Un-Pickle with Sipping Sister

Essential to Cobb’s work is growing and harvesting the ingredients that he ferments. “It’s my preference to grow or harvest everything I ferment, especially vegetables. In the beginning, almost everything was coming from my garden, Finca Tres Robles, or another local farm. Same for all the flavorings. Ingredients like ginger and turmeric have gotten really popular so I’m starting to grow those myself too,” he said.

Finca Tres Robles, a farm in the East End of Houston, has played a vital role in Sipping Sister’s work by providing a place to host fermentation classes as well as being a source of ingredients. Cobb has known the brothers of Finca Tres Robles since childhood, and played soccer with Finca’s founder and general manager, Thomas Garcia- Prats. Cobb has been involved with the project since its founding and volunteered at the farm the first three years of business.

Fermentation Basics

So, what is fermentation? “The chemical breakdown of sugars in an anaerobic environment by microbes such as yeast, bacteria and fungus,” said Hamblin. And there are different types of fermentation. The term most often refers to the process that turns sugar into ethanol— used to produce alcoholic drinks—but similar processes take place when preserving food through the creation of lactic acid, like when making yogurt or pickled vegetables.

For someone who has never fermented foods, it can be a big jump to start making their own. “The first thing I fermented was beets,” said Cobb. “I just put them in my pantry and left them for a few days. One day I saw something coming out of the pantry door and opened it up and beet juice was everywhere. I didn’t know if it had worked! It was fizzing and it tasted sour, but I definitely stained everything in that closet.” There will mistakes and mishaps along the way when learning any new skill, but avoiding beets for the first few tries might help you avoid permanent reminders of any missteps!

The good news, though, is that fermentation isn’t really that difficult. “I like fermentation because it’s very forgiving,” he said. “Just like planting a seed. If you have the right environment set up it’s going to do its own thing. In classes people are often concerned they’re going to mess something up, but it’s not usually a problem [At worst], maybe you just made salad dressing!”

“Fermentation has taught me not to be afraid,” Hamblin added, “Remember: The nose knows! I’ve learned that I can open the jar and smell it and I can trust my nose: I know whether it’s OK to eat or not. You don’t have to be fearful of food.”