Fermenting for your Health Workshop with Naturopath Katie Urbanik
Although fermented foods have been around for a long time, they are very much on the health radar these days particularly when it comes to gut health and general wellbeing. We’re frequently asked about the benefits of fermented foods and how best to ferment foods. There are many and varied ways of fermenting foods. To assist our customers in learning these techniques we’re holding two Fermentation Workshops on Sunday 30th April which is Sunday week at our cafe, Nourish on North. We’re holding a morning workshop which will include a scrumptious Nourish on North brunch and second workshop which will include a Nourish fermented foods lunch. At this workshop we will be demonstrating how to ferment kombucha, yoghurt, kefir, sour dough bread, sauerkraut, lacto fermented vegetables and kefir cheese. Not only will we be learning about the practical aspect of fermentation but also the theory behind fermentation and the health benefits. So what exactly are fermented foods you might ask? Fermented foods go through a natural process of lacto fermentation in which natural bacteria feeds on the sugar and starch in the food which then creates lactic acid. This not only preserves the food but also creates valuable enzymes and various strains of probiotics. Fermenting foods also preserves the nutrients as well as enables the foods to be more easily digested - hence the connection between fermented foods and gut health. Unfortunately the amount of probiotics and enzymes in the average diet has declined over the years, mainly due to development in technology and food preparation. I use the word ‘development’ not necessarily in a positive way – where once we ate foods rich in enzymes and probiotics, the normal diet now consists largely of processed sugar, salt and saturated fat based ‘non’ foods. Fermented foods are in fact highly nutritious and easily digested. The fermentation process actually pre-digests the food which in turn makes the nutrients far more bio-available and quite often produces extra nutrients. We have known for some time probiotics taken in a capsule or powder are beneficial for increasing the good bacteria in our gut. Many however have not been aware that eating fermented foods and drinking fermented drinks can be helpful in increasing the good bacteria in the digestive system. Fermented foods can also help to address the imbalance of stomach acid in the gut. When the stomach is low in hydrochloric acid, fermented foods can help to increase the acid level and vice versa if it is too high. The digestive enzymes in our gut in fact decrease as we get older and consuming fermented foods is the perfect way to increase those digestive enzymes. To gain the best results with fermented foods, it is obviously important to eat them regularly. We all know important our gut health is when it comes to our overall wellbeing. So why not learn more about how we can improve our health by learning how to ferment our foods. The workshop will include taste testing plus a Fermentation hand book containing recipes. We have limited spaces for this workshop and they are booking up fast. You can book online by following the link below, or call us at 4472 9737 to reserve your spot. In Health, Bev Dunne Go Vita Batemans Bay
