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Search Results for: beet kvass

Beet Kvass: A Cleansing, Medicinal Tonic

March 20, 2014 by April Swiger 58 Comments

beet kvass

By April Swiger, Contributing Writer

Some of the most beautiful stains on my cutting board are from beets. Tangy, earthy, salty, and a little bit of fizz perfectly describe this deeply nourishing, and richly medicinal, fermented beet kvass tonic. It’s an acquired taste, which I have slowly become accustomed to, and I have fallen head over heels for this blood red drink. Traditionally, tonics like this supplemented the daily diet, instead of supplement pills. 

(Disclaimer: Some links may be affiliate links, and this site has an affiliate association with Amazon)

Sally Fallon in Nourishing Traditions says (page 610): “This drink is valuable for its medicinal qualities and as a digestive aid. Beets are just loaded with nutrients. One 4-ounce glass, morning and night, is an excellent blood tonic, promotes regularity, aids digestion, alkalizes the blood, cleanses the liver and is a good treatment for kidney stones and other ailments.”

According to this article by the Weston A. Price Foundation, kvass originated in Russia and was traditionally made with stale sourdough rye bread. It boasted of great immune boosting qualities, and although it wasn’t an alcoholic drink, it was similar to beer in taste. Kvass can also be made with beets, and traditional homes in the Ukraine always had a bottle on hand. It was often used as a tangy addition in soups, vinaigrettes, and borscht.

The health benefits of lacto-fermented food are undeniable. As chopped beets mix with sea salt, the sugar and starch convert to lactic-acid perfectly preserving the kvass. The finished drink is full of beneficial enzymes, friendly probiotic bacteria, and increased vitamin levels. Regularly eating lacto-fermented vegetables, or incorporating beet kvass into your diet, will promote healthy gut flora, and greater absorption of nutrients from your food.

The first time I made beet kvass, I used Sally Fallon’s recipe in Nourishing Traditions which calls for the addition of whey to inoculate the mixture. We don’t eat much dairy in our home, so I opted to double the salt, and ferment my kvass for longer than the recommended two days. The end result was way too salty! However, after it sat in the refrigerator for a few more days, the saltiness diminished quite a bit, and I was able to drink it and enjoy it.

Wild fermentation is truly an art, and takes a little trial and error. In recent months I experimented with decreasing the amount of salt in my kvass while still using enough to allow proper fermentation to take place. My most recent batch was the fizziest yet and absolutely delicious! Depending on the time of year, and the temperature inside your home, your kvass may need anywhere from 2-7 days to ferment. This winter I’ve been allowing mine to sit at room temperature for a full week before putting it in the refrigerator.

Fermentation Vessel Choice

There has been some debate about what the best vessel is for lacto-fermentation. Wardee at GNOWFGLINS breaks down some great options. I personally have always used a mason jar with a metal band and lid. None of my ferments have ever gotten moldy (mold isn’t necessarily a bad thing), and I typically burp them once a day to release the pressure that builds up. This works for me, but it’s good to explore other options that may better suit your personal preferences.

Foam/Scum on Top

A few times my kvass has developed a thin layer of white or brown foam at the top. It’s harmless, and I typically scoop it out with a spoon before putting my jar in the refrigerator.

Filtered Water

It’s very important to use filtered water, free from chemicals like chlorine and fluoride. These chemicals are typically present in tap water and can prevent your kvass from fermenting properly. I have been using a Berkey filter  for two years now, and love it.

Sea Salt

Celtic sea salt is my salt of choice. It’s unrefined and packed full of nutrients and trace minerals. Standard table salt has iodine added to it, which could inhibit the growth of beneficial bacteria. Table salt is not a good choice for fermenting beet kvass, so it’s best to go with an unrefined sea salt.

How will I know when my beet kvass is ready?

When the kvass is a deep red color, and you see fizzy bubbles moving upwards in the jar, it’s good for drinking! It should smell earthy and salty, like beets. If it smells rancid, throw it out. Your nose will know, so don’t drink anything that smells off. If your home is fairly warm (over 72 F), your kvass is likely ferment quickly, so keep an eye on it. I let mine go for a week during the winter, and only a few days during the warmer months.

