Rebellious Spirit. A Brief Philosophy of Fermentation

Fermentation is one of the oldest methods of preserving food. Today, in the era of mass-produced goods and the popularity of fast food, when "capitalism has severed life from the land," more and more people have become interested in "natural," "homemade" food and its preservation. Thien Nguyen Do, a lawyer who worked on environmental protection issues, lives in southern France and cultivates a vineyard with her husband. Once captivated by fermentation, she discovered that this process holds incredible creative potential, and the study of the "invisible world" of microorganisms expands the horizons of thinking, prompting a reevaluation of attitudes towards life and death, the general and the particular, cooperation and empathy. Thien Nguyen Do has managed to turn her professional experience and personal experiments with fermentation into an engaging book that sheds light on the ecological, social, and political potential of millennia-old cooking traditions. This work is full of wonder at new discoveries, a reverent attitude towards nature, and an interest in history.