CRAFTSBURY COMMON, Vt. — The School of the New American Farmstead at Sterling College is offering a 5-day workshop this summer to anyone interested in mold-based fermentation.
Called by many names Qū, koji, nuruk, mold-based fermentation starters have been used for as many as 7000 years in East Asia. Honored for its deep transformational powers and ability to preserve food in nutritive, tasty and stimulating ways, mold-based fermentation has been an integral part of many different cuisines and cultures in Asia and has been recently capturing the attention of culinary creatives and industry professionals around the world looking for new ways to create flavor and prevent food waste.
This five-day “Koji and Friends” immersion course is taught by Mara King, author, chef and fermentation expert. Born and raised in Hong Kong, Mara has spent her 20+ year career as a food professional learning, practicing and sharing knowledge around good food. In 2011, she co-founded Ozuké, a fermented foods company that distributes nationally in the US. In 2017, Mara helped to produce a series of short films on Southwestern Chinese fermentation practices with Sandor Katz and Mattia Sacco Botto and is currently working on a book about Chinese fermentation practices. Mara also works with IE Hospitality, an impact driven Colorado-based restaurant group and grain mill, as Director of Fermentation.
In the course, participants will explore the history of mold-based fermentation and learn how to create their own incubator, and understand wild fermentation techniques. Participants will also learn how to make koji, tempeh, amazake, sake, miso, and fish sauce and culminate the experience using mold based ferments to prepare and enjoy delectable meals.
This course is suitable for:
- people who have some experience with vegetable fermentation, have been curious about making miso and other mold based ferments at home but have not crossed the hurdle of growing intentional mold to make delicious food;
- people who have some experience with mold-based ferments but want to learn more; and
- food professionals who would like to learn these techniques to start applying them to their own professional practice.
This 5-day course is open to the public and will be held on the Sterling College campus in Craftsbury Common, VT July 25 – 29, 2022. Limited on-campus housing is available. Full tuition funding is available to support the participation of a Veteran in this workshop. For more information, email continuingeducation@sterlingcollege.edu.
For more information on this course and other continuing ed offerings from Sterling, visit https://www.ce.sterlingcollege.edu/
About the School of the New American Farmstead:
Sterling College’s School of the New American Farmstead offers agroecological farming and craft food production courses that teach learners to sustain healthy working landscapes, nourish communities, and support food sovereignty.
ABOUT STERLING COLLEGE:
Founded in 1958 in Craftsbury Common, Vermont, Sterling College advances ecological thinking and action through affordable experiential learning, preparing knowledgeable, skilled, and responsible leaders to face the ecological crises caused by unlimited growth and consumption that threatens the future of the planet. Sterling College is home to the School of the New American Farmstead, the Wendell Berry Farming Program, and EcoGather; is accredited by the New England Commission of Higher Education; and is one of only nine colleges and universities recognized by the U.S. Department of Education as a “Work College.” Sterling acknowledges that the land on which it gathers is the traditional and unceded territory of the Abenaki people on its Vermont campus, and the Shawnee, Osage, and the Eastern band of the Cherokee on its Kentucky campus. For more information, visit: www.sterlingcollege.edu
–School of the New American Farmstead
Sterling College