#Seed008: A Spiritual History of Fermentation

A fermentation enthusiast's musings and advice on cultivating a ginger bug

“Then He fashioned him and breathed into him of His Spirit.” (Quran 32:9)

My first attempt at fermentation was a microbial mess. I binge-watched artisanal sourdough-making videos and thought that it would be easy. I mixed some flour and water and left it out for a few days. Lo and behold, my concoction bubbled! I took this bubbly mix, and added it to some more water and flour. My dough came to life… but the baking process turned this scrumptious potential into a brick. I had murdered my bread.

Fermentation, like anything else, requires consistency. To master the art of fermentation, one must patiently observe the cycle of life and death. This is why I believe that fermentation is deeply linked to gardening and farming. Modern human beings are constantly struggling to remove themselves from this cycle. The cycle of life and death is an inconvenience that disrupts our predictable routine. But there are things that bring us back to a simpler state, and I believe that the art of fermentation is one of them.

Natural fermentation predates human history. Fermentation is caused by the introduction of microbial cultures to sugars. The yeast digests and decomposes the sugar. Anything that decomposes ferments. Fermentation is embedded in the cycle of life and death. Given that it predates history, it is quite likely that human beings have always used fermentation in one way or another. Controlled fermentation is used to preserve food. Dairy is turned into cheese and yogurt, fruits are turned into alcohol and vinegar, meat is smoked or salted. These methods were ways our ancestors preserved their harvest for longer periods of time. As they tried and failed, they learned ways not only to conserve their food but also to manipulate and discover new flavors. Through generations of trial and error, a rich compendium of delicious foods was handed down from parent to child. Culinary traditions were honored and preserved, while people creatively discovered new ingredients and new methods to pass down to future generations.

Everyone eats some sort of fermented food: yogurt, cheese, olives, pickles, sausages, coffee, tea, chocolate, bread, vinegar, soy sauce, tofu, etc. Our history is deeply tied to the way we’ve preserved foods. Economically, food preservation changes how we understand time and space. We are able to store food and start to build other things such as families and communities. By storing food, time is freed for other things: leisure and prayer. Fermentation frees us from the time we spend hunting and gathering. It is a cornerstone of civilization.

The Great Unmediated Life-Force

In the Christian tradition, bread symbolizes Christ. In John 6:35, Jesus says, “I am the bread of life.” I often think about this when I read in the Quran, “God has also set forth the parable of Mary, the daughter of Imran, who kept her pure, and into whom We breathed of Our Spirit, and who testified to the words of her Lord and His Books. She was among the obedient.” In Arabic, the word spirit is rūḥ. The Latin spiritus literally means breath. The same for rūḥ. And the same goes for the Greek, pneuma (πνεῦμα). In Ancient Sanskrit, this is known as prana. Traditional Chinese Medicine refers this to qi. In all of these traditions, these words refer to spirit, breath, and life-force.

The fermentation process brings that life-force into food. It prevents decay and conserves. Interestingly enough, we can survive on bread but we cannot survive on just water and flour. By fermenting those two ingredients, microbial cultures are introduced and we can make bread. Fresh milk will spoil very quickly and can be deadly in just 24 hours. But with proper microbial cultures, it can be preserved for weeks, months, and even years. Perhaps fermentation symbolizes the life-giving force of the breath of God.

In The Art of Fermentation, Sandor Katz alludes to that life-force. He writes,

“Wild foods, microbial cultures included, possess a great, unmediated life force, which can help us adapt to shifting conditions and lower our susceptibility to disease. These microorganisms are everywhere, and the techniques for fermenting with them are simple and flexible.”

Whether we know it or not, fermented foods are all around us. But in an age where we have sanitized everything, we tend to not understand the place of the microbial world in our lives. We’ve replaced life-force with sanitation. Research is showing how fermentation improves the health of our guts. We’re even starting to see more research highlight the link between the gut and the brain. Looks like you definitely are what you eat!

In #Seed006: Fires, Drought, and Prayer, I I referred to our desire for predictability. Fermentation is predictably unpredictable. When I bake bread, I follow a method and a recipe, but I am always surprised at how it turns out. When I prepare kombucha, I feel like the flavors are always different. They are unpredictable. Unpredictability, surprise, and learning through trial and error are universal human experiences. When we come to terms with this, we grow spiritually.

Start Fermenting

Where to start, you ask? I generally recommend experimenting with a sweet ginger beer. It’s a great way to watch yeast interact with sugar and to witness the fermentation process firsthand. Here is a simple recipe to kickstart your fermentation journey. Scroll below for some recommended fermentation resources.

Ginger Beer

Ginger beer is a delicious alcohol-free fermented ginger drink. With this simple recipe, you can experiment with different flavors using the same principles. To start off, you need to start a ginger bug. A ginger bug is a starter culture made from wild yeasts that feed on sugars. Make sure to use organic, unpeeled ginger because it is not covered in pesticides and thus still retains all the beneficial yeasts that will make your ginger bug thrive.

It’ll take about a week to start a ginger bug. Begin by mixing about 2 cups of water, two heaping tablespoons of grated ginger (peel included), and two teaspoons of sugar. Note the time, and cover the container with a cloth to ensure that flies don’t go into your concoction.

On the next day, add another teaspoon of sugar and one tablespoon of grated ginger.

Mix vigorously.

Repeat every day, around the same time, for at least 5 days. Your bug should be bubbly and smell like gingery bread. Depending on the temperature of your home, your bug should be ready after 5 to 7 days. Warmer homes take less time.

Now, you are ready to use the bug. Start by boiling 1.5 litres of filtered water and make a sweet ginger tea. The tea can be sweetened any way you like. A good measure is roughly half a cup for 1.5 litres. Steep the ginger, again according to your preference. Let cool to room temperature. Strain into a bottle.

To use the bug, strain half of the starter and mix into your sweet ginger tea. Pour into a flip-top bottle and let ferment for another 3 days. I usually wrap the bottle in a dish towel just in case it over bubbles and explodes (though it’s never happened to me). After three days, put it in the refrigerator.

If you aren’t a huge fan of ginger, you can substitute the sweet ginger tea with a fruit juice or any other kind of sweet tea.

Experiment and enjoy.

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Drawing Inspiration

Every week, I share books, podcasts, films, and other resources that will support your journey as a community facilitator and builder.

Books

I want to share with you some resources that I regularly use for my fermentation experimentation. To kick things off, Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon is a very insightful work on cooking and homesteading. There’s a whole chapter dedicated to fermentation, but overall the book explores using whole, fresh and simple ingredients in our cooking. Her work is a protest to what I like to call the “diet market.”

I mentioned Sandor Katz’s The Art of Fermentation earlier in this piece. This book is an encyclopedic exploration into the world, culture, and history of fermentation. It’s not your typical recipe book but rather a fermentation enthusiast’s companion.

The Sourdough School by Vanessa Kimbell is perhaps the best resource on breadmaking. Kimbell sets you up for success. She explains the art and the science of sourdough. Basically, before reading this book, I made bricks, afterward, I made bread.

Films

Anyone who is interested in food culture should know Michael Pollan. I thoroughly enjoyed the documentary Cooked, that explores how the four elements - fire, water, earth, and air - and how flavor brings tradition and people together.

Check out the trailer.