Serves 4

For the Watercress Salad

6 handfuls of watercress

½ cup sauerkraut (feel free to add more if you are accustomed to eating fermented foods. If not start slow to avoid detox symptoms)
1 radish – finely sliced
1 green apple – diced
handful of grapes

For the Salad dressing

¼ cup raspberries (fresh or defrosted)
3 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 Tbsp sauerkraut juice

Wash and prepare the vegetables and add to the bowl.

Squeeze the juice from the sauerkraut (save the liquid for the dressing) and add to the salad. Toss gently.

Blend the dressing ingredients and drizzle over salad just before serving.

Read More In Our Good Gut Health Series

Understanding Your Gut Health & Microbiome
Difference between Probiotics & Prebiotics
What Is Kefir & How Does It Taste?
How To Make Kefir
Using Kefir In A Recipe – Greek Tzatziki Sauce
How To Make Fermented Vegetables

The post Watercress & Sauerkraut Salad Recipe with Raspberry Dressing appeared first on Food Compass.

• 4 cups Kefir
• ½ Telegraph Cucumber
• 1 tsp Salt
• 1 Clove Garlic
• Sprig of mint
• Squeeze of lemon juice

Strain Kefir overnight in a cheesecloth suspended over a bowl. The whey will drain into the bowl leaving a thicker Kefir.

Peel and dice the cucumber, then put into a colander and sprinkle with salt. Place a plate on top and put something heavy on top. The salt will help draw the water from the cucumber. Leave for 30 minutes, then dry further with paper towels.

Put the cucumber, mint, lemon juice and minced garlic into a blender and blend briefly.
Stir cucumber mix into the kefir. Add additional salt if needed.

This homemade tzatziki sauce goes well with any greek cuisine and also pitas, meats, topping for baked potato and as a dip.

Read More In Our Good Gut Health Series

Understanding Your Gut Health & Microbiome
Difference between Probiotics & Prebiotics
What Is Kefir & How Does It Taste?
How To Make Kefir
How To Make Fermented Vegetables
Using Fermented Vegtable In A Recipe – Water Cress Salad

The post Home Made Tzatziki Sauce Recipe With Kefir appeared first on Food Compass.

Kefir is a fermented beverage, of which there are several types. Most commonly Kefir is made by fermenting milk, but there are non dairy variants, such as water Kefir, and coconut water Kefir.
Kefir is a centuries old drink that originated in the North Caucasus mountains. The name ‘Kefir’ is derived from the Turkish word ‘keif” which translates as ‘good feeling’ which is how one should feel after drinking it.

What does Milk Kefir taste like?

Milk Kefir has a sour, tangy flavour, similar to that of yoghurt. It is slightly thicker than milk, but still with a pourable consistency and can be slightly effervescent.

What does Water Kefir taste like?

Water Kefir has a slight fermented taste. Anyone who has enjoyed ginger beer will find it has a familiar flavour. It is usually combined with fruit or juice for a second fermentation to add flavour and increase fizzyness.

What does Coconut Kefir taste like?

Coconut Kefir has the flavour of the coconut, but is less sweet than unfermented coconut water due to the sugar being mostly used up during the fermentation process. It has the ‘tang’ of a fermented beverage.

What are the benefits of drinking Kefir Milk?

Kefir is a probiotic beverage containing beneficial yeast and bacteria that help colonise our gut and improve digestion.

In addition to being a powerful probiotic, Kefir is a rich source of vitamins B12 and K2, essential for healing and repair, including bone and dental health. Kefir also contains many minerals like calcium, magnesium and phosphorus.

Fermentation of the milk causes the proteins to be partially digested and therefore easier for the body to utilize.
Water and coconut Kefir will have a different nutrition profile, based partly on the yeast and bacteria, and partly on the liquid the starter has been added to. These can be better suited to those who are very sensitive to lactose or have a casein intolerance.

What if I’m lactose intolerant?

During the fermentation process the yeast and bacteria feed on the lactose (the sugar present in the milk) and convert most of it to lactic acid. Due to this process many people with lactose intolerance can tolerate milk Kefir. In fact, it may even help improve lactose digestion in those who have a lactose intolerance. (1)

That being said, there is no one answer for everyone and individuals should try for themselves. Care may also be needed that the Kefir was fermented long enough for most of the lactose to be broken down.

What’s the difference between milk Kefir and yoghurt?

Kefir and yoghurt contain different strains of bacteria. The bacteria in yoghurt while beneficial to the gut, are transient and pass through, whereas the bacteria in Kefir can colonise the intestinal tract, providing potent and long term benefit. Kefir generally contains a much wider variety of bacteria, and also contains beneficial yeasts.

Kefir is also easier to digest due to the curd being smaller in size than yoghurt.

Read More In Our Good Gut Health Series

Understanding Your Gut Health & Microbiome
Difference between Probiotics & Prebiotics
How To Make Kefir
Using Kefir In A Recipe – Greek Tzatziki Sauce
How To Make Fermented Vegetables
Using Fermented Vegtable In A Recipe – Water Cress Salad

The post What Is Kefir & How Does It Taste? appeared first on Food Compass.

In Part 2 of our good gut health series. A quick and easy infographic to show you the difference between prebiotics and probiotics. What they both do and the food sources you can find them from.

At Food Compass we stock Body Ecology for our range of Probiotics and Prebiotics. While you can eat a number of prebiotics like garlic, onions and leeks, you may find it easier on your breath to supplement it with Ecobloom. This prebiotic can be sprinkled on smoothies, cereals, mixed with your mash potato or added to any meal.

For Probiotics we have kefir (cultured/fermented milk) which tastes like a thin pourable yogurt and can be had on its own or used in smoothies, cereals and dips.

We also have a vegetable culture starter which ferments vegetables with potent strains of probiotics. Eat as a side dish or with your salads and main meals.

Read More In Our Good Gut Health Series

Understanding Your Gut Health & Microbiome
What Is Kefir & How Does It Taste?
How To Make Kefir
Using Kefir In A Recipe – Greek Tzatziki Sauce
How To Make Fermented Vegetables
Using Fermented Vegtable In A Recipe – Water Cress Salad

The post The Difference Between Prebiotics and Probiotics….And Why You Need Both. appeared first on Food Compass.

In our first post in a 7 part series on good gut health, we focus on helping you understand the huge impact your gut health can actually have on your body.

So when it come to keeping our digestive system healthy we use probiotics and prebiotics find out the difference in part 2 of our series

Read More From Our Good Gut Health Series

Difference between Probiotics & Prebiotics
What Is Kefir & How Does It Taste?
How To Make Kefir
Using Kefir In A Recipe – Greek Tzatziki Sauce
How To Make Fermented Vegetables
Using Fermented Vegtable In A Recipe – Water Cress Salad

The post How Microbes Fight For Good Gut Health appeared first on Food Compass.