1. In the fourth part of his book, Michael Pollan discusses fermentation. The first chapter is about the fermentation of vegetables. Fermentation is basically decay or rot. This used to be how people preserved food before cooling appliances and sealed cans were invented/available. About 33% of food is still produced by fermentation. Every culture ferments food one way or another. One example of culture specific fermentation that is still quite common is the pit fermentation of cabbage in China to make kimchi. Animals such as squirrels, birds, and even monkeys bury or sour foods such as nuts, seeds, flowers, and fruits which causes them to ferment. Fermentation can make foods more nutritious, give them a stronger flavor, and it breaks down carbohydrates, fats, and proteins that our bodies can use.
2. Both plants and people have a protective layer that keeps, or is meant to keep, bacteria from entering the organism and causing decay. Plants have complex cell walls, and people have skin for external protection as well …show more content…
Pollan tried Katz’s pickling recipes out on a lengthy list of vegetables including cabbage, carrots, chard, cucumbers, peppers, and turnips. He fermented leafy vegetables, such as the cabbage, in liquid that salt drew out of the leaves themselves, but other vegetables, like cucumbers, were placed in a brine. He made sure not to let the vegetables get exposed to air because they would mold and/or rot. The sauerkraut took three days to begin fermenting, and after three weeks of being in the basement, it was slightly pink and smelled really bad. Katz told him that the smell was caused by bacteria called “sulfate reducers,” and that he should just wait for a while longer. After a month, the awful smell was no longer there, but mold had grown in the crock causing the cabbage to be mushy. His kimchi, carrots, and pickles turned out to be good with just a few little issues (slime on carrots and gray color on pickles), and the chard stems were his
2. Both plants and people have a protective layer that keeps, or is meant to keep, bacteria from entering the organism and causing decay. Plants have complex cell walls, and people have skin for external protection as well …show more content…
Pollan tried Katz’s pickling recipes out on a lengthy list of vegetables including cabbage, carrots, chard, cucumbers, peppers, and turnips. He fermented leafy vegetables, such as the cabbage, in liquid that salt drew out of the leaves themselves, but other vegetables, like cucumbers, were placed in a brine. He made sure not to let the vegetables get exposed to air because they would mold and/or rot. The sauerkraut took three days to begin fermenting, and after three weeks of being in the basement, it was slightly pink and smelled really bad. Katz told him that the smell was caused by bacteria called “sulfate reducers,” and that he should just wait for a while longer. After a month, the awful smell was no longer there, but mold had grown in the crock causing the cabbage to be mushy. His kimchi, carrots, and pickles turned out to be good with just a few little issues (slime on carrots and gray color on pickles), and the chard stems were his