Autumn is upon us, and is without a doubt one of my favourite seasons. It's a time for reflection and appreciation. A time to give thanks to all of the hardworking farmers and producers who have worked tirelessly to provide us with this year's harvest.

Along with it's rural, natural beauty, Autumn brings with it the start of cold and flu season. Living a well-balanced lifestyle is important to staying healthy, and we look no further than our friend, Nutritional Therapist, Debbie Lewis, who has devoted her life to Functional Medicine.

To kick start our immune systems for the chilly, winter months ahead, Debbie is sharing her knowledge on the importance of fermented foods, and providing us with her delicious Kimchi recipe.

Dorian

Kimchi is the spicy and more interesting friend of traditional sauerkraut. A Korean staple, Kimchi has more of a pungent, complex and spicy taste with numerous cultural variations based on the region of which it’s made.

Kimchi works on the same principle as all lacto-fermented vegetables – the bacteria in the vegetables use the naturally occurring sugars to produce lactic acid and create more gut friendly bacteria.

When we eat the fermented veggies, we increase the healthy bacteria in the intestinal tract and create a good environment for them to flourish. The high fibre content in cultured vegetables also helps to clean the digestive system and remove unwanted waste.

You can eat kimchi with just about anything - meat, fish, wraps, eggs – I love it on top of soups to add extra flavour, and of course the Kimchi Burger at Burger Shop. What I love about Kimchi is the turmeric and ginger, which gives an added anti-inflammatory kick, and great support for our immune systems in the winter.

Debbie Lewis
Nutritional Therapist
Debbie is a Registered Nutritional Therapist (BANT) and trained in Functional Nutritional Medicine.
www.debbielewis.co.uk

WHAT YOU'LL NEED...
The ingredients vary based on taste – add more or less according to your preference.

• 1 Chinese or White Cabbage (sliced in to strips)
• 3 garlic cloves (crushed)
• Thumb Sized Piece of Ginger (grated)
• 2 Thumb Length Pieces of Fresh Turmeric (grated or 1 tbsp dried)
• 2 tbsp Fish Sauce
• 2 Fresh Red Chilli’s (chopped)
• 1 tbsp Honey
• 3 tbsp Rice Vinegar
• 8 Radishes (sliced finely)
• 3 Carrots (cut into matchsticks)
• 4 Spring Onions (cut into matchsticks)
• 1.5 tbsp Himalayan Salt

METHOD...

Mix all the ingredients together in a bowl and give them a really good squeeze for about 10 minutes until the liquid starts to come out. The turmeric and chilli will stain and burn your hands – so wear gloves!

Press the kimchi mix down in to a glass jar helping to get out any air bubbles. You need to have some liquid on the top covering all the vegetables - if there isn’t enough top it up with filtered water.

Seal jar loosely and place in a warm spot (like a kitchen worktop) for 7 days.

Taste it, if you want to develop the flavour more it can be left for another 7 days.

Once ready store in your fridge.

FERMENTED FOODS / KIMCHI

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