🍎 “Health or Disease. Everything happens on the end of your fork”
🍎 We’re living in an anti-bacterial world of chlorinated water, hand sanitisers, anti-bacterial soap, and the sterilisation of everything. This chemical and anti-bacterial exposure has narrowed the biodiversity within us…particularly of our gut microbiome whose volume and diversity determines our overall health and wellness.
🍎 Because of this, fermented foods are now a new food trend, known to have probiotic benefits. The whole phenomenon of fermentation has growing interest…and is understood to be the desirable transformative action of foods by micro-organisms.
🍎 The word fermentation originates from the word ‘ to boil’…because of the CO2 or bubbling that results.
🍎 Not all fermented foods have live bacteria…cooking or heating will destroy any live bacteria.
🍎 Louis Pasteur was involved in fermentation 150 years ago in the invention of penicillin.
🍎 Kimchi is a well known and popular Korean dish that has been eaten for centuries. It can in fact be traced back to BC. Approximately 1.5 million tonnes of Kimchi is consumed in Korea each year.
🍎 Kimchi is considered a superfood as the fermentation process increases the micronutrient capacity and availability of the veggies. Kimchi is also easier for the bodt to digest than the veggies in an unfermented state.
🍎 Making Kimchi involves the lacto-fermentation of vegetables by Lactic Acid Bacteria (LAB). Traditionally, Kimchi is made with shredded napa cabbage, carrots, onions, radish, red pepper, garlic, mustard seeds, red chilli (flakes), ginger, leek, pear and apple.
🍎 What I found incredible is that no LAB can be found on any living growing plants. It seems that cutting the veggies, releases their natural plant sugars (natural fermentation fuel) and the LAB. LAB is the primary fermenting bacteria in Kimchi.
🍎 The LAB content of garlic is exceptionally high, as is that of Capsaicin, the active component of red chillis.
🍎 The bacterial diversity of the brew decreases more slowly when capsaicin is present and the overall bacterial diversity is higher when garlic and capsaicin are included in the Kimchi brew.
🍎 The salt that is added to the shredded or chopped veg serves to protect the brew from pathogens and unwanted microbials but is also necessary for the increased production and healthy functioning of the LAB. Rubbing salt into the veggies also increases the release of their natural sugars.
🍎 The four main variables that protect a Kimchi brew from becoming contaminated are:
🍎 Initially, the heterofermentors are most active in the brew and will produce a combination of lactic acid and acetic acid. As the pH of the brew drops, the homofermenters will begin to dominate. The homofermenters only produce lactic acid, which will give the Kimchi a more buttery and softer flavour.
🍎 Kimchi has a major reliance on native microbes. These native microbes have the power to tend for themselves when presented with appropriate conditions.
🍎 The three most common LAB homofermenters found in Kimchi are :
🍎 Yeast in a Kimchi brew is undesirable. Not because it’s necessarily harmful but because yeast will give the Kimchi a musty taste. A clean uncontaminated environment will prevent yeast invaders and indirect inoculation of the brew by other undesirables.
🍎 Serving suggestions for breakfast, lunch and/or dinner:
July 2020
Blog post written by Chantal Du Chenne, Health and Lifestyle Coach and owner/ operator of the DripBar.
BIO: Chantal is a B.Sc.Hons Allied Health with an international diploma in Nutrition and Sports Nutrition. Chantal works as a Gut Health & Lifestyle Coach specialising in the management of health conditions associated with leaky gut and dysbiosis (imbalance) of the gut microbiome.
Over her 25 year career, Chantal has held various positions within the health and wellness industry – including 10 years as the Executive Head of Vodacom’s corporate wellness & mobile health programs. Chantal is the owner/ founder of the DripBar which offers vitamin and mineral drip therapy in improving micronutrient deficiencies. She is also the founder/owner of a Kombucha brewery which produces the brand of ‘booch’ called theFarmacy.
Chantal is a competitive cyclist, a plant strong vegan and mom to two grown up girls.
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This blog post contains information that is not designed to take the place of,
substitute, or replace any form and method of professional or medical advice
and treatment or medicine. All content is the author’s opinion and is not
intended to diagnose and remedy. The facts and figures contained in this
document are presented solely for informational and educational purposes
only.