Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/1298749
SiG MT 63 ome say Karina Crawford is in the business of cooking up miracles. Whether she's hard at work in the St. Ann's Cathedral Annex Kitchen, seing up shop at a local farmer's market, or delivering her widely-praised goods to her devoted customers throughout Chouteau and Cascade counties, you can bet she will have a supply of her tasty, nutrient-rich products close at hand. For Karina, it's all about the kraut. Sauerkraut, that is. Her passion and excitement about the health benefits of fermented foods fueled her decision to launch 406 Ferments in March of 2019. "e popular response from the community has been amazing," she says. "People say it is delicious and that it is crunchier than a normal sauerkraut. ey like the freshness, and how I have a variety of flavors they love." But the texture and flavor of 406 Ferment krauts is just one of the perks of this ancient form of food preservation. "ey start talking about how it's changed their lives," Karina says. "eir digestive issues aren't an issue anymore, they have improved energy, improved mental acuity, no more acid reflux. I mean, there are all kinds of things that people tell me have improved for them!" e lacto-fermentation process creates lactic acid, a natural preservative that inhibits harmful bacteria growth using the wild, "good bacteria" already living on foods, Karina explains. "ese probiotics produce enzymes that help to kick-start our body functioning," she says. "It's not just what you eat – it's what you can absorb. When you ferment the food, it multiplies those nutrients in it exponentially, making it more concentrated and more digestible." Fermented foods also help to break down the other foods they're eaten along with. "Once you get it into your mouth and start chewing, it gets into the mucosa in your mouth," Karina explains. "It doesn't have to wait to be digested in your stomach to start working." Many cultures throughout history have referred to our digestive systems as the body's "first brain," she says. "ere's a lot of talk about the gut-brain connection, because everything that happens to our bodies comes through our gut," Karina notes. "If you put good things in, then you're going to get good things out of it." IT'S ALL ABOUT THE KRAUT: Rediscovering the Benefits of Fermented Foods TEXT BY HOLLY MATKIN PHOTOGRAPHY BY SARA YOUNG S The cabbage in Karina's kraut is locally grown and sourced. Probiotic-rich sauerkraut can easily be incorporated into most meals.