Darina Allen: Ferment to be — recipes for World Microbiome Day

In Ayurvedic and Chinese healing traditions, the dialogue between the gut and the brain has long been recognised.
Celebrate World Microbiome Day on June 27.
In our crazy world, many of us know far more about the lives of celebrities than we do about the source of the food that we and our families eat. Nonetheless, we have become increasingly paranoid: can't eat this, can't eat that. Meanwhile, in supermarkets, free-from and supplement aisles are gaining more space.
For the past year and a half, we've lived in a climate of fear. Covid-19 has made us even more paranoid about bacteria, microbes, viruses. We sanitise from morning until night, carry little vials in our handbags, and worry endlessly that there are bacteria waiting to pounce. Scientists and microbiologists are becoming ever more concerned. In our sanitising frenzy, we may also eliminate many beneficial bacteria that help protect us.
Humans have co-evolved with microbes, bacteria, viruses, fungi, archaea since time began. They are everywhere, on plants and animals, in water, soil, food, and all over us humans. Most are beneficial, a few are pathogenic. They are also in the soils and oceans of the world, on every surface, there are trillions on the human body, on our skins in our mouths and 90-95% reside in our gut microbiome.
In Ayurvedic and Chinese healing traditions, the dialogue between the gut and the brain has long been recognised, however, Western medicine failed until relatively recently to appreciate the complexity of how the brain, gut and microbiome communicate with each other.
The scientific study of the gut microbiome is relatively new. A growing body of research worldwide, with much done in UCC in Cork, has proved beyond any doubt that the biodiversity of our gut microbiome, has a profound impact not just on our physical but also on our mental health.
World Microbiome Day 2021 focuses on the potential of microbiomes for a sustainable future. It’s all about biodiversity, the greater the variety of fresh organic food we eat, the more healthy and diverse our gut microbiome becomes. Once again, it’s not rocket science, gut microbes love real food. They are totally confused by fake food so let’s cut ultra-processed food totally from your diet and concentrate on sourcing as much seasonal produce as possible with lots of fresh vegetables for roughage. Nature provides what we need year-round. Let’s learn how to recognise beneficial and edible food in the wild, incorporate them into our diets. They carry the antibodies of our area and have maximum nutrients because, unlike many other foods, they have not been manipulated to produce maximum yield at minimum cost, which is sadly the primary focus in mass food production these days to the detriment of our overall health.
Biodiversity is the key: eat as wide a range of seasonal and chemical-free range of foods as possible. So, concentrate on boosting your gut-biome. Local honey, local pastured eggs from organic free-range hens, local organic meat from free-ranging grass-fed animals and organic raw milk also boost our microbiome. Fermented foods are another must have — sauerkraut, kimchi, kombucha, water and milk kefir. Try to make your own, they'll be infinitely more complex than most of what you can buy. Thick unctuous yoghurt preferably made from organic milk and collagen-rich homemade home broths. In fact, all real food will stimulate and delight the almost 2kg of microbes in our gut and you’ll feel the better for it both mentally and physically.
Ballymaloe Cookery School homemade yoghurt
Ballymaloe natural yoghurt is made from the rich milk of a small Jersey herd – rich, creamy and delicious with added nuts and fruit

Preparation Time
14 hours 0 minsCooking Time
10 minsTotal Time
14 hours 10 minsCourse
SideIngredients
600ml fresh milk
2-3 tsp live yoghurt or natural bacillus
runny honey
Medjool dates
thick cream
almonds, unblanched
Method
Heat the milk to 90°C in a heavy-bottomed saucepan. Allow to cool to 42°C. Gently stir or whisk in the yoghurt.
Leave in the saucepan or pour into a deep terracotta bowl or a wide mouth flask works brilliantly. Cover and put into a warm draught-free place until set. This usually takes about 14 hours. The cooler the temperature, the longer the yoghurt will take to set, but too high a temperature will kill the bacillus and the yoghurt will not form (over 50°C).
The simple aim is to provide steady even warmth to allow the bacillus to grow. Remember to keep back 2 tablespoons of yoghurt as the starter of the next lot.
To enjoy a yoghurt snack, for each person half-fill a pudding bowl or glass with yoghurt.
Stone dates and chop them roughly. Put a few on the top of each helping of yoghurt.
Spoon a good dollop of thick cream over the top, then trickle over 1 teaspoon of runny honey.
Scatter a few more coarsely chopped almonds on top. Pistachio nuts are also delicious and perhaps a few shredded mint leaves.
unsweetened natural yoghurt, very cold
runny honey
Medjool dates
thick cream
almonds (with the inner brown skin left on i.e unblanched)
For each person half-fill a pudding bowl or glass with yoghurt.
Stone dates and chop them roughly. Put a few on the top of each helping of yogurt.
Spoon a good dollop of thick cream over the top, then trickle over 1 teaspoon of runny honey.
Scatter a few more coarsely chopped almonds on top. Pistachio nuts are also delicious and perhaps a few shredded mint leaves.
