The Fermented Man

by Derek Dellinger

On January 1, 2014, homebrewer and writer Derek Dellinger began a journey that would change nearly everything he thought he knew about fermented food and beverage—and as a beer expert, he knew a lot. For an entire year, Dellinger would eat or drink only products that had been created by microbes. Exploring the vast world of fermentation, Dellinger became the living embodiment of its cultural and nutritional power—he became the Fermented Man.


In this entertaining and informative narrative, Dellinger catalogs his year spent on this unorthodox diet, revealing insights about the science of fermentation, as well as its cultural history, culinary value, and nutritional impact along the way. He goes beyond yogurt and sauerkraut to show us how fermentation occurs in a wide range of foods we might never have expected, and is at the root of many unique delicacies around the world. From foraging for living bacteria in the modern American grocery store, to sampling mucousy green Century Eggs in Chinatown, to an epic winter quest to Iceland for rotten shark meat, Dellinger investigates a realm of forgotten foods that is endlessly complex and surprisingly flavorful. And despite our collective aversion to bacteria, Dellinger’s experience and research reveals that it is these same microbes that may hold the key to our health and diets. 


With bonus recipes for readers who are eager to get off the page and into the kitchen, The Fermented Man is an adventure story, culinary history, and science project all in one.

Genres: Food, Nonfiction, Science, Audiobook, Health, Memoir, Food and Drink

288 pages, Paperback

First published May 3, 2016

Reviews

[Matt Ward · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was fairly disappointing. Great concept but bizarre execution.

If you're thinking about reading this because you want to hear about all the interesting fermentation he does and how he managed to get through a year, well...

Be warned, he lives on grilled cheese and pizza. This is hardly the book you think it's going to be. With all the chapters on microbes and live culture and probiotics, I would have chosen a much different year-long challenge.

First, Wonder Bread should not count as fermented. I'll begrudgingly give you a real sourdough, because that must ferment for quite some time and the sour flavor is a biproduct of the ferment. It has nutritional value. A quick hour-long rise from rapid yeast is not "really" fermentation.

Second, I'm skeptical that cooking a fermented food still counts as being fermented. It kills all the bacteria and changes the chemical properties. When he says things like "I threw it in a jar and let it ferment for an hour before cooking it" (not an exact quote, but basically it is), that's cheating. He basically makes french fries this way.

Now I'm not saying there *must* be a live culture present. Obviously beer and wine and even non-live culture yogurt are fermented products. There is no hard line. But I think there's a certain spirit to the experiment that gets violated and makes the book feel very disappointing.

Sorry, but grilled cheese and pepperoni pizza and fries just don't belong in a "100% fermented food diet."

The chapter on wild beers was the most interesting. As someone really into fermentation (I make my own sauerkraut and sourdough and kefir and komboucha and lacto-fermented pickles and ...), the rest of the stuff I pretty much knew.

This book would make a great entry into this world if you're not sure what a lot of those words are or how to cultivate lactobacillus or wild yeast.

[Chris · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fairly decent information and a novel "for a year" challenge.
I liked that Derek kept to a synopsis of his endeavors rather than filling in all the day to day drudgery. Even with that, I felt that the author did a lot of repeating the same information over and over again. For example, the introduction and first chapter could have been swapped and I'm not sure I would have noticed a difference. Maybe it is because the author is used to magazine articles, succinct by necessity, that he may have had a hard time filling out a full length book. We got to know VERY well that he ate a lot of grilled cheese and sauerkraut, that he was hungry but healthy and full of energy, and that he missed "meals" and avocados. It could have been a running humorous bit, but was only delivered as a filler.
We find out towards the end of the book about his personal problems which, I'm sure, are the reason he lacks (or lost) the enthusiasm for the project.

[Aaron · Rating 2 out of 5]

As a project documenting a guy eating only fermented food for a whole year, this book is a failure. As a collection of essays loosely tied together by the subject of fermentation presented by an affable fellow, it's just fine. I would visit this guy's website to see what he had to say about fermented stuff. I'd like to sample the beers he recommends. Writing books is probably really hard or we'd all be doing it.

[Kelsey · Rating 5 out of 5]

I never would have thought fermentation could keep me captivated for 200 pages. this book is fun, easy to read, and thoughtful. since finishing it, I now think more about what I'm eating and more importantly, I no longer feel bad when I eat nothing but bread and cheese.

[mart-e · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun to read. The book doesn't pretend to be the solution to every diet problem and it is refreshing, just a weird experiment. Now I want to make sauerkraut.

[Erwin Havekotte · Rating 3 out of 5]

I knew the book's author through his beer weblog "bear-flavored". His knowledge on wild fermented beers and the way he documents his achievements and failures has been a great help to me as a home brewer. When this book was released I was eager to see if he would share the same great insights on non-beer fermentation.

Because of his blog I expected the author's one-year journey into eating exclusively fermented foods to be a do-it-yourself affair. When I read that he mostly ate bread, butter, and cheese (and he mentions eating grilled cheese A LOT) that was all bought at commercial outlets I was somehow a bit disappointed. I did not expect him to ferment ALL of his food, but it feels like he shopped his way through the year a lot more than I had imagined. Note that the book does not advertise itself as such, but my experience with his blog and the book containing recipes in the back sure gave me that impression . I expected to read about awful cheese, bread, butter making experiments and got none of that.

