Fermentation

In its strictest sense, fermentation (formerly called zymnosis) is the energy-yielding anaerobic metabolic breakdown of a nutrient molecule, such as glucose, without net oxidation. Fermentation yields lactate, acetic acid, ethanol, or some other simple product.

Uses

The primary benefit of fermentation is the conversion, e.g. converting juice into wine, grains into beer, and carbohydrates into carbon dioxide to leaven bread.

Related Topics:
Juice - Wine - Beer - Carbohydrate - Carbon dioxide - Bread

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According to Steinkraus (1995), traditionally food fermentation serves five main purposes:

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• "Enrichment of the diet through development of a diversity of flavors, aromas, and textures in food substrates"
• "Preservation of substantial amounts of food through lactic acid, alcoholic, acetic acid, and alkaline fermentations"
• "Enrichment of food substrates biologically with protein, essential amino acids, essential fatty acids, and vitamins"
• "Detoxification during food fermentation processing"
• "A decrease in cooking times and fuel requirements"

Fermentation has some benefits exclusive to foods. Fermentation can produce important nutrients or eliminate antinutrients. Food can be preserved by fermentation, since fermentation uses up food energy and can make conditions unsuitable for undesirable microorganisms. For example, in pickling the acid produced by the dominant bacteria inhibit the growth of all other microorganisms.

Related Topics:
Nutrients - Antinutrients - Pickling

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In alchemy, fermentation is often the same as putrefaction, meaning to allow the substance to naturally rot or decompose.

Related Topics:
Alchemy - Putrefaction - Rot - Decompose

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Fermented foods, by region

• World wide: alcohol, wine, vinegar, olives, yoghurt
• Asia
• India: achar, gundruk, Indian pickles, Idli
• South East Asia: asinan, bai-ming, belacan, burong mangga, dalok, jeruk, fish sauce, leppet-so, miang, nata de coco, nata de pina, naw-mai-dong, pak-siam-dong, paw-tsay, phak-dong, phonlami-dong, prahok (fish paste), sajur asin, sambal tempo-jak, santol, si-sek-chai, sunki, tang-chai, tempeh, tempoyak, vanilla
• East Asia: cha-ts'ai, dan moogi, douchi, dongchimi, hiroshimana, hot pepper sauce, jangagee, kachdoo kigactuki, kakduggi, kimchi, miso, mootsanji, nara senkei, natto, nozawana, oigee, oiji, oiso baegi, pickled tofu (???),pow tsai (泡菜), red in snow (雪裡蕻), sake (:ja:日本酒), seokbakji, siozuke, soy sauce, szechwan cabbage (四川泡菜), tai-tan tsoi, takana, takuan, totkal kimchi, tsa tzai, tsukemono (:ja:漬物), umeboshi (:ja:梅干し), wasabi-zuke (:ja:山葵漬け), yen tsai (醃菜)
• Central Asia: kumis (mare milk), kefir, shubat (camel milk)
• Africa: hibiscus seed, hot pepper sauce, lamoun makbouss, mauoloh, msir, mslalla, oilseed, ogili, ogiri
• Americas: cheese, pickling (pickled vegetables), sauerkraut, lupin seed, oilseed, vanilla, fermented fish, fish heads, walrus, seal oil, birds (In Inuit cooking)
• Middle East: kushuk, lamoun makbouss, mekhalel, torshi, tursu
• Europe: cheese, sauerkraut, kephir, filmjölk and other soured milk products such as Quark, fermented Baltic Herring, sausages