You can also use your beets for a second, weaker batch. Save about half a cup of the kvass in your jar as a “starter”, fill it with filtered water again, and set it out on your counter for a few days. Your kvass will last for many months in the refrigerator.

Other Uses

You can use your kvass in place of vinegar for salad dressings, or as a tangy addition to soups. Be sure to reduce any additional salt in your recipe! A recent favorite of mine is adding beet kvass to Kimi’s everyday salad dressing recipe in place of apple cider vinegar. The color is beautiful!

Beet Kvass Vinaigrette

Other Lacto-fermented Recipes:

  • Old Fashioned lacto-Fermented Sauerkraut
  • Lacto-Fermented Dilly Carrot Sticks (I’ve made this one and it’s incredibly easy and delicious!)
  • Lacto-Fermented Roasted Tomato Salsa
  • Lacto-Fermented Escabeche

Beet Kvass
 
Author:
April Swiger
Recipe type: Medicinal Tonic
Print
 
Beet Kvass is a medicinal tonic that cleanses the blood, liver, and promotes healthy digestion. Enjoy 4 ounces of this drink in the morning and evening. This recipe makes one half gallon jar, or two quart sized jars.
Ingredients
  • 2 large, or 3-4 medium beets (preferably organic)
  • 1 tablespoon of sea salt
  • Filtered water
Instructions
  1. Peel your beets, and chop them up coarsely (1-2 inch chunks). Do not grate your beets! This will cause your kvass to ferment too rapidly, producing alcohol rather than lactic-acid (Sally Fallon, Nourishing Traditions, page 610)
  2. Put your chopped beets in your jar, or divide them equally between two quart sized jars
  3. Sprinkle the sea salt on top of your beets
  4. Fill your jar with filtered water, leaving about an inch at the top for headspace, and stir the contents well
  5. Secure the lid, and leave it on your counter for 2-7 days before moving it to the refrigerator
3.2.2265

 

Filed Under: Beverages, Health, Nourishing Practices, Nutrient Dense Foods Tagged With: Beet Kvass, Beets, Kvass, Lacto-Fermented Foods, Medicinal, Tonic

Zukay Vegetable Kvass Giveaway

April 12, 2013 by KimiHarris 147 Comments

When a food or beverage has such vibrant, natural colors in it, you know that you have a good thing. Just look at the beautiful array above!

A couple of years ago, I was able to fly out to the annual Wise Traditions conference. Besides the very interesting speakers, the part I liked best was the food. They were serving amazing food there, but there were also many vendors who were selling their delicious fare. Zukay Live Foods was one of the stands I visited frequently. I feel in love with their fermented vegetable juices (or, as they call them, kvass) and treated myself to one every day, and, if I remember right, I even came home with one in my suitcase.

So what’s so great about them?

These vegetable juices (made with organic vegetables and celtic sea salt) are naturally fermented so that they are rich with probiotics and enzymes! If you are like me, you can have a hard time reaching the ideal of eating a fermented food several times a day. A product like this can be so helpful in adding variety! Plus, not only do you get the probiotics, but also you get all of the nutrients in the vegetable juice. It’s like vegetable juice on steroids. (They are now sold at many stores nationwide. You can check out whether they are sold near you here.)

One of the goals of Zukay is making fermented vegetables available to a wide audience (such as those who don’t have the time to make their own). Even for those of us who do make our own fermented vegetables at home, there are busy times when having excellent products like this are extremely helpful. Plus, I just think it is good to have a wide variety of real food, cultured products in our diet, and Zukay’s products are a great way to get that!

