I had a question from one of the readers that how I get the bacteria to start the fermentation when I make fermented brown rice. So, I would like to share the answer with you, too, since you might have the same question.
The question was the following.
“You wrote that you cook the rice and let it sit in the cooker for 3 days (do you keep the lid closed or open?). If the lid is closed, everything inside should be sterile, so how do you get the good bacteria in to start the fermentation? And if the lid is open … all kind of bacteria could fly in, how do you keep the bad bacteria out?”
First of all, you need a jar rice cooker, the one with a warming function.
You keep the rice with the lid closed for three days with the warming setting. You open the lid once a day and mix the rice to let oxygen in, but otherwise, the lid is closed. This way, the brown rice bacteria is activated, and fermentation begins.
The brown rice itself has some bacteria. It is said that there are about 250 different types of brown rice bacteria in the rice and by soaking the rice for 12 hours, you are activating the bacteria to be fermented.
In the following instruction,
https://ikigaidiet.com/how-to-make-fermented-brown-rice/
there is a part that I soak the rice for 12 hours. The soaking is a crucial point.
The Ikigai Diet: The Secret Japanese Diet to Health and Longevity
POD Paperback
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/4991064864
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