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You are here: Home » Food Preparation » Lacto-Fermented Carrot Sticks (gut-healing probiotic snack for kids!)

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Lacto-Fermented Carrot Sticks (gut-healing probiotic snack for kids!)

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a bowl of carrot sticks next to a crock where fermentation will occur with the addition of sea salt and water; with text overlay: "Lacto-Fermented Carrot Sticks (gut-healing probiotic snack for kids!)"

A super healthy snack that kids can help prepare and love to eat?

Yes please! Fermented carrot sticks are a big hit in our family.

My kids love to help in the kitchen so making fermented carrots is an easy recipe they can help prepare. Plus it is a great homeschool learning lesson about the science of fermentation!

Every fall, our friend gifts us a gigantic bag of seconds carrots from their organic farm. This generous gift feeds our family through late spring.

Carrots are the only vegetable that both of my kids will consistently eat without complaint. They devoured the homemade Curried Carrot Soup I made this week and my two-year-old even asked for seconds!

I’m always searching for ways to get my kids to eat natural probiotics. I do this by encouraging them to eat fermented foods.

Since my kids love carrots so much and we have a plethora of carrots, it was a no-brainer to make lacto-fermented carrot sticks! They’re so easy you need only three ingredients: water and sea salt to make a brine, and carrots!

Fermentation Tools

When making homemade fermented foods, I use a handmade ceramic crock as my fermentation vessel. This crock is the perfect size for making lacto-fermented carrot sticks and my Great Grandma’s Fermented Crock Pickles. If you don’t have a crock but would like to buy one, Wardee recommends the Ohio Stoneware crock, plus fermenting weights and lid.

If you don’t have a crock, you can use another type of fermentation vessel such as a glass jar with a loose lid or airlock lid. Wardee recommends either this airlock or this waterless airlock for fermentation in Mason jars. Fermenting weights that fit in glass jars are also helpful in keeping the carrots under the brine.

decorative blue and white ceramic bowl of carrot sticks
3.88 from 8 votes
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Lacto-Fermented Carrot Sticks (gut-healing probiotic snack for kids!)

Looking for a probiotic snack for kids? Learn how to make lacto-fermented carrot sticks -- a health food so simple you need only three ingredients (water and sea salt to make a brine, and carrots)! I make mine in a homemade crock, but you can use Mason jars. Feel free to tweak the basic recipe, too! My favorite is to make it spicy with pepper or ginger. Mmm! These fermented carrots are the perfect fermenting DIY for beginners and full of benefits for the gut!

Course Appetizer, Ferment, Snack, Vegetable
Prep Time 20 minutes
Fermenting Time 4 days
Author Annie Bernauer

Ingredients

  • 2 pounds carrots
  • 1 quart pure water
  • 2 tablespoons sea salt

Instructions

  1. Peel the carrots and cut them into sticks. Set aside.
  2. Stir the salt into the water until the salt is dissolved.
  3. Pack the carrot sticks into a crock or jar.
  4. Pour the salt water over the carrots, leaving about an inch of head space. Weigh down the carrots with fermenting weights, if needed, to keep the carrots under the brine.
  5. Cover with the lid (either the crock lid or an airlock, such as this or this) and leave at room temperature for 4 to 7 days. Taste after 4 days and allow to ferment longer if desired. The longer they sit out fermenting at room temperature, the softer and more sour they will become.

  6. Refrigerate once the carrot sticks reach the desired level of fermentation. They will keep for several months in the refrigerator, although at our house they never last that long!

Recipe Notes

Recipe Variations

My kids prefer the plain and simple fermented carrot sticks. The adults in our family love any combination of these add-ins:

  • 1/4 teaspoon whole peppercorns for spice
  • 2 to 3 garlic cloves
  • 1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
  • 1 small onion, sliced thinly

Lacto-fermented carrot sticks are a delicious, healthy snack kids will love. Here are some other fermented food recipes your kids may love:

  • 43 Fermented & Probiotic Filled Condiments
  • 56 Fermented & Probiotic Drinks Beyond Kombucha and Kefir
  • 50 Fermented Salsas, Dips and Spreads
  • 10 Easy Ways to Pack More Fermented Foods in Your Child’s Lunch
  • Simple, No-Pound Sauerkraut
  • High Vitamin C Sauerkraut
  • Homemade Kimchi: An Easy Korean Sauerkraut Recipe
  • Lacto-Fermented Turnips & Beets
  • Old-Fashioned, Crunchy, Fermented Garlic-Dill Pickles
  • 5-Spice Apple Chutney {lacto-fermented!}
  • Spontaneously Fermented Sparkling Apple Cider {fall’s easiest ferment!}
  • Homemade Raw Apple Cider Vinegar Recipe

We only recommend products and services we wholeheartedly endorse. This post may contain special links through which we earn a small commission if you make a purchase (though your price is the same).

Posted in: Allergy Friendly Appetizers Appetizers (Gluten-Free) Beans, Grains, & Vegetables Beans, Grains, & Vegetables (Gluten-Free) Fermenting & Culturing Food Preparation Fruits & Vegetables GAPS Recipes Keto Recipes Recipes Snacks Snacks (Gluten-Free)

About Annie Bernauer

Annie lives on a homestead in Montana with her husband and two young children. She was taught how to cook from scratch and preserve food by three generations of women in her family. Annie is a Certified Master Naturalist and enjoys foraging for wild edibles and creating wild harvested goodies in the kitchen. She writes about her family's modern day homesteading at Montana Homesteader and shares about homeschooling her children at Creative Homeschool Adventures. Annie can often be found exploring nature, reading a good book or creating homestead goods to sell in her family’s online shop Sweathouse Creek Creations.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Elizabeth Budabin says

    March 15, 2019 at 11:23 pm

    can i use baby carrots instead of carrot sticks for this recipe?

    Reply
  2. Toni says

    March 17, 2019 at 8:53 pm

    Would Himalayan Pink Salt work instead of Sea Salt?

    Reply
    • Elaine says

      March 20, 2019 at 12:50 pm

      Himalayan salt seems to be saltier than Sea Salt so you might want to use less. I used an equal amount of Himalayan and my kraut is a bit too salty. I saw in a bread baking video where the guy said use 4 grams Himalayan but if you were using sea salt you could use 4, 5 or 6 grams so now I know why my kraut is too salty.

      Reply
  3. Hélène says

    March 24, 2019 at 11:38 am

    If there’s no cultures in the jar, how do these ferment?

    Reply
  4. April says

    April 29, 2019 at 8:32 pm

    Can these be placed in mason jars and canned? I really don’t have much fridge space.

    Reply
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photo collage of carrot sticks and a crock where fermentation will occur with the addition of sea salt and water; with text overlay: "Lacto-Fermented Carrot Sticks (gut-healing probiotic snack for kids!)"

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