Wild Fermentation: The Flavor, Nutrition, and Craft of Live-Culture Foods

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Wild Fermentation: The Flavor, Nutrition, and Craft of Live-Culture Foods

by Sandor Ellix Katz, Sally Fallon (Foreword by)

4.39 of 5 stars 4.39 · rating details · 1,893 ratings · 207 reviews

For thousands of years humans have enjoyed the taste and nutrition of fermented foods and drinks. We rely on the transformative, almost magical power of fermentation to preserve and improve all sorts of food, making them tastier, more digestible, and more appealing. Author Sandor Katz takes readers on a whirlwind trip through the wild world of fermentation. The book is div...more

Paperback, 275 pages

Published September 1st 2003 by Chelsea Green Publishing Company (first published 2001)

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Aug 11, 2008 Shawndra rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: readers of Omnivore's Dilemma, Animal Vegetable Miracle, permaculturists, DIY folks, health nuts

Recommended to Shawndra by: I found it at the library!

I went looking for a sauerkraut recipe and found Wild Fermentation, a radical faerie's treatise on harnessing nature's microscopic beasties in preserving food. Ever wonder how to make your own miso or tempeh, kefir or yogurt, mead or sourdough? Pickles, hominy, kombucha? Injera like you get at Ethiopian restaurants? A snap!

This freewheeling book is an inspiration from start to finish. The author is HIV-positive and considers lactofermented foods an essential part of his selfcare regimen. After...more

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Jan 12, 2013 Alain Harvey rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: cooking

A self-avowed “fermentation fetishist,” Katz travels around the country giving lectures and demonstrations, spreading the gospel of sauerkraut, dill pickles, and all foods transformed and ennobled by bacteria. His two books—“Wild Fermentation” and “The Revolution Will Not Be Microwaved”—have become manifestos and how-to manuals for a generation of underground food activists, and he’s at work on a third, definitive volume.

In Wild Fermentation Sandor Katz, or Sandorkraut as he is nicknamed, brings...more

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Jul 27, 2011 Andi rated it 5 of 5 stars

Here's a book that I wasn't expecting to affect me in any way except to inspire me to make yogurt--and WOW was I surprised to find so much more! Nostalgia ran strong as I read about making sauerkraut and yogurt--two of the fermented foods I grew up watching my grandma make. Along with many other foods I'm familiar with (beer, wine, cheese), Sandor Ellix Katz also shares a wealth of knowledge about fermented foods that are unfamiliar to me--such as tempeh and kefir. I have at least heard of those...more Here's a book that I wasn't expecting to affect me in any way except to inspire me to make yogurt--and WOW was I surprised to find so much more! Nostalgia ran strong as I read about making sauerkraut and yogurt--two of the fermented foods I grew up watching my grandma make. Along with many other foods I'm familiar with (beer, wine, cheese), Sandor Ellix Katz also shares a wealth of knowledge about fermented foods that are unfamiliar to me--such as tempeh and kefir. I have at least heard of those particular examples, and they have become big in the Western vegetarian diet...but what about kvass (made from stale bread, refermented), or kombucha (a dark tea cultured with a 'mother' or 'tea beast')? Reading about a 'tea beast', which is a gelatinous glob of bacteria and yeasts, had my curiosity piqued! I found myself wanting to experience some of these timeless fermented foods. He describes the health benefits of eating live cultured foods, and as a longtime AIDS survivor, he makes a good case for the benefits of his recipes. These recipes, in many cases, have existed for thousands of years. Fermented food plays a huge role in the history of humankind, predating agriculture.

Beyond the fascinating histories and the techniques of using 'free-range' microbes and bacteria to preserve and enhance food, Katz also takes some time to contemplate life itself. It seems appropriate, given that fermentation relies on living creatures, though tiny, who are a part of the life cycle we also experience. I'm always a sucker for how-to books that get into some deep contemplation of existence. He delves into some thoughts on death, a concept that he's had to face head-on since his HIV diagnosis. His zest for life and its cyclical nature, despite his illness, is truly inspiring. Katz finishes his fermented-foods manifesto with some thoughts on social change. He compares revolution to fire--the 'moment of upheaval; romantic and longed for, or dreaded and guarded against'-- and slow social change to fermentation. "As microorganisms work their transformative magic and you witness the miracles of fermentation, envision yourself as an agent for change, creating agitation, releasing bubbles of transformation into the social order. Use your fermented goodies to nourish your family and friends and allies. The life-affirming power of these basic foods contrasts sharply with the lifeless, industrially processed foods that fill supermarket shelves. Draw inspiration from the action of bacteria and yeast, and make your life a transformative process."
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Jun 03, 2010 E rated it 5 of 5 stars

The book has tons of great easy recipes. I have made a few things already, with plans to go into the more advanced ones. The commentary that flows around the recipes is sometimes insightful, but can be a little too "new age-y" and made me sometimes skip some of the small rants. Overall, I highly recommend the book to anyone who wants to get a basic introduction into fermentation in all forms.

