Fermented foods, that are healing and probiotic rich, have always been a part of my life. My mother is Korean and so for as long as I can remember my mom has always made and served kimchi at every meal, everyday. Would you like to know what goes perfectly with a Thanksgiving turkey? A jar of napa kimchi of course. Christmas dinner would not be complete without sprouted mung beans and daikon radish kimchi. My mother has been blending her Korean flavors into every American meal before the word “fusion” was ever thought to be applied to food. I guess she is a bit of a pioneer. My mom is also a master forager. Long before foraging for wild plants was ever cool or trendy, she was out there on a treasure hunt for what most of us would consider weeds. And let’s be honest, foraging is kind of the nicest way to describe stealing, even if you are really only picking weeds. Through the years, she has made me her accomplice and I have followed her into parks and wooded fields, squatted down like only a real Korean can do, and picked as many leaves and stems as I could. No matter how embarrassing the idea of foraging for food may be to my half American mind, the pay off was always worthwhile- pure deliciousness.We are finally living in a time when stinky kimchi is loved and appreciated and foraging is kind of cool. So, thank you Mom for always being brave enough to be yourself, and for always be ahead of the times.
My love of fermented foods has continued to grow over the years, but I will always have a special place in my heart for you, Kombucha. When I became a mother, I wanted to give my sons a probiotic supplement to keep them healthy. I would buy expensive pills, and mix them into their drinks. But then they wouldn’t drink every drop and I was concerned that they weren’t getting enough of the probiotic and that I was wasting money. One night my girlfriend introduced me to her homemade kombucha. We opened a raspberry flavored bottle and it exploded all over the dinner table and all over her beautiful curtains. It was completely self carbonated, and tasted amazing. My boys were chugging it down and I couldn’t get them to stop drinking this natural, probiotic rich soda. This was the easiest and most delicious way to get probiotics in our diet. Kombucha was a life changer.
So, I built this bar for you, Kombucha. Because you are that wonderful. You have kept us healthy and made my life a little easier- thank you!
xoxo,
Claudia