The Japanese Art of Pickling and Fermenting: Preserving Vegetables and Family Traditions

Discover the centuries-old practices of Japanese pickling and fermenting, and learn to make delicious preserved vegetables at home.

In The Japanese Art of Pickling and Fermenting, preserving expert Yoko Nakazawa shares her lifelong passion of pickling and fermenting ingredients using age-old techniques that have been passed down the generations. Nakazawa grew up in rural Japan and helped her parents preserve the glut of their vegetable patch every season. Her mother taught her how to preserve food using ancient Japanese fermenting techniques to make Amazuke (sweet vinegar pickles); Asazuke (quick pickles); Kasa zuke (sake lees pickles); Misozuke (miso pickles); Nukazuke (rice bran pickles); and more. Upon moving to Australia, Nakazawa started to grow and preserve her own vegetables and became inspired to share her knowledge and recipes for pickling and fermenting all kinds of produce, including daikon, cucumber, cabbage, carrot, onion, garlic, ginger, umeboshi, even eggs, and chrysanthemum leaves!

In this book Nakazawa explains the difference between these pickles and ferments, and guides us through the preserving process, from salt ratios and chopping techniques to fermenting times and storage. Along the way, she shares personal stories from her childhood and experiences growing and fermenting vegetables in Australia, making this volume not only a practical guide filled valuable knowledge, but also a book filled with love.

Yoko Nakazawa was born and raised in Japan and has resided in Australia since 2013. Growing up with a father who cultivated vegetables and a mother who expertly cooked and preserved them, Nakazawa developed a profound appreciation for traditional Japanese practices and fermented foods. Her expertise includes making miso pastes, fermenting pickles, furoshiki wrapping, calligraphy, and kintsugi. As an active cultural ambassador, Nakazawa conducts cooking and cultural workshops using the vegetables she grows, emphasizing the celebration of seasons with fresh produce. She also regularly attends farmers’ markets, sharing the flavors of authentic miso paste and pickles.