Vegetable Ferment

Ingredients:

• 4 beetroot
• 3 carrots
• 1 pumpkin
• water
• kitchen salt
• glass container with lid
• old sock

Preparation:

• Slice beetroot and carrots;
• Cut pumpkin in pieces;
• Weigh the empty container, this is to later deduce the weight of its contents;
• Put the pieces into the container, make sure the larger pieces are firmly wedged under the shoulder of the glass to keep the smaller pieces from floating to the surface;
• Add water until all pieces are submerged. any piece breaking the surface of the water will be a breeding ground for bacteria and fungi;
• Weigh the full container again and subtract the weight of the empty container. In my ferment (see photo), I had 900 grams of contents;
• Add 1% to 2% by weight of salt. In my case, 1% of 900 grams is 9 grams, 2% is 18 grams. I added 15 grams of salt to the water;
• Optionally you can add a teaspoon of sourdough starter or whey water (from yogurt) to kick-start your ferment;
• Put the lid loosely on the container. Add an old sock over the top to secure the lid more tightly but not so tight the fermentation gasses stay trapped;
• The fermentation produces gasses (primarily carbon-dioxide) and may start to foam at the top. As a precaution against spills you can put the container on an appropriately sized plate.
• The ferment can be eaten any time. As you leave the ferment to do its thing for longer, the taste will turn gradually more sour.