Milk kefir is a probiotic drink a bit like a slightly effervescent yoghurt, great as a marinade to tenderise meat; or add spices to make lassi Servings Preparation Time Total Time Course Ingredients 1 tbsp milk kefir grains 250ml milk honey to taste, vanilla or spices Method Put your grains into a glass jar. Add the milk and stir gently with a non-metal spoon. Cover the jar with a clean cloth and put it somewhere out of direct sunlight. Let it sit for 12-24 hours until it reaches the desired sourness. Stir from time to time. This helps it to ferment evenly. Taste it after 12 hours. When the kefir has reached the desirable taste, strain the kefir through a plastic sieve into a bowl. You might need to help it through with a plastic spoon. You will be left with the kefir grains in the sieve, ready to be reused. Don’t be tempted to wash them. You can now make the basic recipe again. As the grains multiply you can make larger batches. To the strained kefir you can now add something like honey, a vanilla pod or spices to add flavour. If you want to take a break from brewing kefir just put the grains into a fresh cup of milk and put it in the fridge. This will slow down fermentation for a few days.Penny Allen’s milk and honey kefir
This rich Sauerkraut is easy to make and delicious, perfect to add to soups and stews or as a delicate topping on crusty bread Servings Preparation Time Total Time Course Ingredients 800g cabbage or 500g cabbage plus 300g mixture of any of the following: grated carrot, turnip, celeriac, onion 3 tsp sea salt 1l Kilner jar or similar receptacle 1 small jam jar to act as a weight inside the lid of the 1l jar Method Wash the cabbage. Take off any damaged outside leaves. Quarter the cabbage, core it, and then finely shred each quarter. Mix the cabbage and the rest of the ingredients together in a large bowl. Using your hands, scrunch cabbage and other vegetables with the salt until you begin to feel the juices being released. Continue for a few minutes. Pack a little at a time in your Kilner jar and press down hard using your fist — this packs the kraut tight and helps force more water out of the vegetables. Fill the jar about 80% full to leave room for liquid that will come out of the vegetables as it starts to ferment. Place a clean weight on top of the cabbage (a small jar or container filled with water works well). This weight is to keep the vegetables submerged under the brine. This is the most important thing to get your ferment off to the right start. (Under the brine, all will be fine!) Sit the jar on a plate just in case some brine escapes while it is fermenting. Place on a countertop and allow to ferment for at least 5 days. Ideally, leave it for 10 days to 2 weeks. As you eat the kraut make sure the remainder is well covered in brine by pushing the vegetables under the brine and sealing well. It will keep for months, the flavour develops and matures over time. Once you have opened it, it’s best to keep it in the fridge where it will last for months.Penny Allen’s Sauerkraut
This guideline recipe produces 6 pints of rich, flavoursome stock and broth which will keep for several days in the refrigerator Servings Cooking Time Total Time Course Ingredients 2-3 raw or cooked chicken carcasses or a mixture of both giblets from the chicken (neck, heart, gizzard) 1 onion, sliced 1 leek, halved 2 outside celery stalks or 2 lovage leaves 1 carrot, cut into chunks a few parsley stalks sprig of thyme 6 peppercorns Method Chop up the carcasses as much as possible. Put all the ingredients into a saucepan and cover with about 3.4l cold water. Bring to the boil. Skim the fat off the top with a tablespoon. Simmer very gently for 3-4 hours. Strain and remove any remaining fat. Do not add salt. For the broth, continue to cook for a further hour or so. Add a tablespoon of wine vinegar which helps to extract even more minerals and helps to breakdown the cartilage and other connective tissues in the bones of the chicken, which helps speed up the formation of gelatine in the stock. Store in the fridge for 3-4 days or freeze in convenient containers.Chicken bone broth and stock
The Ballymaloe Cookery School Field Café has reopened for the Summer season. Serving delicious savoury and sweet treats — a killer affogato with our own homemade ice cream and coffee from The Golden Bean Roastery. Open Monday to Saturday from 10am – 4.30pm. Have you visited the Ballymaloe Cookery School gardens? 10 acres of formal vegetable, herb and fruit gardens, glasshouses, topiary border, shell house, pond garden, Celtic maze.. tickets are available in the Farm Shop.
If you’re in the sunny South East, check out The Tin Roof Food Truck in Enniscorthy, Co. Wexford. They have a green area and picnic tables and have a food truck serving toasted sandwiches, sausage rolls, and great coffee. They also have new season’s Wexford strawberries and new potatoes on sale.
- For World Microbiome Day on June 27, APC Microbiome Ireland SFI Research Centre is hosting a
This very special online cookery demonstration will cover the following dishes: Water Kefir and Milk Kefir, Yoghurt, Labneh, Honey, Almonds, Porridge, Shakshuka with Sourdough, Granola and Pan-Grilled Mackerel Miso. The cookery demonstration will commence at 11am on World Microbiome Day and be available on-demand thereafter.
Darina and John will discuss how the various ingredients benefit the microbiome as the cookery demonstration progresses. They will also discuss sustainability — the theme for World Microbiome Day 2021 — and a cause that is high on the agenda for Darina Allen and Ballymaloe Cookery School.
Visit apc.ucc.ie for more information, a recipe booklet and a link to book your free tickets via Eventbrite.
Darina Allen in conversation with John Leech, an APC Microbiome Ireland SFI Research Centre, PhD student based in Teagasc Food Research and research officer with MASTER.