Fermented Radish Slices

The radish is an amazingly handy and versatile little root. It grows incredibly fast (ready to pick just 28-30 days after the seeds go into the ground); it's full of bright, peppery flavor (the hotter the season, the spicier they'll be); and it can be eaten raw, braised, smeared with butter, or pickled.

Of all the possible radish treatments, I'm particularly fond of them when pickled (though crunching through several buttered and salted French breakfast radishes is never bad either). My default radish pickle is this slightly sweet quick version. What's so nice about that one is that it takes all of seven minutes to put together from start to finish and it is ready to eat within just a day or two.

I'll be the first to declare that the quick pickled version is delicious (and so good on a homemade taco). However, when I'm in no rush to go from radish to pickle, there's another method that results in a wonderfully crisp, tangy finished product that I actually like even better than the vinegar variation. If you haven't guessed it by now, I'm talking about a fermented radish.

Lactic acid fermentation is one of the oldest methods of food preservation. It's the process of allowing beneficial bacteria to grow within food, transforming sugar and starches into tart lactic acid. It's how sauerkraut, kimchi, and classic sour dill pickles are made, and in addition to creating wonderful flavor, it also makes for a healthier, digestion-friendly pickle.

When you ferment, it's important to keep the vegetable fully submerged in the brine. I like to use a wide mouth quart jar as my primary vessel and then use a little quarter pint jar filled with a bit of brine as the weight. If you don't have a little jar that will fit, you can also fill a zip top bag with some of the brine and use that as your weight.

Make sure that both your primary jar and the weight (either smaller jar or bag) are scrupulously clean. Because fermentation is a process of allowing bacteria to work, you want to ensure you've got good beneficial bacteria and not harmful ones.

This recipe uses a 5% salt solution. To achieve that, bring 4 cups of water to a boil and stir in 3 tablespoons of sea salt until dissolved. Let it cool completely before using. This solution can be used for any number of fermented vegetables.