Lacto-Fermented Tomato & Pepper Salsa

Ingredients

• 800 g field tomatoes (about 5–6 medium), cored and 1–2 cm diced
• 150 g peppers (a mix of Jimmy Nardello, Hungarian hot wax, Escamillo), stemmed and finely chopped
• 120 g yellow onion (about 1 small), finely chopped
• 10 g garlic (about 2 cloves), finely grated or minced
• 20 g kosher salt (about 1 Tbsp Diamond Crystal; ~2% of veg weight—see note)
• 50 g green cabbage, very finely shredded (helps kickstart fermentation)
• 20 g cilantro, finely chopped (stir in after ferment for freshest flavor)
• 200 g water + 4 g kosher salt (2% saline; use only if veggies aren’t fully submerged)

Instructions

1. Weigh your chopped vegetables (tomatoes, peppers, onion, garlic, and cabbage if using) in a bowl. Note the total weight.
2. Salt at ~2% by weight: multiply the veg weight by 0.02 to get salt grams. (Example: 1,000 g veg → 20 g salt.) Toss very well.
3. Let the mixture sit 10–15 minutes. You should see liquid pooling; the tomatoes will start to sweat.
4. Pack the salsa into a very clean jar, pressing firmly to remove air pockets. Pour in any liquid from the bowl.
5. Add a fermentation weight (or a small zip-top bag filled with 2% saline) so the solids stay fully submerged. Leave 2–3 cm headspace.
6. Set the jar on a plate (in case it bubbles over) and ferment at 20–22°C out of direct sun.
7. Burp daily (briefly open the lid) if using a standard jar. Keep everything submerged; if needed, top up with 2% saline.
8. Start tasting at 48 hours. It’s ready when it smells clean and pleasantly sour, tastes tangy with a little tingle of carbonation, and the flavors have rounded out.
9. Ferment it chunky, then blend after it’s tangy enough. Chunky fermentation stays crisper and makes it easier to keep the ferment clean and fully submerged.
10. Once ready, remove the weight and pulse-blend to your preferred texture (or leave it chunky). Stir in cilantro now if using.
11. Transfer to the fridge to slow fermentation. Flavor will keep developing (more sour) over time.

Notes

Heat control: keep hot wax peppers for punch; use more Jimmy Nardello for sweetness. Safety: use clean tools, keep solids submerged, and discard if you smell anything rotten, see fuzzy mold, or the brine turns slimy. Storage: refrigerated, it typically keeps 1–3 months (often longer) as long as it stays clean; it will slowly become more sour. Substitutions: if you don’t have cabbage, skip it; fermentation may start a little slower. If tomatoes are very sweet and you want extra zing, ferment a day longer rather than adding citrus.