Probiotic Gut Shot

Introducing the Gut Shot! Tangy, flavorful and incredibly delicious, it is one of the easiest ways to increase diversity in our gut microbiome and support healthy digestion! Even a tablespoon a day is enough to flood your microbiome with gut-supporting probiotics, and it really doesn’t get easier than this! If you’ve made our sauerkraut or kimchi recipe, you’ll love this!

What I love about this easy recipe is how you can use veggies you already have on hand that need to be used up. A gut shot is different from kombucha or water kefir in that it is savory, not sweet, with no added sugar. And with no dairy, it is vegan and of course, gluten-free. With just 15 minutes of hands-on time, you’ll have a healthy, potent, gut-healthy brew with very little cost or effort in 3-5 days. Mother Nature is incredible!

Why You’ll Love This

1. Incredibly nutritious! Full of raw fermented plant foods that provide healthy probiotics to support gut health and boost immunity!
2. Use up extra veggies. A convenient way to use up leftover vegetables!
3. Quick and easy. Only 15 minutes of hands-on time.

What Does a Gut Shot Taste Like?

Unlike kombucha or kefir, the gut shot is savory and made from vegetables. It is not sweet and has no added sugar. The flavor is tangy, pleasantly salty, almost like pickle brine, only even better! The longer you ferment it, the tangier it will taste. For optimal taste, ferment for 5 days.

Gut Shot Ingredients

• Organic vegetables: Choose 2-3 veggies, such as celery, carrots, fennel, bell pepper, red beets, or cabbage. Wash the veggies, but do not peel them.
• Whole spices: Fennel seeds, cumin seeds, coriander seeds, mustard seeds, dill seeds, anise seeds, allspice, black peppercorns, star anise
• Onion: Use sliced onion or sub with leeks or shallot.
• Garlic cloves: Peel and slice them in half.
• Cabbage leaves: just a couple to hold things down in the jar.
• Optional additions: Sliced turmeric root and (or) sliced ginger root (⅛-¼ cup total).
• Fine sea salt: Or use Himalayan pink salt.
• Filtered water: Tap water can contain chlorine, which can prohibit fermentation.
• Equipment: 8-cup mason jar, lid, and fermentation weight (or something clean that can be used as a weight that fits inside the jar, like a small shot glass)

How to make Fermented Gut Shot

Place whole spices in the bottom of a clean, 8-cup jar. Add onion, garlic, and optional turmeric root and ginger root. Add the organic veggies, slicing thinly, filling up roughly half the jar.

Cover with a few cabbage leaves (which will keep everything under the brine) and press down.

Weigh down the cabbage leaves using a fermentation weight or something small and clean that fits into the jar like a shot glass.

Make the salt water brine using a 3% solution.

Combine 4 cups of filtered water with 1 ½ tablespoons of fine sea salt and mix until the salt is fully dissolved. Then, pour this mixture over the cabbage leaves that have been weighted down.

Fill the jar, leaving 1 1/2 inches of space at the top. If more brine is needed, mix 1 cup of water with 1 heaping teaspoon of salt.

Remove any floating seeds or scraps with a slotted spoon to prevent mold from forming. Ensure that everything is submerged under the brine.

Cover the jar without tightening the lid and place it on a plate to catch any overflow. Allow the bubbles from fermentation to escape.

For fermentation, place the jar in a cool place ideally between 65F-70F. Check daily for any floating seeds or debris.

After 3-4 days, taste the gut shot. For a tangier flavor, ferment longer. The tangy flavor indicates the fermentation process is taking place.

Fermentation is a two-step process involving the inhibition of bad bacteria by salt, followed by the growth of good bacteria that produce acidity as they feed on sugars from the vegetables.

After 5 days, the gut shot should be ready with bubbles and a slightly cloudy appearance. The jar should smell like pickle juice. Once satisfied with the flavor, refrigerate the brine.

Consume a 2-ounce gut shot daily for optimal microbiome health. Start with a small amount if new to probiotics and gradually increase. The gut shot can be consumed before or after meals and can be diluted with water if the flavor is too strong. Store in the refrigerator to keep the cultures alive and active.