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Nov 16, 2009 Andrea rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: cooking

When you think of fermentation you think of alcoholic drinks. There is a widespread tradition of fermenting to preserve foods across the world that is worth learning about as a basic survival skill. Many foods prepared with vinegar now were traditionally fermented. Some of the more common ones are saurkraut, pickles, chutney, and buttermilk. Some of the more surprising foods that were/are traditionally fermented are things like salsa, beets for Borscht, Worchestershire sauce, Soy sauce, and pick...more

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Jan 03, 2012 Kate rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: foodie, cookbook

Fascinating. I came across this book sort of by accident: after making the pickled grapes in Molly Wizenberg's book, I was idly browsing the Web for more refrigerator pickle recipes and kept coming across references to Katz and his book. Silly me, I didn't really know the difference then between fermenting and vinegar pickling. Even if you're not interested in making all (or even any) of the comestibles, each chapter is readable and engaging. Given his own experience of living with a serious il...more

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Sep 08, 2012 Anne rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: health-food, non-fiction, read-2012

Wild fermentation
“The focus of this book is the basic processes of transformation, which mostly involve creating conditions in which naturally occurring wild organisms thrive and proliferate. Fermentation can be low-tech. These are ancient rituals that humans have been performing for many generations.” P. 3
Fermentation:
• Preserves food.
• Breaks food down into more easily digestible forms.
• Also creates new nutrients. As they go through their life cycles, microbial cultures create B vitamins, in...more Wild fermentation
“The focus of this book is the basic processes of transformation, which mostly involve creating conditions in which naturally occurring wild organisms thrive and proliferate. Fermentation can be low-tech. These are ancient rituals that humans have been performing for many generations.” P. 3
Fermentation:
• Preserves food.
• Breaks food down into more easily digestible forms.
• Also creates new nutrients. As they go through their life cycles, microbial cultures create B vitamins, including folic acid, riboflavin, niacin, thiamin, and biotin.
• Some ferments have been shown to function as antioxidants, scavenging cancer precursors known as “free radicals” from the cells of your body.
• Fermentation also removes toxins from foods. (example, cassava)
Many commercially available fermented foods are pasteurized, killing the prized bacteria. If you want live-culture fermented foods in our food-security-obsessed age, you have to seek them out or make them yourself.
The most common ingredient called for in the recipes in this book is water. Do not use water that is heavily chlorinated for fermentation projects. Chlorine is used in water precisely because it kills microorganisms. If you can smell or taste the chlorine in tap water, either boil it to evaporate the chlorine before using the water for fermenting, or use water from another source.
Another frequent ingredient is salt. Salt inhibits many organisms, but up to a point it is tolerated by Lactobacilli, a type of bacteria important in many food fermentation processes. I like to use sea salt. It’s fine to ferment with either sea salt or pickling salt, but don’t use the standard supermarket table salt with added iodine and anti-caking agents. Iodine is antimicrobial, like chlorine, and could inhibit fermentation. Coarse kosher salt is another option, but be aware that because of its larger grains, the same weight of salt will occupy greater volume, so you’ll need more of it. P.35
Kefir and tara are distinguished from yogurt by both the method of fermentation and the types of organism that the fermentation involves. Kefir and tara are made with “grains,” actually colonies of yeast and bacteria that look like curds, which you strain out of the milk after fermentation, then use to start the next batch. The presence of yeast in addition to Lactobacilli gives kefir a bubbly effervescence and a small alcohol content (about 1%). P. 79
Tara or kefir is especially easy to make because it requires no temperature control. The hard part is coming by the grains to get started.
For people who do not drink milk, this same process can be done with soy or rice or nut milk or juice or honey water.
Oat porridge. Fermenting oats before cooking them not only makes them more nutritious and digestible, it makes the resulting oatmeal much creamier as well. For the freshest, most nutritious oatmeal, coarsely grind whole oats yourself when you are ready to use them, though steel-cut oats or rolled oats will work fine, too.
1 cup of oats. 2 cups of water. Soak oats for 24 hours (longer is okay too) in a covered bowl or jar. The oats will absorb most of the water. When cooking, boil additional water (he says 3 cups, I found this to be too much) with a pinch of salt. Lower the heat, add the soaked oats with any remaining water, and stir until the oats are hot and have absorbed all the water, about 10 minutes. Stir constantly, as the thick, sticky oatmeal can burn easily. 3 to 4 servings.
Fruit scrap vinegar. Any fruit scraps (peels and cores, fallen, bruised fruit, overripe bananas, etc.). Vinegar is a recycling opportunity. Just pour sugar water (1/4 cup dissolved in one quart of water) over the fruit. Cover with a cheesecloth to keep flies out, and leave to ferment at room temperature. When you notice the liquid darkening , after about 1 week, strain out the fruit and discard. Ferment the liquid 2-3 weeks more, stirring or agitating periodically.

