We don’t usually get sick from eating fermented foods like kefir and Kimchi, and it is known that there are some health benefits from eating them for our gut health. BUT we often get sick from drinking spoiled milk or eating rotting meat and vegetables. What is the difference between food being “fermented” and food being “spoiled”?
In: Biology
With fermentation, we’re looking to grow a specific kind of bacteria (usually lactobacillus). The idea is to create an environment that is so hostile to other bacteria that it allows the culture you’re trying to grow to outcompete other cultures that might be dangerous. We usually use ph to test this. Anything more acidic than 3.5 will typically be what we’re aiming for, and with lactoferments we’re usually looking to use salt to accomplish this. Lactobacillus puts out lactic acid as a part of its lifecycle, which keeps the food acidic and hostile to occult flora. The fermentation means that cultures that are unsafe to eat are being outcompeted by stuff that is safe to eat.
On the other hand, just letting whatever grow means you don’t have any knowledge of what might be growing in your food, or what it’s excreting in the process of its lifecycle. That makes it potentially dangerous.
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