How to Enjoy

How to enjoy your ferments

We try to avoid giving specific food pairing suggestions for our ferments. That said, you can find some suggestion at the individual product pages on our website. You might also find it helpful to visit our Stories and Instagram @cultjar for some further ideas and guidance.

We don’t want people to think there is a right or wrong way of eating ferments or that you need to be a connoisseur to enjoy these amazing foods. But we are happy to say that we generally enjoy eating one or two of our recipes with almost all of our meals – a bit on the side of every plate works for us. From kimchi with our breakfast eggs to any of our kraut-style recipes with lunch, alongside salads, cheese, cold cuts, baked potatoes and they certainly elevate any sandwich. We also like to include some of our ferments in other recipes – mix with couscous or pasta or you could add to a frittata or an omelette. In the evening, we tend make some bruschetta or crostini and use our ferments as different flavour packed toppings, which also works with pizza and flatbreads. And, if you we are planning a fish supper or a big steak, we always add a decent spoonful of our ferments to the plate – not least because the hot with cold ‘thing’ is always very welcome.

Health benefits and our food systems

There’s lots of compelling health reasons linked to eating ferments, but for us, it’s all about the taste and enjoying a balanced diet. Plus, we grow some of our own nutrient-dense ingredients so that only the very best quality fresh produce with zero chemicals, zero miles, zero packaging and zero waste arrives in our kitchen. If you are new to enjoying ferments, then you might want to start slowly. Little and often, is what we generally say, perhaps initially treating them more like a chutney or condiment in terms of the amount on your plate. That said, you should not experience any problems with more – it is mainly about creating a happy and balanced microbiome, enjoying the probiotic benefits of lacto-fermented vegetables with a healthy amount of prebiotic and unprocessed foods, such as seasonal vegetables, legumes, fruit and wholegrains.

Caring for my ferment and best before dates

The ‘live’ bacteria in any ferment is a key reason for the taste and the health benefits and it also preserves the ingredients. Heating ferments above body temperature or freezing the product will kill the bacteria – the ferment will still taste delicious but many of the probiotic benefits will have been lost. You can prolong the life and quality of your ferment by ensuring that you check that all of the veg in the jar is below the surface of the brine. If not, simply press down the veg with the back of a spoon so that it releases more brine to the surface and the veg becomes submerged again.