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Jun 17, 2012 Tamahome rated it 4 of 5 stars

One person's rotten food is another man's delicacy.

I'm going to mark it as read since I'm in the 'recipe' section. But honestly I haven't gotten the nerve to try my own fermenting yet. But hey I eat yogurt, sauerkraut, and pickles.

He does have a newer & longer book: The Art of Fermentation, only in hard cover.

20 min Interview on npr: http://www.npr.org/2012/06/13/1549143...

90 min talk on youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kmDtbv...

Check out those fermented chinese eggs! http://en.wikipe ...more

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Nov 03, 2012 Anne rated it 4 of 5 stars

This book provides a great introduction to creating a broad range of edible goods fermented using the yeasts/bacteria/molds occurring naturally in the air/produce skin/etc. Most of the recipes are pretty approachable in the sense that they often follow the formula of add food to be fermented, cover with cheese cloth, let sit for a few weeks, stir occasionally. I am super excited about the prospect of making fermented foods without all of the control that goes into home brewing, for example. Howe...more

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Feb 13, 2009 Mary rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: food

Such a good read. I read it quickly and am experimenting with sour dough bread now thanks to my friend Jeff at the farm. He suggested the book and already had the starter going. He gave me some. I was on a flat bread making kick before and am ready to step it up now.
I get a great vibe from fermented food. When kombucha hit the shelves I was all over it. Now I have one once in awhile. I am excited at the prospect of doing it myself. I am going to try to make it to a workshop with Sandor in April....more

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Oct 04, 2010 Russ rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Very informative. The author is certainly a character and I'll probably poison myself making cheese and sauerkraut, but such is life.

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May 12, 2010 Ruth rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: food-and-cooking

Wow. This book was so interesting! It covers all wild fermented foods, from Sauerkraut to Miso, Yogurt to sourdough, and all manner of alcoholic drinks. I learned a lot about the fermentation process, why a little mold won't hurt you (this point may take a while for my mind to digest), and how fermenting food brings out all of the food's nutrients in an extremely absorbent form that is very beneficial to consume. Some of the recipes take only 24 hours, some take years.

The author is a gay man li...more

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Apr 12, 2012 jesse l mabus rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: gastronomy, folklore, cultural-studies, occulture, favorites

run, don't walk. this book is a love letter to the ecology that we live within and that exists within our bodies. probably the single best diy toolbox to fixing your diet, your health, and the life of this community we co-exist in called terra firma. his comments on death and decay in the final chapter are a wake-up call to change the way we have monetized and commodified even the process of grieving and burial. makes me want to shout out for help to build the laboratory/farm/co-operative/csa an...more

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May 15, 2009 Racheal rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: favorites

This book it great! The author has such a nice style and the book is the perfect balance of informative and accessible. It has a lot of detailed, practical advice to get you started on your own fermenting adventures plus just enough history and relevant discussion of the problems with the way we eat to get you really thinking. The author is obviously passionate about making and eating fermented foods and I appreciate that! Too many "alternative" food/health books really turn me off with their an...more

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May 23, 2012 Jonathan rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: cooking, wild-foods

Great introduction to a variety of fermented foods such as pickles, bread, and more exotic (for american readers) fare such as miso. Katz covers a lot of ground. He does deal frankly with his personal life and how that has influenced his study of fermentation and makes no bones about being a HIV individual. That's turned off some Amazon reviewers, but I didn't find it intrusive - this is not a cookbook, it's a methods book that explains the methods behind the fermentation and the authors journey...more

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Aug 24, 2012 Sally rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

A guide to making your own naturally fermented products such as miso, sauerkraut and sourdough bread.

