One of my favorite combinations is radicchio lettuce and bok choy stems. Radicchio belongs to the chicory family, while bok choy belongs to the mustard family (along with Chinese and Napa cabbage, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, and kale). I usually mix two heads of radicchio with two bunches of bok choy, which makes about 1.5 kg of vegetables. You will need to adjust the amounts based on your container size, but try to keep the ratio about 1:1. The radicchio is tart and bitter when raw, but it creates complex, wine-like flavors after fermentation. Another fascinating feature is watching the deep purple color spread through the brine.

Bok Choy (not baby) two bunches. Trim the green leaves and use in a salad.

Radicchio lettuce two bunches. Chop into whatever size you wish, including the stem.

Sliced raw ginger – optional but delicious

Green onions – chopped including roots. Optional.

Iodine free salt such as Diamond or Celtic. I’ve had fails with Baja Gold.

Water – chlorine free. You can use spring water, distilled water, purified etc but not tap water. City water has chlorine among other things that will ruin your ferment.

Weigh all the vegetables in grams. Multiply by 0.02 to get 2%. For example 1000g would use at least 20 grams salt but not more than 50 grams (2-5%). Reserve a couple outer radicchio leaves for later. Chop the remainder anyway you wish and place into a large bowl. Sprinkle the salt and massage it in. Add ginger and any other flavor you wish. Pack into your container, pressing down. Cover with the whole radicchio leaves. Add a glass weight or other nonmetal weight to the top. You might need extra brine so mix up a 2% solution and pour in until you have about an inch above the weight. Top off with a gas release or top loosely and put on the shelf or counter out of the sun.

Ferment for three to four weeks, then transfer to the refrigerator. The next day, empty the contents into a large bowl, mix it up, and store it in any airtight container you like. In theory, it could stay fresh in the refrigerator for three to four months, but it won’t last that long.