add some culture to your diet

“Cultured foods foster a healthy digestive environment, and contribute to optimal wellness overall.” - Winnie, Healthy Green Kitchen

Naturally cultured foods and drinks are teeming with vitamins, live enzymes, and natural probiotics. These were prevalent in the diets of our ancestors, yet they’re not frequently consumed by most people today. Before there was refrigeration and before foods were canned to extend their shelf life, they were naturally preserved in small batches using the lacto-fermentation method.

How lacto-fermentation works: Bacteria known as lactobacilli convert sugars and starches into lactic acid. The presence of lots of lactic acid results in a food that’s exceptionally nutritious and much less prone to spoilage. Examples of lacto-fermented foods and drinks include yogurt, kefir, miso, kombucha, and vegetable preparations such as kimchi, sauerkraut, and lacto-fermented pickles.

Lacto-fermented vegetables are a good place to start if you want to begin making your own cultured foods. It’s really easy, and particularly beneficial because they contain many nutrients as well as fiber. Pickled veggies make great snacks, side dishes, and salad add-ins.

Winnie’s spicy lacto-fermented pickles recipe is the perfect first recipe to try. After drooling over her amazing pictures, take the pledge to add more cultured foods into your diet and support your school in our current challenge!

Winnie’s blog, Healthy Green Kitchen, is where she fuses her “interests in home cooking, nutrition, green living, and other aspects of a healthy lifestyle.” Dabbling in organic gardening, beekeeping and chicken keeping, she gives great healthy home advice and recipes that are sure to inspire (and make your mouth water).