To understand how this works, here are the basic principles and a guide to your first ferment.Wild fermentation happens naturallyWhen you prepare vegetables and fruits for fermentation, a natural process of fermentation starts to happen in the jar. This is lacto-fermentation. It is the process, performed by lactic-acid bacteria on the ingredients, that transform fermentable sugars contained in plants into organic acids, carbon dioxide, ethanol and mannitol. If you use starters that contain microorganisms for easy start of fermentation, this is called culturing.Fermentation happens in selective environmentOnly certain microorganisms enable the fermentation process. By creating a selective environment you make sure that the conditions help them strive and at the same time other harmful bacteria are killed off. All these conditions include: lack of air, salt, submerged vegetables, mild temperature, avoiding exposure to direct sunlight and others. You can find ways to ensure these conditio...
