the library

Fermented beetroot

Savory & ferment· ferment vinegar

What it is

Fermented beetroot is beetroot preserved by lacto-fermentation, in which naturally occurring bacteria convert its sugars into acids.

What it tastes like

On the nose: acid, umami, pear, apple. Among its measured molecules: hexan-2-one, 2-undecanone, 2-nonanone, 2,3-butanedione, 3-methylbutanal.

Every one of its 16 compounds carries a paper the library can cite.

• acetic acidtasteacidreads as sour, burningMeasured in 37 of 341 ingredients.cite

  0.53 ± 0.17 g/L at the endpoint of spontaneous fermentation, the joint highest of the four arms with the kefir starter at 0.54 ± 0.07 — Casciano Flavia et al. 2022, Foods (Table 1, row 'Spontaneous', column 'Acetic Acid')
• lactic acidtasteacidreads as mild, sourMeasured in 8 of 341 ingredients.cite

  4.57 ± 0.46 g/L total lactic acid at the endpoint of spontaneous fermentation, of which 2.94 ± 0.35 is the D isomer and 1.63 ± 0.24 the L; every inoculated arm ends lower (3.31 to 3.36 g/L total) — Casciano Flavia et al. 2022, Foods (Table 1 (Mean concentrations of organic acids and residual sugars at the endpoint of fermentation), row 'Spontaneous')
• 2,3-butanedionearomaketoneMeasured in 15 of 341 ingredients.cite

  'The LAB mix and spontaneous micro-flora were, instead, the only ones responsible for producing 2,3-butanedione' — identified in the spontaneous arm and absent from the two other starter arms. Presence only: the paper's ketone values are a PCA figure and no concentration is printed — Casciano Flavia et al. 2022, Foods (Section 3.5 (Multi-Variate Analysis of VOCs), ketones, text)
• L-aspartic acidtasteacidreads as sourMeasured in 9 of 341 ingredients.cite

  279.43 ± 7.11 mg/L fresh 'Wodan' falling to 73.55 ± 0.35 after spontaneous fermentation; 422.20 ± 8.30 fresh 'Alto' falling to 230.97 ± 4.64 — Choińska et al. 2022, Scientific Reports (Table 3, row 'Aspartic acid')
• L-glutaminetasteacidMeasured in 1 of 341 ingredients.cite

  5878.06 ± 177.50 mg/L fresh 'Wodan' falling to 4119.30 ± 191.23 after spontaneous fermentation; 7960.52 ± 145.91 fresh 'Alto' falling to 2381.67 ± 46.96 — the largest free amino acid in beet juice by a wide margin, in both states — Choińska et al. 2022, Scientific Reports (Table 3, row 'Glutamine')
• hexanalaromaaldehydereads as sharp, aldehyde (PubChem)Measured in 87 of 341 ingredients.cite

  'The LAB mix and spontaneous fermentations were described by butanal, 3-methyl, and hexanal', with the paper noting 'the greatest variety of aldehydes in samples fermented with the spontaneous micro-flora'. Presence only, no concentration printed — Casciano Flavia et al. 2022, Foods (Section 3.5, aldehydes, text)
• L-ornithinetasteacidMeasured in 1 of 341 ingredients.cite

  1.50 ± 0.13 mg/L in fresh 'Wodan' and 0.90 ± 0.18 after spontaneous fermentation — essentially unchanged in the wild ferment. In the STARTER arms of the same table it rises sharply: 77.33 ± 8.25 with L. brevis ZF165 and 83.66 ± 4.35 with the five-strain mix in 'Wodan', and in 'Alto' from 0.89 ± 0.07 fresh to 191.76 ± 5.09 with L. brevis and 245.63 ± 13.16 with Weissella cibaria KKP2058 — Choińska et al. 2022, Scientific Reports (Table 3, row 'Ornithine')
• L-argininetasteacidreads as bitterMeasured in 3 of 341 ingredients.cite

  142.38 ± 4.51 mg/L in fresh 'Wodan' juice falling to 1.22 ± 0.06 after spontaneous fermentation, and 842.76 ± 16.86 in fresh 'Alto' falling to 26.67 ± 2.76; in both cultivars it is NOT DETECTED in the arm inoculated with Levilactobacillus brevis ZF165 — Choińska et al. 2022, Scientific Reports (Table 3 (Content of free amino acids in the fresh and fermented red beet juices), row 'Arginine')
• 2-heptanonearomaketonereads as pear flavor (PubChem)Measured in 24 of 341 ingredients.cite

  named among the ketones describing the spontaneously fermented beetroot; the paper adds that elevated levels of it and of 2-nonanone have been reported in sauerkraut inoculated with mixed cultures. Presence only, no concentration printed — Casciano Flavia et al. 2022, Foods (Section 3.5, ketones, text)
• 1-hexanolaromaalcoholreads as fatty, fruity (PubChem)Measured in 50 of 341 ingredients.cite

  'spontaneous fermentation was represented by 1-hexanol' in the alcohol PCA, against 2-nonanol, 2-heptanol and 1-octanol for the bacterial starters and 1-butanol and 1-pentanol for the kefir consortium. Presence only, no concentration printed — Casciano Flavia et al. 2022, Foods (Section 3.5, alcohols, text)
• 2-undecanonearomaketoneMeasured in 9 of 341 ingredients.cite

  named as one of the ketones describing the beetroot fermented with the spontaneous micro-flora, where the paper reports 'a greater speciation'. Presence only, no concentration printed — Casciano Flavia et al. 2022, Foods (Section 3.5, ketones, text)
• 3-methylbutanalaromaaldehydereads as apple (PubChem)Measured in 23 of 341 ingredients.cite

  'The LAB mix and spontaneous fermentations were described by butanal, 3-methyl, and hexanal'. Presence only, no concentration printed — Casciano Flavia et al. 2022, Foods (Section 3.5, aldehydes, text)
• hexan-2-onearomaketoneMeasured in 4 of 341 ingredients.cite

  named among the ketones describing the spontaneously fermented beetroot. Presence only, no concentration printed — Casciano Flavia et al. 2022, Foods (Section 3.5, ketones, text)
• 2-nonanonearomaketoneMeasured in 11 of 341 ingredients.cite

  named among the ketones describing the spontaneously fermented beetroot. Presence only, no concentration printed — Casciano Flavia et al. 2022, Foods (Section 3.5, ketones, text)
• isoamyl alcoholaromaalcoholMeasured in 46 of 341 ingredients.cite

  'Fermentation with the water kefir consortium was primarily responsible for producing isoamyl alcohol (1-butanol and 3-methyl), followed by fermentation guided by the spontaneous micro-flora' — second-highest in the arm this node ships. Presence only, no concentration printed — Casciano Flavia et al. 2022, Foods (Section 3.5, alcohols, text)
• L-glutamic acidtasteacidreads as umami, sourMeasured in 7 of 341 ingredients.cite

  454.87 ± 14.71 mg/L fresh 'Wodan' falling to 330.02 ± 20.66 after spontaneous fermentation; 444.74 ± 11.52 fresh 'Alto' falling to 340.55 ± 18.79 — Choińska et al. 2022, Scientific Reports (Table 3, row 'Glutamic acid')