Fermented Carrot Sticks
The most forgiving ferment in this whole section and the one I would hand a nervous beginner. Carrots are dense and sugary, they stay crisp, and they go sweet-sour rather than sharply sour. Children who will not touch sauerkraut eat these.
The most forgiving ferment in this whole section and the one I would hand a nervous beginner. Carrots are dense and sugary, they stay crisp, and they go sweet-sour rather than sharply sour. Children who will not touch sauerkraut eat these.
Ingredients
- 1 lb carrots, cut into sticks
- 1 litre water
- 30 g salt (a 3% brine)
- 3 garlic cloves
- 1 tsp dill seed or a few dill fronds
½ tsp black peppercorns
- 1 inch fresh ginger, sliced (optional)
Directions
- Key ingredients
Carrots, a 3% brine.
- Cut to fit: Sticks a little shorter than the jar is tall, so a weight can sit on them.
- Brine: 30 g salt per litre of water. Dissolve and cool.
- Pack tight and weight under the brine.
- Ferment 5–10 days at room temperature. Carrots are sugary so they start fast.
- Refrigerate. They keep for months and stay crunchy.
Notes
PROVENANCE. Mine, and the batch I make most often outside kraut season because carrots are always available.
CARROTS ARE SUGARY, which means a fast, vigorous ferment — expect bubbles within two days and do not be alarmed by a brief foam. It also means they can go slightly fizzy, which is pleasant.
The ginger version is the one I like best. A little sliced jalapeño makes them a good taco condiment.
TEACHING NOTE: this is the recipe that makes the added-brine method click, because there is no massaging, no self-brining, and nothing to judge — just water, a percentage, and time.