Farm Kitchen Chronicles: Beet Kvass and Esbeche

Fermentation part one: fermentation is very easy and not scary!

Esbeche and beet kvass that has fermented and now in the fridge. Esbeche has already been used in tacos, so we are already running out!

I have waxed on and on about fermentation in plenty of these newsletters, as it is such a staple in our diet. Today I am explaining two of the easiest ones to make, and really great to make in the fall!

Fermentation is a old world preservation process that was really a necessity at one point, before refrigeration existed and grocery stores got vegetables trucked in from across the country. Getting vegetables in a Wisconsin seasonal diet in the 1800s, for example, meant eating vegetables submerged in salt brine in one’s root cellar in order to get enough vitamins in the winter, when the garden outside was covered in a foot of snow and there was absolutely nothing green to eat for six months.