as the yeast woke up. i poured off the rice wine vinegar and fruit flies, added a little cinnamon, and invented some bizarre contraption with a loaf pan in a steamer basket in a pot with a lid on top. i completely forgot the baking soda and oil, so who knows what bizarre consistency or taste will come of this. i’ve been steaming it for a really long time (20 mins at least) and it’s still sort of gooey but tightening up around the edges.

HEY! IT’S DONE!

AND IT’S HONEYCOMBED!

it has a giant hole in the middle with a wrinkled honeycomb pattern coming from it. the pattern almost looks like a grapefruit.

taste:
distinct sourdough flavor. wild! not at ALL sweet. covering the finished product in date syrup is pretty and turns it into a dessert! the sourdough is much more complex and well-developed than i’d thought it would be after just a few days. really wonderful!

texture:
sticky, chewy, jiggly, jello-y, filled with air pockets, awesome, weird, fun!

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MAKE THIS!

cajun three-pepper sourdough bread

Cajun Three-Pepper Bread (No-knead)

adapted from Peter Reinhart’s Brother Juniper’s Bread Book

3 cups bread flour
¼ cup uncooked polenta (grits, people, grits. sheesh.)
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
½ teaspoon coarse ground black pepper
1-1/2 teaspoons sea salt
¼ cup sourdough starter
2 tablespoons Tabasco sauce
1-1/2 cup water
1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh garlic
¼ cup finely diced red bell pepper
1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley

Place dry ingredients (flour through salt) into a large bowl and mix well. Combine starter, Tabasco sauce and water and add to the dry ingredients. Stir and add in the garlic, bell pepper.and parsley.

Cover bowl with plastic at let sit at room temperature for 18 hours

After 18 hours turn dough onto well floured surface and gently flatten enough to fold dough back onto itself a couple times to form a roundish blob.

Cover blob with plastic or an inverted bowl and let rest 15 minutes.

Gently and quickly shape blob into an approximate ball and place in proofing basket or bowl.

Cover with a towel or bowl cover and let rise for 1-2 hours depending on room temperature.

Just before baking, slash the bread top to control cracking and lift the foil and dough into dutch oven preheated to 500F degrees. Bake covered for 30 minutes. Remove cover and bake an additional 15 minutes at 450 degrees.

Allow bread to cool completely before slicing and eating.

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from breadtopia

buckwheat-rye sourdough

happy to have a starter again!

in celebration, i made my first sourdough of 2012.

this is a GREAT mix of flours. i highly recommend it!

i had a white flour sourdough starter, to which i added all rye for the sponge. i then added that to the white flour for the recipe, which i spiked with about 20% buckwheat flour.

nutty and flavorful without being dark and overwhelming.

wonderful!

tweaked this sourdough recipe a bit to allow for a bit of packaged yeast – the little starter is barely old enough to get a sponge going, and i figured the bread would need the boost. it definitely did. i thought it might not rise at first. in true sourdough form, though, it practically doubled in the oven and filled the place with an almost spicy-sour smell.

sensory overload!

fermented potato “cheese”

i have no idea how i’ve never noticed this in NOURISHING TRADITIONS by sally fallon before.

4 cups cooked potatoes, peeled
2 cups piima milk or kefir
1 T sea salt

This recipe for fermented potatoes comes from The American Frugal Housewife, published in 1833. Mix ingredients well in food processor. Place in a covered bowl and leave at room temperature for about two days. Place in a large strainer, lined with a clean linen towel (or cheesecloth -ed.). Tie the towel in a bundle to a spoon, hung over a jug or bowl, so the “cheese” can drain. When draining stops, transfer to an airtight container and store in the refrigerator.

This could easily be made vegan with vegan kefir!

lacto-fermented mint chutney

this recipe is from sally fallon’s nourishing traditions.

mint chutney – makes three cups

2 c fresh mint leaves
1 medium onion, peeled and coarsely chopped
4 cloves garlic, peeled and coarsely chopped
4 jalapeno chilies, seeded and chopped
2 T cumin seeds, toasted
2/3 c almonds, chopped
1 T sea salt
4 T whey
1 c filtered water

place all ingredients except salt, whey, and water into food processor and pulse until finely chopped but not paste-like. place in a quart-sized, wide-mouth glass container (mason jar, etc) and press down tightly. mix salt and whey with water and pour into jar, adding more water if necessary to cover chutney. top of the chutney should be at least 1 inch below top of jar. cover tightly and store at room temperature for two days before transferring to fridge. this should be eaten within two months.

lacto-fermented squid (ojingeojeot)

go see this recipe, with its beautiful photos!

i know what you’re thinking. but i’m going to make it, and it’s going to be really, really good.

basically, you’ll want to carefully clean squid (or fish, or whatever,) and salt it heavily. same as fermenting vegetables! stick ’em in a jar. she recommends fermenting for a month in the fridge before adding green and red hot peppers, garlic, green onions, ginger, toasted sesame seeds, and a little sesame oil.

check out her recipe; i can’t do it justice describing it here.

the comments are glorious, too, including one from someone who found an intact 3″ fish inside her squid when she cleaned it!

make your own vinegar out of garbage

1. scrub fruit scraps. i ate a cantaloupe and saved the rinds. pineapple’s apparently great for this, too. probably many other things; i’ll post them as i discover them.

