Vegetable fermentation product range

Many fruits and vegetables are processed through lactic acid fermentation for the production of a wide range of traditional fermented products in various worldwide regions, mainly in the Mediterranean area. The manufacturing protocols for some traditional fermented vegetables are described below. Due to the wide literature describing the lactic acid fermentation of table olives, they are not considered in this chapter. 

Usually probiotics are taken in the form of dairy products, drinks, or supplements, but in African countries they have traditionally also been ingested in fermented cereal and in fermented vegetables in Asian countries. The claimed benefits of traditional fermented foods range from treatment of diarrheal diseases to alleviation of the side-effects of antibiotics to the prevention of a number of other health problems. In some countries fermented foods have even been associated with benefits to the skin. 

Microbes use enzymes as catalysts to make the desired or beneficial reaction take place, and typically under mild conditions. Brewing of beer and fermentation of fruit and vegetable mass high in starches to produce consumable ethanol are the oldest and most familiar instances of using microbial action to fulfill a desired end. But now much more has been demonstrated, ranging from the production of essential human hormones to the synthesis of specialty chemicals. 

As Table 22.2 shows, there are numerous lactic acid fermented vegetables conuner-cially available on the European market up to the present day. This range is complemented by different mixtures of fermented vegetables. Of general economic importance, however, for Europe and the United States, are only three products in the order of quantity produced, these are fermented table olives, sauerkraut and fermented cucumbers. The best-known lactic acid fermented vegetable in Asia is kimchi, which is especially famous as a typical Korean product but is also produced in other Asian countries. Because of its special features, kimchi will be described separately in Section 22.8. 

For fermentation, the pretreated vegetables are then placed in suitable fermentation vessels. Due to the respective product, the plant size and the applied technology, these vessels may range from 100-1 drums to tanks or silos with up to 100-ton capacity. Filling must be done very carefully. In order to achieve favourable... 

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