Thursday, January 22, 2015

FOOD SPECIAL .................Pickle your taste buds




 Pickle your taste buds

The ancient art of preserving food has piqued the interest of foodies worldwide. As kimchis, chutneys and kombucha go mainstream, we find out why the buzz around fermented food -the hottest culinary trend of 2015 -is getting louder.

You probably have fond childhood memories of relishing your granny's homemade achaar and chutneys. Remember the lengths you'd go to, to steal a palmful of murabba? Food, as they say, is the best nostalgia. The world over, food enthusiasts and connoisseurs have realised that a winning dish is one through which people relive their memories.Thus, fermented ingredients have gone high up on a chef's list.

Sandor Katz, fermentation revivalist and author of The Art of Fermentation and Wild Fermentation, whose endorsement of fermented ingredients has played a major role in its entry into gourmet restaurant menus, describes these foods as `the flavourful space between fresh and rotten'. "Though the process has been around for centuries, it is only now that it is being tapped for its full potential. Chefs, home cooks and even supermarkets shelves are looking beyond fermented staples like wine, cheese, bread and yogurt." Its popularity is on the rise also because fermenta tion increases the shelf life of food, its flavour, causes minimum wastage, is cost-effective and can be easily done at home.
THE INDIAN PICTURE
Touted as the hottest food trend of 2015, cultured foods such as the hugely popular Korean kimchi (made from vegetables), the many varieties of Indian chutney, the German delicacy sauerkraut (sour cabbage), Thai fish sauce nam pla, Japanese miso paste (fermented soybeans), Russian kombucha (a fermented drink made with tea) and its milky counterpart kefir, are some traditional dishes that have become mainstream ingredients in sandwiches, rolls, soups, salads and beverages across the globe.

Even in India, where dosa, chaas, dhokla, appam and chutney are popular dishes, chefs are experimenting with alternative fermented foods in their menus. Says nutrition consultant and food blogger Sangeeta Khanna, "Fine dining establishments across India have opened their kitchens to traditional fermented recipes like kanji (a drink prepared from the juice of black carrots), curries made from kachampuli (a fruit vinegar from Kerala), jau ki ghaat (a ragi drink from Rajasthan), iromba (a spicy Manipuri chutney made from fresh vegetables and fish) etc." The distinct flavour that fermentation imparts to a dish is also one of the major reasons why chefs are using this technique."The process adds layers of complexity to the food. For example, you can see a world of difference between milk and cheese or grape juice and wine, the latter being fermented.Fermented foods taste strong, acidic, sometimes pungent and matured. The taste profile of consumers is very evolved today.People are acquiring a taste for it," says Mumbai-based Chef Akhil Multani.

A GOOD KICK IN THE GUT
With people focussing more on holistic well-being, cultured food with its inherent probiotic health benefits, has caught the fancy of consumers. Says macrobiotic nutritionist Tarika Ahuja, "At any time, our gut has good and bad bacteria. Eating healthy fermented foods increases the good bacteria and helps digestion. It also improves immunity and purifies the blood, as the bacteria flushes out all the toxins." Snacking on these foods also means you don't need to pop probiotic pills, as the former contain triple the amount of bacteria. And above all, you can go back to your childhood memories by just `pickling' your tongue!

FERMENTATION FESTIVALS AROUND THE WORLD
Every year, to celebrate the benefits of fermented foods, world-class fermenting artisans and enthusiasts come together to set up festivals. Boston Ferments in New England, Santa Barbara Fermentation Festival in California, Fermentation Fest in Wisconsin, Ganggyeong Fermented Seafood Festival in Korea, are among the dozen festivals that were held in 2014. From holding workshops on how to master fermentation to having a market that sells homemade samples of cultured foods and drinks, these festivals give you a low-down on everything fermented

BOTTLE-FERMENTED COCKTAILS
Bartenders and mixologists are using everything from champagne yeast to koji, a fungus used to make miso and sake, to ferment cocktail ingredients and make bottle-fermented drinks. A tricky process, this technique involves adding yeast to mixed cocktails, then bottling them and letting them sit for a spell. The resulting cocktails carry a unique carbonation with a bready flavour!

EAT CULTURED FOODS, BE SMART
According to a study published in the journal Nutrition in Clinical Practice, apart from being good for the health, probiotic foods actually make you smarter! If you find yourself struggling with brain fog or depression, the problem may lie in your gut. If you lead a stressful life and have a diet high in sugary and processed food, the beneficial microbiome in your gut becomes imbalanced - which cause unclear thinking and excessive worrying. This can be corrected by consuming foods like buttermilk , unpasteurised sauerkraut, kimchi etc.

How many portions should I eat?
"Eat homemade fermented food thrice a day, along with your meals. Include curd, pickled vegetables and fermented drinks as accompaniments. Items made of fermented rice and pulses can also be consumed," says health expert Neeraj Mehta.


Purvaja Sawant, TNN | Jan 20, 2015
 

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