If you ferment your carrots, they are packed with similar goodness to sauerkraut and other fermented vegetables, but they are so simple to make.
You may even be successful getting your kids to eat this probiotic-rich, vitamin C- packed food into their daily diet!
Health Benefits of Fermented Carrots
Increased nutritional value Lactic-acid fermentation produces and enhances the levels of enzymes, vitamins, and minerals.
Easier to digest than raw or cooked vegetables Fermentation breaks down hard-to-digest cellulose.
An excellent source of probiotics Probiotics produced during fermentation are known to have many health benefits: improved digestion, enhanced immune system, better brain function.
Increase fibre and remove toxins from your body Raw carrot skins – the peel – contain insoluble fibre that binds to toxins in our intestines which are then eliminated in our stools. NOTE: If you peel your carrots, you are removing some of the health benefits of insoluble fibre. However, its better to eat them peeled than not eat them at all!
Balance your hormones One of the jobs of your liver is to remove excess estrogen, but when it is burdened with toxins from unhealthy foods, poor digestion, lack of sleep and the stress of our daily lives, it can’t keep up. Excess estrogen then becomes a huge problem causing all sorts of health issues – in both men and women – such as mood swings, acne, allergies, thyroid issues and lack of muscle tone. Consuming insoluble fibre lightens the load on your liver.* See note below on reducing PMT symptoms.
Bowel-protective effect Insoluble fibre relieves constipation and increases regularity. However, go slowly as a sudden increase can cause bloating, diarrhoea, gas or constipation.
Super safe to eat Lactic acid produced during fermentation kills off the E.coli bacteria. They can’t survive in the acidic environment of fermentation.
Really, it’s as simple as…
Cut carrots into sticks, approximately the length of the jar to be packed in to.
Pack into a jar/s
Pour over a 2 % brine to fully cover carrots
Screw on the lid and leave on your bench for 5-10 days.
That’s it! But here are the more detailed instructions…
You Will Need
Recipe directions are for a 500 ml batch
2-4 carrots – cut into ‘sticks’ a couple of cm shorter than the jar
Flavouring of your choice – choose one of the following – or keep them plain
- 2-3 garlic cloves, peeled and cut into slivers
- 1 inch piece of fresh ginger, sliced and cut into slivers (No need to peel.)
- 1-2 jalapeno peppers sliced lengthwise into quarters (Remove seeds to white membrane to reduce heat.)
- 1 teaspoon dried dill (1 tablespoon fresh)
- 1-2 sliced green onions, or some sliced red onion and sliced yellow onion
Brine (2%)
1 TBSP quality salt (such as Himilayan or natural sea salt)
2 cups non-chlorinated water (Chlorine prevents bacteria formation, not helpful in any fermenting recipe!)
A clean jar, washed in hot soapy water, and left to air dry. Preferably with a plastic lid for fermentation. Metal may react with the brine, but you can just fill slightly lower in the jar to avoid brine touching the lid.
Note: Don’t use pre-packaged baby carrots, these have often been treated with chlorine or chlorinated water, which will inhibit fermentation.
To peel or not to peel? Try both! If you don’t mind the peel, keep it on. Your will benefit from the additional insoluble fibre and because the peel of root vegetables has had contact with soil, meaning there is a higher concentration of microbes, which make fermentation happen!
Instructions
- If flavouring your carrot sticks, put garlic, ginger, dill or onions in the bottom of a wide mouth (500 ml) jar, or jar size of your choosing.
- Gently scrub carrots clean. Slice lengthwise to about 2 cm shorter than the height of your jar. Snugly pack into the jar on top of your flavouring, leaving about 1cm space at the top. You could also cut the carrots into ‘rounds’.
- Brine – Mix 1 tablespoon of salt with 2 cups of water. Stir until somewhat dissolved. Don’t worry if there’s some undissolved salt, it will dissolve during fermentation.
- Pour brine over carrots. Stop when brine is 1cm from the top of the jar. Ensure the carrots are completely covered in brine, adding more if necessary. Screw on lid, snugly.
- Label with the date!
- Place in a shallow bowl and keep out of direct sunlight to ferment until the active bubbling stops, usually 7-10 days depending upon the temperature of your room.
- Feel free to taste them for readiness. The carrots are ready when bubbles have stopped rising to the surface, there is a slightly sour aroma and the carrots taste tangy.
- Put in the refrigerator (which will slow fermentation).
- Your fermented carrots may be eaten immediately, but will increase in flavour with time and will keep for up to a year. They do begin to lose colour over time.
Eat your fermented carrots sticks as they are or try with hummus, yogurt dips, cheesey dips, satay style dips…
You can also eat the garlic, ginger, hot peppers, etc. as they are also being fermented and will be super-charged! Or try blending them into hummus and dips.
Further notes;
Ideal fermentation temperature is 18-21°C. If it is super hot, shorten; cold, lengthen.
Easily double/triple the recipe and use a larger jar/s.
Using a narrow-mouth jar may help to keep the carrot sticks submerged.
With larger jars, there is no need to be so careful about the length you cut your carrots
Using an Airlock allows excess gases to escape. If you don’t have an airlock (though fermenting carrots don’t create a lot of CO2) ‘burp the jar’ (by opening it) once daily for the first 3 days.
-If a powdery white yeast appears on top of your carrots, it’s likely to be harmless Kahm yeast. Simply rinse your carrot sticks and enjoy. This is usually from too much air exposure. Next time, ensure you fill the jar to the top. But, if the yeast is slimy and sticky, you have an imbalance in bacteria, and it is best to start again!
If you do not need all of the brine, keep what’s left in a jar in your fridge for future fermentation projects. It will last for a few weeks.
- “Several women who suffered from premenstrual symptoms, including migraine, had their serum estrogen measured before and after the “carrot diet,” and they found that the carrot lowered their estrogen within a few days, as it relieved their symptoms.” Ray Peat