Next point of criticism is the writing. The author proclaims his love for all things fatty in the book, and perhaps that shows in the editing of the book: there is a lot of fat on the bones here. Meaning: the style of writing is quite indirect and uses a lot of non-functional padding. The text could do with a trim at at least several chapters. It's the authors first book so it might not be completely fair to expect a literary masterpiece, but it did detract from my reading pleasure. I found it hard to get into the flow.

Having said that, the book is truly great at some moments. I really enjoyed the authors philosophising about what fermentation actually is and how detached we became from our food. It is here that the book is at it's very best.

If you're interested in reading about fermentation as a concept and love reading about dietary philosophising I recommend this book. If you come in expecting to come away with advanced knowledge about fermentation - this book is not it. I ended up rating this 3 stars which I feel is a bit harsh. On the other hand I have rated other books with 4 stars and I enjoyed reading those more - thus I can't give it 4 stars either.

[Sharon Morgan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read. Informative, lighthearted, researched.
I really quite enjoyed this book. I stumbled across it while aimlessly browsing a bookstore on Christmas Eve. The book kinda screamed at me from across the room (yes, I judged the book by it's cover).
I felt the book was written well. A great read if you are just stumbling into fermented foods. This book won't teach you how to create your own concoctions, but it will certainly give you a feel for the ideas behind fermentation. The writer summarises his serious (yet calmly lighthearted) attempt at eating only fermented foods for a year.
Personally for me, the book couldn't have come at me at a better time. About 18 months ago, I found myself approximately 12 moths into a very established lifestyle of eating only unrefined foods, with no sugar or meat (excluding fish), along with a dedicated daily Yoga practice; When a very close immediate family member passed away suddenly and I spiralled (albeit slowly at first) into eating whatever, whenever (and with whoever) and rarely connecting with my yoga mat.
This book has given me the motivation I've been longing for, to gather my shit together, and re-establish that lifestyle pattern I've been craving for months.
Thankyou Derek for a great and inspiring read. :)

[Sam · Rating 4 out of 5]

During this pandemic, I've gotten slightly obsessed with fermentation. I'm maintaining a sourdough starter and making lots of bread, making yogurt, and kombucha. I was excited about this book - a story of a guy who decides to only eat fermented food for a year. I thought he did a good job, though the book became more about individual approaches to fermentation of different types of food rather than a true story of his year. There were some parts where he veered off to talk about the problems with people being critical of fermentation when their diet is just as questionable. I thought this was fine, but lost focus on fermentation specifically. I'd recommend it as something to read if you're in a fermentation phase, but someone who doesn't care about fermentation should probably skip.

[Micaela · Rating 5 out of 5]

Refreshing read

This book gives a refreshing perspective on cultured foods and diet culture. Unlike the endless fad-diet books out there, this book doesn’t prescribe or preach a certain way of eating. The discussions on diet and diet culture are especially well understood, especially for a writer with no nutritional background.

It’s interesting to read about Derek Dellinger’s personal journey eating nothing but fermented foods for a year. It’s a quick, easy read. I’d recommend it to anyone, especially those who believe one way of eating or fermented foods/probiotics is a cure-all.

[Jo Gardner · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this book to be interesting, informative, and a fun read. I learned a great deal about fermented foods. Dellinger explains that his year-long experiment with fermented food is not a diet fad, not a normal approach to fermented foods, nor something he would repeat. However, he learned a great deal about various food, beers, molds, and more; and he shares the knowledge with the reader. I enjoyed this book very much and will read it again at some point.

[Crysta · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was drawn to Dellinger's premise - living for an entire year eating only fermented foods. But there was so much repetition in this book that it could have easily been half the length and accomplished the same mission. His perspective (he's a brewer) lent a very interesting note, and his chapter on wild beer fermentation was truly fascinating. But a lot of the other chapters were unnecessary.

[Barbo Bou · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a really nice read. I'm fairly new to the fermentation, I only made few jars of vegetables. This book motivated me to try to make some other wilder stuff. The book was funny, interesting and we'll written. So what, if the dude didn't eat sauerkraut every day, and he was eating pizza and bread? I really enjoyed this book, and I'll definitely try some of the recipes.

[Andrew · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you have any interest at all in fermentation this is a great read. It is not a diet book, but a very interesting look at the nutrition behind fermented foods. The author does quite a bit of research in addition to obviously the hands on work.
I learned a lot and has motivated me to get my sourdough starter going again!

[Deb.mcquillangmail.com · Rating 4 out of 5]

Although I love to ferment many things, and at the moment have 4 different veggie ferments, yogurt, water kefir, and kombucha in my fridge, I think it would be very difficult to eat only fermented foods for a whole year. I applaud Derek!

[Shingai Musamba · Rating 3 out of 5]

The fact that it took me a year to finish this book is a sign that there is something to this book but it’s very difficult to get it out.

