It is on days like these when I feel like a completely mad scientist in the kitchen. Creating something that is "alive" and bubbling away, made from nothing more than just a few natural ingredients - and ones quite commonly found in most homes all around the world.
So what exactly is a "turmeric bug" - in fancy fermenting terms, it's a live bubbling starter culture used to start other fermented products in the kitchen, usually beverages such as wild sodas, but can also be added to other recipes to kick start the fermenting process, such as wines, ciders, vinegars and even sourdough bread.
I personally decided to start a turmeric bug as a starter for my wild sodas, that I love to make from fresh fruit juice (also known as natural sodas). It is a really great way to have refreshing, cold soda drinks on hand that also benefit the health and well being of my family.
You can use the same recipe and method for creating a "Ginger Bug" from fresh ginger root, I personally decided to create a turmeric bug as I had a rather large turmeric harvest from my garden this year. You can even mix it up, and create a mix of ginger and turmeric.
A clean cloth and an elastic band to place over the opening of the jar to prevent any dust or insects from getting into your starter
1/2 a cup of sugar
1/2 a cup of fresh turmeric root, chopped into chunks - leave the skin on as this is full of natural yeast that will boost your fermentation.
1/2 litre of warm water - water must be warm as cold water will slow any fermentation right down, and hot water will kill off the essential natural yeasts that will kick start your fermentation
How to put it all together:
In your jar place the sugar and water and stir until the sugar is at least mostly dissolved.
Add your turmeric and cover the jar with the cloth, securing it in place with the elastic band.
Leave in a warm place in your kitchen for 3 to 5 days. You will see it starting to ferment and bubble once it is active.
In this beginning process it's not always necessary to feed your starter, but if you want to feed it, you can do so by adding a teaspoon of sugar and a teaspoon of fresh chopped turmeric every second day.
Once your starter turmeric bug is alive and bubbling you are able to use it in various recipes.
I recommend first transferring it to a larger plastic bottle with a lid, and adding another half litre of warm water and a tablespoon of sugar and a table spoon of fresh turmeric, and leaving it for a further 3 days to continue fermenting and "burping" it once per day.
Why? Once you have a live turmeric bug and you want to use it in recipes, you want to make sure that you have enough to start your recipe as well as have enough left over to feed and keep your bug going.
Wait... did I say "burping", well yes I did. It's a very technical term amongst us fermenting fanatics (insert laughing emoji) - it really means to unscrew the lid on your bottle to release any built up CO2, if you don't do this, you stand the risk of the bottle exploding all over you and your kitchen.
Feeding your bug going forward:
In order to make sure your turmeric bug lasts for as long as you need it, you have to continually feed it. If you don't, eventually it will run out of food from the sugar and the turmeric and it will stop fermenting, and die. You will then have flat old turmeric water that's pretty much only good for the compost bin, or you can drink it as flat "turmeric beer" - which actually tastes very similar to ginger beer.
When you are not using your bug, you can feed it every 3 days with a tablespoon fresh turmeric or sugar (or both if you like). You can use it immediately at any point during this process.
When you do use it, you will replace the amount of starter you used with warm water, a tablespoon of fresh turmeric AND a tablespoon of sugar. I recommend waiting at least 3 to 5 days before using your bug again.
In both of the above instances, remember to "burp" your bug daily.
Bugs can keep on going for years, as long as you keep using it and feeding it.
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