If you're working long hard days in the City of London and coming home to your flat to bake through the night, you've obviously got some life choices to make. Charlotte Pike (pictured) was one of the brave ones, she followed her passion, setting up Go Free Foods, a bakery specialising in breads and cakes to cater to people with food allergies and intolerances.
“Two weeks after university I went to work at JP Morgan, which was a shock to the system, having studied modern languages,” says the now Dorset-based baker and food writer, who has just published her fourth cookery book, on the trendy topic of fermenting.
She also writes a weekly blog about food for HELLO! online and teaches cookery. When we speak, she's in Denmark, doing some research on Scandinavian food and working as a private chef.
It was while studying at Ballymaloe [12-week professional course, January 2014] that Pike encountered the ancient art of fermentation. “I had read about fermentation with great interest in recent years, but hadn’t got around to trying to make any fermented food or drink. Then, when I was at Ballymaloe, I took the fermentation workshop there, which was a complete revelation.The first thing I tried was water kefir, which I absolutely loved and it gave me the taste for more.”
There seems to be an explosion of interest in fermentation at the moment, but there is also a lingering fear. “Most people worry about exploding bottles and jars when they think about fermentation. But all the recipes in the book are totally safe to make,” Pike says.
But, isn’t bacteria and mould and funky smelling food more of an issue? “The one thing I watch out for is cleanliness. Of course, some bacteria is beneficial, and we don’t want to eliminate it all, but I do ensure all my equipment and jars are scrupulously clean before using them, as I do with preserving,” she says.
Darina Allen has given Fermented a ringing endorsement, pointing out it is "exactly the sort of book I would have loved to find when I was beginning my journey with fermented foods – clear, concise and confidence boosting".
So what’s the attraction of eating fermented foods? “Fermented food and drink introduces nutrients to our bodies that are not found in many other sources. I also think people are realising just how beneficial our gut health is to our overall health, and introducing a natural probiotic to your diet, either through a fermented food or a drink can only be a good thing,” Pike says.
So, you’ve eaten some great kimchi, admired a friend’s pretty jars of fermented vegetables, and lamented your inability to find labneh to complete that must-cook Ottolenghi recipe, it’s time to explore fermenting. What should a novice start with?
“The labneh recipes are wonderful. They are so simple to make and feel as though you’ve managed to produce something much more exotic than seems possible with the little time and effort invested.”
And does she have any golden rules for fermenting?
“I try and use organic wherever possible. Organic fruit, vegetables, milk and flour will give the most flavoursome result, but it also ensures that nasty chemicals shouldn’t be present, as they will inhibit the fermentation process.
“Take notes and observe. Your ferments may behave differently depending on the weather conditions, so it can be helpful to keep a record of what you’re doing and when, so that if you really like it, you can replicate it.”
The recipes reprinted here are some basic building blocks to get started – Pike’s book takes things a big step further, with interesting recipes incorporating fermented foods into everyday eating.
Fermented, by Charlotte Pike is published by Kyle Books on August 27th, £16.99. Photography by Tara Fisher.
