Recipe: Lacto-Fermented Pickled Vegetables (2024)

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updated Jan 29, 2020

summer

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To the uninitiated, lacto-fermentation often sounds at best confusing and at worst frightening. Before I got elbow-deep into the world of kimchi, sauerkraut, and other fermented foods, I had vague notions of lacto-fermentation involving milk, bacteria, and jars of mysterious contents bubbling away in dark cupboards. Some of this is true, some of it isn’t, and I’ll get to that in a minute. But one thing is for sure: these lacto-fermented mixed pickles are crisp, tangy, and definitely not intimidating to make or eat. In fact they’re one of the easiest pickle recipes out there, perfect to serve alongside sandwiches, salads, or a Ploughman’s lunch.

When I first started pickling, I used vinegar brines and water bath canning methods, but these days I’m more likely to go the natural fermentation route. Lacto-fermented pickles are delicious, simple, and don’t require a lot of special equipment or ingredients — plus they have the benefit of homemade probiotics. DIY doesn’t get much better than that!

To dispel the most common myth about lacto-fermentation, it doesn’t necessarily have anything to do with dairy. Instead, the lacto refers to lactic acid. All fruits and vegetables have beneficial bacteria such as Lactobacillus on the surface. In an anaerobic (oxygen-free) environment, these bacteria convert sugars into lactic acid, which inhibits harmful bacteria and acts as a preservative. It’s also what gives fermented foods their characteristic sour flavor.

You can pretty much lacto-ferment any vegetable, and here I use a colorful medley of cauliflower, carrots, and red bell peppers. I also throw in a few spices, which you can adapt to your taste, and grape leaves, which help keep the pickles crisp. (If you don’t have access to grape leaves, you can omit them or try using black tea, oak leaves, or other tannin-rich leaves.)

Pile the ingredients in a jar, add salted water, cover the jar, and let the bacteria do their thing. You can put the jar in a cupboard, but I prefer to leave it out on the counter so I can see and taste what’s going on. The pickles will be ready when they taste and smell good to you — anywhere from a few hours to a few weeks depending on the ingredients and environmental conditions. This batch was good and tangy in three days.

A few notes on equipment: I like to weigh down the ingredients with a small bowl or jar that fits inside the larger jar. This is not necessary, but it helps keep the vegetables submerged under the brine and prevents mold growth. If you do encounter any mold or yeasty scum, simply skim it off. I also like using a jar fitted with an airlock (similar to a Pickl-It), which blocks oxygen yet releases carbon dioxide produced during fermentation. But again, you don’t need this equipment. A plain old mason jar works fine.

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