I made pickles, and I am happy.
I made pickles the other day. I'm happy I did it.
To make pickles, you can pour a pickling solution over cucumbers. Or, you can ferment the cucumbers in for 10+ days. I chose to ferment.
This is an exciting topic for a blog, isn't it?
Well, this isn't a foodie blog, and I'm not a foodie. But this is a blog about doing things. And the process of fermentation offers a few ideas for doing things better.
Mold can grow if the food you're trying to ferment comes into contact with oxygen.
Your salt or sugar brine may not be enough to prevent the growth of harmful bacteria.
The combination of spices, aromatics, and veggies may not ferment well. Sauerkraut is best - in my humble opinion - with mustard seed, caraway seed, and garlic.
Your ferment might go too long - the longer the fermentation, the sour the taste. Pro tip: improve the bio availability of good gut bacteria and nutrients with longer ferments.
There are at least four different ways I can fail. What happens on day one matters, and you won't see the results until later.
Fermentation teaches me to focus on the process of production to achieve a tasty result. And that the result might be days, or months, off into the future.
That may be why gardening is so satisfying to people.
Do yourself a favor, make pickles.