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Dec 23, 2009 Leigh-ann rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: books-i-d-like-to-own

The characters in this book are a bit odd, but I guess that's not surprising considering that they live in a self-described "queer intentional community" (aka, a commune) in Tennessee (I'm gay, I get to mock other gay people... it's the law). Once you get past the list of folks named "SuSun" and "Leopard", you'll find a fabulous book about a huge range of fermented foods. I borrowed the book from the library to read more about kefir and yogurt, but now I'm excited to try making my own sauerkraut...more

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Jan 10, 2013 Chelsea rated it 5 of 5 stars

I checked this out from the library hoping to find a few good recipes. I found many, and so much more! Sandorkraut's radical perspective on food justice and activism are inspiring, and the stories of his community and loved ones are really enjoyable and authentic. I especially appreciated the chapter on death and how his fermentation journey has helped him make peace with it. I will definitely be buying this book!
Also of note - this book is very vegan-friendly. Many recipes use honey, but he say...more

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Mar 24, 2009 Keith rated it 5 of 5 stars

I'll throw it under 'read' just for... whatever's sake. It's the sort of book one can read through cover to cover, being, though basically a 'cookbook' or a book of recipes of some kind or another - fermentation not necessarily requiring any external heat source - it is still full of information and stories that are worthwhile to read even if you never make anything described therein. My advice, go get this book, read it, learn about fermented foods, and go make some yogurt or beer or something....more

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Nov 08, 2012 Mister Ben rated it 5 of 5 stars

This book kind of changed my life. I wish I had a copy of it here in Korea. At the time that I read Wild Fermentation it changed much of my already changing perspective on food; Made me think about how the human digestive system is a constantly changing ecosystem of bacteria and yeast that is super responsive to the kind of food we put through it.

Read it as soon as possible. It will fill your head with wonderful ideas and a desire to ferment many things to make those foods taste better and be mo...more

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Sep 12, 2011 Dan rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: self-sufficiency

If there are better books out there about fermentation, I'll consider giving this book 3 stars instead of 2, but it seems to have taken the scene by storm and I'll admit I've now got a to-do list of foods I'd like to ferment: pickles, sauerkraut, sourdough, miso, tempeh, ginger beer, etc. I was already making Kombucha and yogurt, but the educational aspect of the book really helps me put it all into perspective. This is definitely an activist book. The author will be a bit out there for some, bu...more

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Jul 14, 2010 Jason rated it 5 of 5 stars

Naturally, i'm not through with this book. it is an extensive collection of fermentation processes that you experiment with one at a time. At this point, i have made sauerkraut, sourdough, kimchi, kombucha, hard cider, pickles, beet kvass, vinegar, and sprouted grains bread. There is so much here. I have hardly touched the wines, beers and meads yet.

Truth be told, Katz is a pioneer. He is humble and simple and aims to show anyone who tries this immaculately simple forgotten science. It is beaut...more Naturally, i'm not through with this book. it is an extensive collection of fermentation processes that you experiment with one at a time. At this point, i have made sauerkraut, sourdough, kimchi, kombucha, hard cider, pickles, beet kvass, vinegar, and sprouted grains bread. There is so much here. I have hardly touched the wines, beers and meads yet.

Truth be told, Katz is a pioneer. He is humble and simple and aims to show anyone who tries this immaculately simple forgotten science. It is beautiful to see produce transform, within its salty brine, from cabbage to kraut or radish to kimchi. there is something sensual about the process, seeing the actual transformation means something, beyond itself. I feel like we have had the world handed to us for so much of our lives, in the way of food preparation at least, that to actually see an engrained process of probiotic change is beyond what the standard American takes for granted. It is a new miracle that is really just an old traditional way.

Like becoming a vegeterian, reading this book didn't just effect my diet; it effected how i view food culture. When i became vegeterian, i started to take note of failings in my health due to lack of protein, fiber, amino acids, calcium; i sought fundamental questions of nutrition and found solutions outside of meat. In the same way, i have always viewed mold as an evil, but this book has taught me about probiotic growth, how some molds are productive in the body. How some things don't exist without fermentation: beer, vinegar, chocolate, buttermilk, cheeses, bread, etc. I am now a little more aware of what i am putting into my body, and because of that, aware of what my body needs.

