Book excerpt: Ferment Your Vegetables for Flavor, Health, and Fun! Fermented vegetables are a great, healthy addition to anyone's diet. Abundant in probiotics, enzymes, vitamins, minerals, and more, research continues to reveal the many ways that these foods positively contribute to our well-being. From kimchi and sauerkraut to pickles and kvass, fermented foods have been part of the human diet for millennia--and are rightfully reclaiming their place at our daily table. The idea of fermenting vegetables at home can be intimidating for those who have never tried it before. The truth is, it's quite easy once you learn just a few basic concepts. In Ferment Your Vegetables, author Amanda Feifer, fermentation expert and founder of phickle.com, serves as your guide, showing you, step by step, how you can create traditional, delicious fermented food at home, using only simple ingredients and a little time. No fancy starters or elaborate equipment required. Using only veggies, a few spices, and a glass jar, here's just a small sampling of recipes you could start making today: -Zucchini Bread Pickles -Curried Cauliflower Pickles -Pint of Pickled Peppers -Simplest Sauerkraut -Ginger Beet Kraut -Green Bean Kimchi -Wild Fermented Tomato Sauce -Bullseye Beet Kvass Ferment Your Vegetables will make beginners wonder why they didn't start sooner, and give veteran fermenters loads of new ideas and techniques to try at home. All aboard the probiotic train!