There is an entire WORLD of food preservation we have completely missed!

[Pete7]

Originally Posted by MicHughV

Interesting thing about bananas...fishermen consider them bad luck and will not have them onboard for any reason....

We do, cooked until skins are black, opened up and covered in a heated mixture of rum and brown sugar then a dash of cream.

Pete

[MicHughV]

I gotta throw this one last thing out there.

Having spent a bit of time in South Africa, I was introduced to that country's snack, which is called "biltong".
What is "biltong" you may ask...well, it is cured and dried meat. There is no cooking required. The meat is spiced with ground coriander seed, pepper, some brown sugar, some cloves and bathed in a mixture of vinegar and worcestershire sauce and left to marinate in this for 24 hours or so inside a fridge. Then it is removed, patted dry and hung up to dry. The vinegar bath serves to "protect" the meat. It will dry for several days and can then be taken down, sliced and eaten. In South Africa, the meat is dried in windows, on racks, from roofs, just about any place that is dry and humid free....and off course, bug free

Some might think it is similar to American beef jerky, but it is not. It is about a million times better. Once you eat one slice, you will pretty much keep going until the bag is empty.

Every farmer in SA have their own version of this product and it is sold in every shop and street corner in the country.

There are some " speciality" stores in the US, that make it, you just google it.

I have learned to make this myself here in the US, and whenever I do, I invite several friends, and we'll make a large batch. I typically use a cut of meat called " London Broil" but most any cut of meat can be used.

It really is simple to make. Preparation takes but a few minutes. Youtube has 100's of video's on how to do it.

It goes particularly well with a cold beer or as is typically the case, several cold beers.

[Chotu]

Those frozen bananas. Wow! A new use.

Was running out of options to include fruit with breakfast. No more avocados, no strawberries. Just blueberries and frozen bananas.

So I put both of those in some oatmeal.

The frozen bananas (still partially frozen) are outstanding in oatmeal!!

[rslifkin]

Originally Posted by Chotu

Those frozen bananas. Wow! A new use.

Was running out of options to include fruit with breakfast. No more avocados, no strawberries. Just blueberries and frozen bananas.

So I put both of those in some oatmeal.

The frozen bananas (still partially frozen) are outstanding in oatmeal!!

Fruit in oatmeal is always a good option. And just about any fruit that goes well with oatmeal will go well with pancakes or waffles too.

[zeitgeist]

I'm just a liveaboard and haven't tried this for passagemaking, but I think it would work pretty well for preservation: milk kefir.

I buy a gallon of milk and use the kefir SCOBY grains (like making kommbucha) to convert the milk to kefir. The longer it sits, the thicker and more sour it becomes. You can refrigerate it to slow it down, but I've had it on the counter for about 3-4 weeks and eaten it no issues. I like to add it to smoothies, and when it's sour, a great sour cream substitute.

It's a great way to make a gallon of milk that would normally go bad in about a week under refrigeration last over a month without refrigeration.

I also make my own kombucha with sugar, black tea and hibiscus, which is a great drink.

[Chotu]

What a GREAT idea!!!

[Protondecay123]

@chotu, Regarding your technique using Lactobacillus to make kimchi rather than the usual fermented shrimp that is traditionally used. 1.) Do you use the rice flour and water mixture and add lactobacillus to that? or are you just pouring the water from the yogurt on to the napa cabbage? I've been working on a Vegan/Vegetarian style Kimchi and hadn't considered that since I'm not sure what the source of Lactose is that the bacillus would metabolize. I've actually been using homemade fermented soy paste to add to the cooled down rice flour/water mixture. Thank you for the interesting discussion!

[Chotu]

Originally Posted by Protondecay123

@chotu, Regarding your technique using Lactobacillus to make kimchi rather than the usual fermented shrimp that is traditionally used. 1.) Do you use the rice flour and water mixture and add lactobacillus to that? or are you just pouring the water from the yogurt on to the napa cabbage? I've been working on a Vegan/Vegetarian style Kimchi and hadn't considered that since I'm not sure what the source of Lactose is that the bacillus would metabolize. I've actually been using homemade fermented soy paste to add to the cooled down rice flour/water mixture. Thank you for the interesting discussion!

I did just dump the whey into the kimchi from yogurt. However, you can buy little lactobacillus packs if needed to stay away from cow products.

I have made several batches since then and have tired letting the lactobacillus metabolize different things such as straight sugar too.

The best results now are this:

Get a kimchi at the store you like.
Eat and enjoy
Keep a little as a starter
Use the starter instead of yogurt.

What a difference! It’s so good it has the aftertaste of cheese. Incredible flavor increase.

Then I just make new generations of it from the last batch. Only bought at the store once.

I do not suggest trying to add things for the lactobacillus to metabolize unless you like a real strong alcoholic/sharp taste.

I like it more mild so I’ve been just letting it go to town on the natural sugar in the Chinese/Napa cabbage.

I also use a pretty health portion of fish sauce for umami. You’ll need to find the vegan umami booster equivalent. Miso? Your soy paste, Etc? Could work.


