This week we are going to do a little lactic ferment with some of the beautiful hakurei turnips that are about to be harvested for week 17 CSA shares. The method I use is very simple and if you would like a deeper explanation or if you are very interested in fermentation I recommend getting the Noma guide to fermentation as it is one of the first fermentation books that lays out the information in a very straight forward way. For the turnips I like to do a brine and I will use bakers percentages to figure out my math…basically you will be multiplying the total weight of the product (water and vegetables) by the percentage that you want to get the amount of salt needed to allow the fermentation to happen. We are shooting for 2.5%. This ferment makes for great accoutrement for a cheese and charcuterie board or sliced and put into a salad! Ok lets get started.
Gather the following products:
1 32oz jar
Digital food scale
2bu Hakurei turnips
2 cloves Garlic
Black Pepper
Sea salt
Aleppo or suitable chili flake
1 Bay leaf
First remove the greens from the turnip, I save them for later use. Wash in cool water and cut in half and quarters depending on size. Peel the garlic and remove the root end.
Put your Jar on the scale and tare. Now put all ingredients into the jar and top with filtered or spring water. I had a total of 900g I then did my math 900*.025 to give me the amount of salt being 22.5 g.
I then add the 22.5 g salt to the jar, lid and shake to dissolve the salt. Now let it sit for 4-6 days checking daily as it could go faster depending on the environment in your kitchen. When sour to your liking put in the fridge. It will last for 3-6months refrigerated. That’s it, you have lacto-fermented turnips!