Fermentation has been framed as risky, technical, even dangerous - and Sandor Katz thinks that fear is the whole problem.

In this conversation, the author of Wild Fermentation and The Art of Fermentation breaks down why sauerkraut is simpler than we’ve been taught to believe, what that “weird layer” on top actually is, and how fermentation often makes food safer than it was before. We talk about trusting your senses again, the lies of expiry dates, and the tradeoffs between low-tech tradition and modern tools like vacuum sealing and the Instant Pot.

Plus: Koji experiments with chestnuts, black garlic myths, the real reason fermentation takes time, and a reminder that you don’t need a starter culture to do what humans have done for thousands of years.

Guest links:
https://www.wildfermentation.com
https://linktr.ee/sandorkraut

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Timestamps:
00:00 — Tiffany’s intro: how Wild Fermentation changed her early chef career
01:15 — Why fermentation seems technical (and why it isn’t)
03:20 — Sauerkraut is absurdly simple - fear of bacteria is the real barrier
04:10 — “Fermentation makes food safer” (acidity vs pathogens)
07:20 — Expiry dates are arbitrary + trusting smell/taste again
08:20 — The “kahm yeast” moment: why people throw away perfectly good ferments
11:05 — Hard rules: what growth is harmless vs what to toss
14:35 — The real worst-case ferment: flies + eggs (practical warning)
15:05 — Lids vs cloth vs crocks: how Sandor actually covers ferments
17:30 — Brine vs dry-salt: when to add water and what it costs (flavor dilution)
20:15 — “There’s no singular way to ferment vegetables” (core philosophy)
21:50 — Fermentation Journeys + Tiffany’s inscription story
24:55 — New book: Fermentation: A Natural History (what it is / isn’t)
26:40 — Chestnut shio-koji project (enzymes + umami)
29:45 — Koji Alchemy + growing koji on “almost anything”
31:00 — Simple DIY koji incubation setup (light bulb + controller)
33:10 — Black garlic isn’t really fermentation (and the Instapot workaround)
35:30 — Tradeoffs: vacuum sealing vegetables (benefit vs waste)
37:05 — Chestnut miso + spontaneous pancakes (dosa, buckwheat, mung bean)
41:00 — Why he teaches so much: the hunger for fermentation confidence
44:50 — Pear pressing → accidental vinegar (and why timing matters)
47:50 — Packets of yeast are new; wild fermentation is the old standard
50:05 — “You don’t need a packet of white powder to make sauerkraut” (mic drop)