Thursday, May 22, 2014

Easy Fermented Carrots


A few months ago I discovered the joy of fermenting vegetables! 

What prompted my journey to fermenting pretty much everything, is that my second born has eczema. I didn't want to use steroid creams on her so we began our search for how to heal her naturally. Something I learned along the way is that her eczema is a result of a leaky gut. So we've been trying to fix it. 

Leaky gut put very, very, simply is when your intestines are too porous. When this happens food "particles" are allowed to enter the blood stream. Now I'm not talking chunks of food but more like microscopic particles. These "particles" then cause our body to attack them. This leads to food sensitivities, and allergies. Eczema is the result of the skin trying to eliminate the toxins.

Having the right amount of good bacteria in our guts will aid in proper digestion and help with the gut issues. But in addition to that you need to heal the gut. So eating probiotic rich foods is only part of the solution. As a result of all this we've been introducing more and more fermented foods to our diet. We started with fermented carrots and then moved to kombucha, sour dough, and pickles. Actually those are the only things I was successful with. I've tried other things too lol.. Although I wish my baby didn't have these issues, it's been awesome learning about all theses things. 

Ok now for how we actually do it. I make carrot slices using a mandolin. I've done sticks before, and everyone liked them except for the little girl who needed to be eating them the most! Since I switched to slices she likes them way better. So for those with picky eaters, try slices. 


Then I let the girls put the slices in a jar. I've found that when they help they are more likely to eat it, especially when it's something new. 


Then I pour salt water over the carrots and covered them. I use 1 teaspoon of salt for this 8oz jar of carrots. I use the plastic to keep the carrots below the liquid, and to keep unwanted things out. If it's not below the liquid, you up your chances for developing mold.


Once I get everything finished up I set it on top of my fridge (only because I need it away from my other ferments) for 3 days. After that they are ready to eat and/or refrigerate. 

You can play around with the flavors and add herbs. Our favorite so far is garlic carrots. Adding dill is on my things to try list though. 

What about you? Do you ferment any vegetables?


5 comments:

  1. I like to make pickles like this in a big crock each summer...they taste great :) Thanks for sharing on The HomeAcre Hop! Hope to see you again today :)

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  2. Thank you my dear for sharing your post on my Simple Life Sunday last week at TrayerWildernesss.com. I enjoyed your post and love your site. You are my featured post today! I look forward to reading more of your materials and would love for you to keep sharing your materials. I also look forward to getting to know you better. Blessings to your and yours!!

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  3. We make our own sauerkraut, but haven't tried our own carrots -- yet! :)

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  4. your blog looks great...this is my first visit. :)

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