Ingredients
- tofu--any kind that''s firm enough to cube
- salt
- brine from sauerkraut
- has been added, it''s lacto-fermented. Whey from yogurt also works.)
- optional: garlic cloves, chilies, green onions
- optional: small slices of raw beet to turn it pink!
Cube the tofu. Put it into a clean jar with optional ingredients, if using. Choose a jar that it just fits into, so there''s not too much head space. In another container, mix salt with warm water so that it is a tiny bit saltier than you''d like your pickles to be. Stir in some brine from other pickles to help get it going, like about a tablespoon to a quart of brine. (You can add more if you have it.) Put the lid on the jar and let it sit on the counter until it gets as sour and fizzy as you like (depending on the ambient temperature, about 4 days). When it''s done, store it in the fridge. Eat raw or cooked.
Three reasons to pickle tofu:
1. Kids love it.
2. If you have trouble digesting tofu, the fermenting pre-digests it, making it less gassy, even when eaten raw. Besides being more digestible, lacto-fermented foods also increase your body''s alkalinity.
3. Regular tofu goes bad. Pickled tofu will last a long time in the fridge, as long as you keep it in the brine. As with other pickles, the lacto bacteria protect it from food destroying microbes. Try it!
Preparation time: about 4 days