2. put them in water. i used a jar, and cut a hunk of rind big enough to sort of fold so it’d stay submerged. same idea as lacto-fermented green bean pickles, kraut, or any other ferment. just keep the stuff under water.

3. throw a hunk of cheesecloth or an old sock over the top.

4. remove the rind after a few days for a delicious juice drink, or leave it in for.. weeks? days? not sure. mine’s been fermenting almost a week so far?

5. remove rind.

the easiest, most delicious, and most economical thing i’ve discovered in a long time. enjoy!!

fermented pineapple juice (mabí / guarapo de piña)

i just started making my first vinegar, a cantaloupe vinegar (recipe to follow). in the time before it got sour, it smelled captivating. i wondered how it would taste, but for some reason, i stopped myself.

never again, now that i found this traditional Dominican recipe for just that – a lacto-fermented drink which, if left out, would become fantastic vinegar!! this definitely works with cantaloupes and pineapples – please post any successes you’ve had in this!

mabí / guarapo de piña

Ingredients:

* 1 pineapple
* 2 quarts drinking water
* 1 cup sugar or equivalent sweetener

Instructions:

1. Wash the pineapple in running water scrubbing the peel clean.
2. Peel the pineapple (reserve the pineapple for other uses), rinse the peel again.
3. Put the pineapple in a pitcher big enough to fit the water and pineapple peels.
4. Cover and leave outside until you notice some froth on the surface.
5. Refrigerate for 3 to 4 days, or until you notice bubbles stuck to the sides of the pitcher.
6. Strain and pour the liquid into another clean pitcher. Add sugar to taste, ice and frozen pineapple cubes (optional).

lacto-fermented green bean pickles

recipe requested by erica!

also called “dilly beans” and one of my favorite pickles. crunchy and satisfying.

wash a bunch of green beans (or wax beans, or anything tender) well, and stand ’em up in a clean glass jar.

as you do this, layer things you like – garlic or onion or both, fresh herbs of any kind, spices, anything – in the jar.

add saltwater about as salty as your tears (leave head room!)

lid the thing, shake and burp a few times a day to off-gas.

don’t cram the jar too full. just full enough.

some flavor combos i really like?

garlic-dill
garlic-cumin-coriander-black mustard seed
garlic-basil
onion-bayleaf-yellow mustard seed
onion-allspice-clove-yellow mustard seed
sorrel-hotpepper

or any combination you like!

(try to use whole spices if you can, and try to crack once in a mortar and pestle to release flavor without grinding! but ground spices are ok, too.)

the lactobacillus bacteria will do the rest – preserving the beans, while imparting a tangy, sour flavor and simultaneously populating your gut with healthy bacteria that reduce risk or severity of depression, celiacs, insomnia, obesity, colon cancer, GI disorders and inflammatory bowel disease, and multiple sclerosis.

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i’ve used this method for years without ever getting sick from it, but it is possible to contract botulism with this closed-jar method. if you’re worried, you can try this 100% safe open-crock method.

lacto-fermented garden-fresh salsa

recipe requested by sonya!

i made two batches this go-round. one was a little sweeter, with carrot, sweet basil, little cherry tomatoes, a little jalapeno, turmeric, and fennel seed. one was very hot, with a ton of jalapeno, lemon basil, all kinds of heirloom tomatoes, turmeric, and garlic.

but you really can’t go wrong with anything involving garden tomatoes.

cut up your mixture into tiny chunks.

layer this mixture in the bottom of a clean mason jar with salt (coarse kosher or sea, please. it makes all the difference.) press as you go. the veggies will start creating brine as you work. keep going til you get near the top. add a little water and taste it. if it tastes saltier than your tears, you’re done. otherwise, add a little salt.

you can do this open-crock (see this post for more details; basically, you want to put a glass filled with water or a rock in the jar to keep the veggies submerged under the brine at all times) or with a lid on it (please burp the jar twice a day to avoid brining your ceiling)

other delicious add-ins? any fresh herb. any allium (i love onion in my salsa!) cauliflower. fruit. celery. sweet peppers (sometimes i have floating problems with these – weigh them down with carrots.) whatever you can imagine.

my advice? make a lot of this. i never thought i’d find something to replace my great love of homemade lacto-fermented giardinera, but the garden-fresh tomatoes put this salsa in my top three fermented veggies of all-time.