Anyways, they have branched out into some new flavors since then, so they sent me some of them to try. Here is my description of the flavors I tried:

…

Read More

Filed Under: Uncategorized

Healthy Strawberry Lemonade (Stevia-Sweetened)

March 25, 2014 by KimiHarris 10 Comments

Healthy Strawberry Lemonade

Tart lemons and sweet strawberries, are gently sweetened with stevia in this simple, but lovely strawberry lemonade for a delicious beverage. Lemonade is a very fun and delicious way to get some vitamin C. Strawberries increases the vitamin C content, and adds other antioxidants as well. I like to get my vitamins from food as much as possible, instead of depending on supplements, so this is a great way to give myself a boost of vitamin C. Dr. Price also considered vitamin C content important for a healthy diet!

Lemonade is one of my favorite drinks, but I don’t do well with the usual high sugar content of lemonade, even the more natural ones. Stevia does well with lemon, and doesn’t raise your blood sugar,  so is perfect for my needs (read my back-in-the-ancient-days blog post about my first ventures with stevia-sweetened lemonade as well). This version with strawberries makes it beautiful in color and taste. Another favorite recipe is this Orange Lemonade Sports Drink. It uses just a small amount of raw honey (or you could use organic cane sugar), and is delicious as well. A great option for a stevia-free version. 🙂

Disclaimer: Post contains some affiliate links

What stevia brand you use will definitely make a difference.

My current preference is to buy a stevia that is not heavily processed. I used Now Stevia #amazonaffiliate in this recipe. It doesn’t have a bitter taste, and it is specifically made to contain the whole leaf extract, and then is enzymatically treated to remove the any bitterness. It does have a very sweet, but slightly herbal taste, which some may not like as well (though note that in a recipe like this, the lemons and strawberries hide the stevia taste a great deal). A brand that I’ve used with a lot of success that is more processed, but not herbal tasting is NuNaturals. I use stevia so little that I’ve had the same bottle for a couple of years, and I’ve heard they changed the formula around a little recently, but it’s still good, I believe. On the under end of the spectrum is this stevia liquid concentrate that is not processed at all. This will have the strongest taste (I haven’t tried it yet, but will try order a bottle soon to taste-test!). The whole stevia debate is a little beyond the scope of this article, but I will be writing the arguments surrounding stevia soon. So stay tuned for that!

If you don’t want to use stevia in your strawberry lemonade, I recommend making simple syrup with organic cane sugar, or a honey simple syrup, and using that to sweeten to taste. It will be delicious that way as well.

Strawberry Lemonade (Stevia-Sweetened)
 
Author:
Kimi @ The Nourishing Gourmet
Serves: 8
Prep time: 5 mins
Total time: 5 mins
Print
 
How sweet your strawberries are will make a difference in how much stevia you need to use. Start low, and creep up until it’s just right (it’s easy to overdo stevia, as it’s so concentrated!). I used my Blendtec to blend this, if you find it too pulpy, or seed-y when using a regular blender, you can always pour through a fine sieve before adding the 5 cups of water.
Ingredients
  • 12 ounces strawberries (if frozen, defrosted), about 15 large strawberries, stemmed if fresh
  • 2 cups of water
  • ¾ cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
  • 5 cups of water
  • 30-50 drops liquid stevia
Instructions
  1. Combine the strawberries, 2 cups of water, and lemon juice in a blender. Blend until very smooth.
  2. Add the five cups of water, and then sweeten to taste with the liquid stevia, starting low and working up, stirring well before taste-testing. Serve chilled or over ice.
3.2.2265

 Other Beverage Recipes on The Nourishing Gourmet: 

  • How to make water kefir 
  • Beet Kvass
  • Energizing Peppermint and Nettle Tea 

Filed Under: Beverages, Dairy Free, Gluten Free, Nutrient Dense Foods, Vegan, Vegetarian

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The information you find here at The Nourishing Gourmet is meant to help you become a better cook! This site is primarily for sharing family friendly recipes. It's not meant to give medical advice or to make any health claims on the prevention or curing of diseases.This site is only for informational and educational purposes. Please discuss with your own, qualified health care provider before adding in supplements or making any changes in your diet. Also, any links to sponsors or affiliates (including Amazon) may give me a percentage of the sale or a pay per click. Thank you for supporting this site.

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