Food Safety: Without a strong push in the right direction (lactobacillus and food for them), mind is a refrigerator kimchi currently. It’s ever evolving though. May still make changes.

[Protondecay123]

I've actually used the homemade fermented soy paste with rice flour/water to ferment Napa Cabbage, Kale and Savory Cabbage and it works well. I actually let it ferment 72-96 hours outdoors ( 100+ degree heatwave here lately). I'm going to try the whey off of some kefir I make. Kefir turns into curds and whey after a while. I just never thought that about it. But having a "cheesy" flavor with those chili's might be pretty good especially with the kale. Thanks again!

[Chotu]

Originally Posted by Protondecay123

I've actually used the homemade fermented soy paste with rice flour/water to ferment Napa Cabbage, Kale and Savory Cabbage and it works well. I actually let it ferment 72-96 hours outdoors ( 100+ degree heatwave here lately). I'm going to try the whey off of some kefir I make. Kefir turns into curds and whey after a while. I just never thought that about it. But having a "cheesy" flavor with those chili's might be pretty good especially with the kale. Thanks again!

Nice! Post and let us know how it comes out.

I believe KimChi in Korea had always been done in the fall when it was kind of cool out and it was also kept over winter partially buried in the ground.

The temperatures you ferment will affect the flavor. I think it supposed to be a slow fermentation in cooler temperatures. But of course you’ll just come out with your own flavor. I’m curious how it comes out at the high temperature

[Protondecay123]

I've done it a bunch of times, it always comes out great. If you use the fermented shrimp with fish sauce it will be pretty "fishy". Instead now I use the fermented soybean paste with minced garlic, chopped celery, chopped white onion and ginger rather than the fish sauce. I actually like it best with kale, but I use a little less salt with the brine and brine it longer to soften up the kale. Kale can be pretty tough. But it has a great shelf life compared to other greens, IMHO. Excess Salt can slow down the fermentation so you have to be a little careful there and get a good rinse. Also you can't fill more than 75-80 percent of the jar if you are going to fast ferment in the summer heat. After 24 hours, the stuff really takes off and I've had a huge red mess on my balcony from it bubbling over!

[Chotu]

I actually make the more simple kimchi. No shrimp.

Just Chinese/Napa cabbage, ginger, garlic, onion, maybe a little bit of leeks, the red pepper (gochugaru) and fish sauce.

There is no fishy flavor doing that.

Ha ha ha. That’s funny you had them thriving so well they were bubbling over.

I make mine Salt free mostly for health reasons.

[Protondecay123]

Originally Posted by MicHughV

I gotta throw this one last thing out there.

Having spent a bit of time in South Africa, I was introduced to that country's snack, which is called "biltong".
What is "biltong" you may ask...well, it is cured and dried meat. There is no cooking required. The meat is spiced with ground coriander seed, pepper, some brown sugar, some cloves and bathed in a mixture of vinegar and worcestershire sauce and left to marinate in this for 24 hours or so inside a fridge. Then it is removed, patted dry and hung up to dry. The vinegar bath serves to "protect" the meat. It will dry for several days and can then be taken down, sliced and eaten. In South Africa, the meat is dried in windows, on racks, from roofs, just about any place that is dry and humid free....and off course, bug free

Some might think it is similar to American beef jerky, but it is not. It is about a million times better. Once you eat one slice, you will pretty much keep going until the bag is empty.

Every farmer in SA have their own version of this product and it is sold in every shop and street corner in the country.

There are some " speciality" stores in the US, that make it, you just google it.

I have learned to make this myself here in the US, and whenever I do, I invite several friends, and we'll make a large batch. I typically use a cut of meat called " London Broil" but most any cut of meat can be used.

It really is simple to make. Preparation takes but a few minutes. Youtube has 100's of video's on how to do it.

It goes particularly well with a cold beer or as is typically the case, several cold beers.

I believe that there is a similar dish in Filipino cuisine. When I was in the US Navy My Filipino Mess Chief and I "cooked" strips of sirlion with vinegar with tomatos, peppers, garlic etc and served it to the officer's mess. They loved it. The meat actually turned " grey " from the "cooking". On a side note I use balsamic Vinegar and fresh squeezed lemon juice to increase the shelf life of my greens by placing them in a bowl with lid, the day before they expire. And then "toss" them. They can last up to a week longer without spoiling. Could do for a longer passage.

[Not a spy]

Originally Posted by Protondecay123

I believe that there is a similar dish in Filipino cuisine. When I was in the US Navy My Filipino Mess Chief and I "cooked" strips of sirlion with vinegar with tomatos, peppers, garlic etc and served it to the officer's mess. They loved it. The meat actually turned " grey " from the "cooking". On a side note I use balsamic Vinegar and fresh squeezed lemon juice to increase the shelf life of my greens by placing them in a bowl with lid, the day before they expire. And then "toss" them. They can last up to a week longer without spoiling. Could do for a longer passage.

This dish can be found in Guam and is called kelaguen. https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/130443/beef-kelaguen/

[Protondecay123]

Originally Posted by Not a spy

This dish can be found in Guam and is called kelaguen. https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/130443/beef-kelaguen/

That's a very similar dish.