Still a very interesting read and I will try out some ferments, beer I think

[Carrie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an interesting book but very, very repetitive though. I learned a lot but over and over again

[Lydia Wren · Rating 4 out of 5]

Trendy

[Andrew Jones · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting read. I liked the concept but the writing was a bit rambling and incoherent. I shall ferment soon.

[Lauren Hurlburt · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun read. Not day by day so it doesn't get tedious. I like the random history sections.

[Nancy Dardarian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nutty guy but I liked it.

[Lisa Kelsey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great voice, entertaining and informative read.

[Josie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Found it disappointing, thought he might have explored the way different foods effected his diet and body. Felt more like a story around his explorations in grilled cheese sandwiches

[Ali C · Rating 2 out of 5]

I got bored and only got through 70% of the book.

[Annie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Found this while looking up the benefits of a fermented diet. While interesting, didn't tell me a whole lot I didn't already know about nutrition. I do have a few new recipes to try and a better understanding of factory made vs from scratch foods.

[Cindie · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a vegetarian, I like to think I am a fairly deliberate eater: in not eating meat, I need to make sure I balance the rest of my diet. I eat a ton of veggies, but beyond the occasional kimchi taco, I hadn't really thought about making fermented foods part of my regular diet. I figured I should at least see if this guy survived a year of what seemed to be nothing but grilled cheese, and was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed The Fermented Man.

Dellinger's writing is easy to read and approachable without being preachy about the challenge he brought upon himself. I found the book interesting, informative and thought-provoking, but also personal: he doesn't shy away from talking about the lows as well as the highs of his year of eating only fermented foods, and I appreciated the honesty.

The Fermented Man isn't a book written in chronological order, but I like that it sort of meanders through his year. It's not stream-of-consciousness like a high schooler's creative writing paper, it's very intentional. It made me think about how the food industry steers consumers one way or another (fat is bad! fat-free is good even though it might be chock full of sugar!) and I think that intentionality is contagious. I'll be taking a second look at my grocery cart this week, and I'm even considering picking up a jar of real sauerkraut to work into my meal plan this week.

[アマチュア読者 · Rating 3 out of 5]

帶這本書回家前，我吃了臭豆腐(詭異的開場白)
說到發酵食物，就像作者說的，大多數人一時之間會摸不著頭緒，但其實生活周遭意外地不少食物是經過發酵才產生。
像是麵包(哦！對噢，麵包要發酵）或是酒跟臘腸、醃黃瓜等醃製品（醬菜）、豆類的發酵產品在亞洲更是俯拾皆是，醬油、豆腐、味噌，奶類則是乳酪跟優格。還有像是讓歐美人聞之喪膽的皮蛋。
這樣一一列出就覺得如果要一整年都靠發酵食物過活並非難事。（但我沒打算嘗試）

作者在2013年底決定進行為期一年僅食用發酵食物的計畫，並將進行歷程間他所產生想法跟疑問記錄成冊。
內容還蠻有趣的，介紹精釀啤酒的部分真的是大開眼界的簡潔，讓人好想捲起袖子試試看！
裡面一些食物製造過程相關的科普知識也很吸引人，但就是遇上亞洲文化的部分會讓人覺得可能探究的不夠深刻，偶有主觀過強或是資料不夠全面的感覺。
但能認識這麼多不同國家的發酵美食還是很開心，看到冰島發酵鯊魚肉（Hákarl）時，馬上想到《農大菌物語》裡的瑞典鹽醃鯡魚（Surströmming），結果沒想到挪威也有類似的魚類保存法，是鹽漬鱒魚（Rakfisk），除了這些看起來對嗅覺是很大挑戰的魚類發酵食物外，期間一直提到的克非爾、卡瓦斯（中文WIKI寫克瓦斯）、康普茶（Kombucha）之類的飲品也很引人入勝。
看到熟悉的甜酒釀跟韓國泡菜、鹽麴、米糠、納豆、魚露時也覺得肚子餓，還有不停出現的天貝（中文WIKI主標題丹貝）感覺也很有趣。
世界上真的好多發酵食物，看著看著好想吃酸白菜鍋。

書中關於微生物相關的討論一直讓我覺得羅曲太太在耳邊呢喃「腸微生物叢萬歲！」
（噢、天吶，也許不是這麼讓人垂涎三尺，但《大口一吞，然後呢？》真的好好看）

看到最後比起膽固醇更擔心鈉的攝取量，但很可惜沒有探討到。

[Erin · Rating 3 out of 5]

For another memoir that tackles something for a year, reading about a man that lives for a year on fermented foods and drinks was interesting, especially when the author talked about the science behind different fermented foods. It gave me some ideas to try in the future, but it did take me quite a while to finish this book.

[Cara · Rating 5 out of 5]

What started as an odd idea turned into a lifestyle. This was interesting, funny, smart, and now I have sauerkraut in my fridge.

[Morten · Rating 5 out of 5]

Herligt eksperiment, skønt udramatisk sprog, tankevækkende og inspirerende emne (og relaterede emner der bliver berørt).

[Asiyah Mujahid]

Good book. Enjoyed reading as fermenting is something that interests me greatly.