5 Days of Fermentation in Peru's Sacred Valley

It is hard to believe we have been in Peru for a full week. The usual adjectives (wonderful, amazing, and so on) don’t seem to measure up to our experiences thus far because they feel too simple for all that has happened.

Taking the day off by working. Sitting by the Urubamba River on a beautiful day with bird song to accompany the rushing water, so I am not complaining.

When we return home, I will be posting in depth, but in the meantime, I want to share this past week in photos. I was invited to teach a 4-day workshop in the Sacred Valley by Daniela Mendez and Jenny Novoa as part of their project Müta Experiencias.

Jenny and Daniela above Moray Archeological site. The terraced bowls below are believed to have been built by the Incans to grow plants in microclimates. The humidity and temperature is different at every level.

The day after we arrived we went on a plant walk high above the valley and visited an a unique native potato and oca project. Below are photos of the fresh chicha made by Luchita. Sorry, that is all I am leaving you with in order to keep with the timeline. 🙃 Each of these experiences were so rich that they will be coming to your inbox in their own posts. Stay tuned.

Andean freshly made chicha and lunch

The next day began at the market in Urubamba. I could have stayed there for many more hours meeting the different herbs, vegetables and fruit. We purchased ingredients for the next few days of the workshop.

Silvana buying herbs from a local cheesemaker. On the left a traditional herbalist selling medcinals.

The first vegetables we used were squash and fresh peas. We used this to make an Andean miso-style paste.

On the right, shelling peas and cutting squash. On the left, many hands mixing warm squash, peas, and koji rice.

Balls are future miso, ready to press into vessel. Lunch after all the "hard" work.

The next few days flew by. We made tempeh. We took a plant walk and gathered flowers and herbs to make wild yeast starters for fermented sodas, wines, and vinegars. I have to apologize, I took very few photos while I was teaching. I am relying on a few that were shared. (Thank you Daniela and Jenny.)

Flowers contain yeast, yeast makes bubbles.

Learning about plants from Jan. Making vinegar.

And the meals were delicious. Nothing like a group of fermenters for good food.

The colors, the ferments...

Fermenting for good

On the last day we were part of community fundraising event held at the cooperative school of Daniela’s children, Sumak Kaway, which was started in 2020 to provide a high-quality education from pre-school through junior high, regardless of the students’ socio-economic levels.

“According to Andean tradition SUMAK KAWSAY is the common good. The good of all, understood in a broad sense, including both, the social aand physical environment, both people in all their dimensions and the universe and nature in all its manifestatios.”

This project supports children, women, and the community in general, in various areas aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Zero Hunger, Quality Education, and Climate Action.

It is an amazing program that also offers theater, music, art, academic reinforcement, circus, and soccer to over 70 children. They also provide free psychological support for specific cases and direct donations to children in need.

The idea was to invite members of the community, including the farmers who donated over 100 lbs. of vegetables, to make a giant batch of chucrut (sauerkraut) to be sold as a fundraiser for the school. The veggies included some of the normal characters, including several kinds of cabbages, carrots, apples, and peppers as well as some local tubers olluca (very important starchy tuber to the Andean region), yacon (not pictured here), and achoccha (in the cucurbitaceae family like cucumbers).

The orange tubers in the foreground are Olluco, next to them, the small green pods are Achoccha (green silvestre caihua)

After a brief explanation of the science of fermentation and a quick demo the fun began.

And a special Andean ferment—yacon, olluco, yellow pepper, ginger, and achoccha.

And of course, there was lunch.

Miso Hummus (recipe from Miso, Tempeh, Natto book) with veggies and toppings.

Part shot

Urubamba River in the full moon. This river is thought to mirror the milky way and thus making this valley sacred.