I love low-tech solutions. An oven made out of cardboard boxes will likely garner less attention than will a refrigerator that alerts its owner via Apple Watch of eggs on the verge of spoiling. At least, it would attract more attention here in Silicon Valley—and probably gobs of venture capital to boot. (Wouldn’t it be […]
food preservation
How Does Fermentation Prevent Food Waste?
Today I taught a fermentation workshop at CVSan in Castro Valley as part of the organization’s Commitment to Serve Week. The theme of the week is zero-waste. It was so much fun! (Thank you Jordan, Naomi and all the staff at CVSan.) But what does fermentation have to do with food waste? Well, I’ve decided […]
How to Freeze Food Without Using Plastic
When I post pictures of my jar-filled freezer on social media, I get lots of questions about it, usually along the following lines: Is it safe to freeze food in glass? (Yes) Do you use special glass for the freezer? (No) Don’t your glass containers break? (Only that one time…) I have had little trouble […]
Fermenting Versus Canning
Updated 06/11/17 fermentation noun fer·men·ta·tion \ˌfər-mən-ˈtā-shən, –ˌmen-\ “[The] process by which microbes consume sugars and produce acid, alcohol and gases.” — from The Good Gut “The transformative action of microorganisms.” — from The Art of Fermentation Often when I discuss fermentation, people say to me “Cool! I’ve always wanted to try canning.” Before I started fermenting […]
Simple Fermented Salsa with Live Cultures
Click here to jump to the recipe My younger daughter refuses to drink kombucha (referring to the SCOBY, “How can you put anything into your body that touched that!”). She won’t try sauerkraut (“What’s that smell?!”). She will eat sourdough, although somewhat reluctantly (“Why can’t we have a normal kitchen?”). But she scarfs down this. If […]
How to Make a Ginger Bug Starter for Natural Soda
I have posted pics of my ginger bug on Instagram a couple of times but without directions. When people then ask how to actually make the ginger bug, they probably want more guidance than “mix some ginger, sugar and water together and add more daily for about five days.” But really, that’s about all you do. […]
8 Tactics to Reduce Food Waste at Home
Updated 10/29/18 Food waste is a huge—but edible—problem. These eight tips will help you reduce food waste at home and save money. 1. Buy less food more frequently If you shop a couple of times a week and buy only what you need, you will enjoy fresher food and waste less of it. Yes, I realize some people […]
New Schedule of Free Webinars and In-Person Workshops
Thank you to everyone who has attended one of my free webinars or in-person workshops. They have been so much fun for me to teach and I hope my attendees have enjoyed them as well. Below is my new schedule for May and June. Webinars: Google Hangout To register for the webinars, please choose one or more […]
Winter and Spring Fermentation Workshops
The idea that kombucha (or any ferment) is safe only in the hands of technical experts denies the long lineages of home and village production that spawned them and plays right into the disempowering cult of specialization. — Sandor Katz, The Art of Fermentation Last week, when Vlad tasted my first variation on sourdough bread (coriander-raisin), […]