There are a lot of deceptions in our culture based on misunderstandings. I think of the theme in Idiocracy where the future relies so heavily on electrolytes, they try to water their plants with this salty brine and wonder why they are dying instead of growing bigger. This book is going to help the future from materializing the contents of that hilarious movie. i mean, it's a step.

So go out and learn your shit!(less)

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Jul 27, 2009 AJ rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: nonfiction, 2009, 5-star, own

This book is an excellent resource, and I will likely purchase a copy when I'm ready to start fermenting. The author does a great job of explaining the process of fermentation, providing a brief (and interesting) history, and then explaining the recipes. Most of them are quite simple and just require time and patience. A few require spores and the author provides resources on where those can be purchased.

My favorite part of this book is the author's critique of modern food production and how it...more

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Jul 13, 2008 Jeffrey rated it 4 of 5 stars

--wrote this for www.greenprophet.com--

I sat down to read Sandor Katz’s “Wild Fermentation: The Flavor, Nutrition, and Craft of Live-Culture Foods” to help me along with my recreational pickling and fermenting skills.

I was hoping to learn a bit about the how-tos when making cheese, meads, bread and kimchi. To my surprise and pleasure I found myself reading a cookbook plus a manifesto –– a guidebook to reclaiming our food supply and living a self-sufficient lifestyle.

An unconventional cookbook, a...more

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Nov 01, 2010 Michela rated it 5 of 5 stars

This is probably the only cookbook that is interesting enough to read cover to cover and then keep a reference, rather than skim for interesting recipes and toss on the shelf (as per usual). In addition to historical and basic scientific inforation this book includes step by step instructions for fermenting jsut about everyhting, including sourkraut, kimchi, ethiopian t'ej (honey wine), home made cheese, and even fermented fish sauces. It's amazing! Check it out if you're a handy type!

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Aug 07, 2012 Sara rated it 5 of 5 stars

This is one of those books I run across every few years that I pick out of curiosity and end up reading cover to cover. I checked this out from the library because it had a few sourdough recipes in it and I am on a sourdough baking binge. Now I’ve got pickles fermenting on the counter, kvass in the fridge and water kefir grains in the mail on the way. Also, I’m going to buy my dad this book for Christmas. If you are into DIY and/or cooking and/or are bored, give this book a try.

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Dec 23, 2008 Cassie rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: DIYers, home cooks, DFH-wannabes, microorganism lovers

Shelves: best-books-ever

Unlike Nina Planck (and Sally Fallon for that matter), Sandor Katz is totally lovable. Even if you never get brave enough to make his recipes, you'll totally wish you were his neighbor (even though you aren't living in a happy hippie commune in the hills of Tennessee (Kentucky?), and you're name isn't Pixie or Daffodil.) I bought this after too many bouts of antibiotics, and it definitely upped my fermented food intake, and now, I've actually started making the recipes.

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Feb 24, 2008 Beth rated it 5 of 5 stars

Recommended to Beth by: Ginny

Sandor covers all the fermentation you could want to know about, from soy to kraut/veggies to beer and wine. It's an amusing read, including the history of different foods and tales from his experiences living in a community here in Tennessee.

I liked his reasoning that we as a society try much too hard to get away from bacteria and "bad buggies." He embraces a more symbiotic relationship with our environments, allowing natural yeasts to leaven our bread and give character to other foods. Every...more

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Aug 07, 2012 Totemfilm rated it 5 of 5 stars

Mr Katz gives us all we need to start fermenting food. He takes us on a journey through his own personal experiences of live culture cuisine with passion and humour. This book is part diary (of his struggle with HIV and quest to overcome it effects), part cultural manifesto as he give us his take on the history and politics of nutrition, and part cookbook for healing and good health. This is a book I keep returning to as I plot my own path to better health.

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Apr 23, 2012 Nick Klagge rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: cookbooks

Recommended to me by a friend who has been using its recipes for kimchi and sauerkraut. It's the kind of cookbook you can easily "read," which I always enjoy. The author seems like an interesting guy; he has a certain hippie affinity with the author of "Sacred and Herbal Healing Beers," but tempered with just a little more down-to-earthness. I am currently using his recipe for "Fruit Scrap Vinegar" to try to make apple cider vinegar out of a bunch of saved apple cores. The jury's out until it's...more

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