Lately I've been cooking with germs. There are quite a few strains of bacteria and yeast that can actually help you out in the kitchen. Some are a little nastier looking than others, but they're all pretty good once you get used to them, plus they're nice and easy! Just prepare the food item, inoculate it (if it needs to be inoculated, some things just work on their own with local wild bacteria) and then sit it someplace warm for a couple days while the little creepy-crawlies do the work for you.
That said, the kombucha is definitely the nastiest looking one I've seen, which is why I've been hesitating to try it. I'll probably obtain a starter culture (called the Mother, a jellyfish-like mat of microbes) for that at some point soon, though, so that I can try it.
If anyone wants to trade micro-organisms, just let me know. I'd be up for it, especially after I get ahold of the Kombucha mother. The Kombucha mother is really the one that you need to swap around; you can start yogurt with a tablespoon of regular old yogurt, sauerkraut just works on its own, and Tempeh can be started with a small amount of Tempeh, although they sell starter cultures that would probably prove to be a little more resilient for Tempeh.
Just so you get an idea what I'm talking about:
How to make Kombucha: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BQAX9HngwN8
How to make Tempeh: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EUNxwuBaTEA
There are so many foods that are made via fermentation that it's not even funny. In addition to all of the things I've mentioned so far, you've also got cheese of every variety, beer, vinegar, cider, beer, breads (although the culture is killed - you monster! - via baking before it's ingested), pickled cucumbers, pickled everything else, beer, natto (although I've never been able to get past the smell), hell, even chocolate undergoes fermentation as part of the process of turning it into delicious candy bars. I'm really starting to appreciate all the little critters that make life awesome for all of us.
So, just to paraphrase my somewhat rambling post:
-Germs are awesome because they make life easier and more delicious
-I'd be willing to send some cultures to people if you want to try it, although I won't have the cultures for a little bit
-Natto smells like a skunk's ass
That said, the kombucha is definitely the nastiest looking one I've seen, which is why I've been hesitating to try it. I'll probably obtain a starter culture (called the Mother, a jellyfish-like mat of microbes) for that at some point soon, though, so that I can try it.
If anyone wants to trade micro-organisms, just let me know. I'd be up for it, especially after I get ahold of the Kombucha mother. The Kombucha mother is really the one that you need to swap around; you can start yogurt with a tablespoon of regular old yogurt, sauerkraut just works on its own, and Tempeh can be started with a small amount of Tempeh, although they sell starter cultures that would probably prove to be a little more resilient for Tempeh.
Just so you get an idea what I'm talking about:
How to make Kombucha: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BQAX9HngwN8
How to make Tempeh: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EUNxwuBaTEA
There are so many foods that are made via fermentation that it's not even funny. In addition to all of the things I've mentioned so far, you've also got cheese of every variety, beer, vinegar, cider, beer, breads (although the culture is killed - you monster! - via baking before it's ingested), pickled cucumbers, pickled everything else, beer, natto (although I've never been able to get past the smell), hell, even chocolate undergoes fermentation as part of the process of turning it into delicious candy bars. I'm really starting to appreciate all the little critters that make life awesome for all of us.
So, just to paraphrase my somewhat rambling post:
-Germs are awesome because they make life easier and more delicious
-I'd be willing to send some cultures to people if you want to try it, although I won't have the cultures for a little bit
-Natto smells like a skunk's ass
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