This zesty biography of food fermentation evangelist Sandor Katz is tasty from start to finish. Authors Jacqueline Briggs Martin and June Jo Lee begin with a peek into Katz’ fermentation school in the woods of Tennessee, in a house with a “crickety-crockety porch,” where “a kitchen full of curious people” are “tasting fizzy, funky, sometimes furry flavors.” They then flash us back to Katz’ childhood in New York City, where he delighted in kosher dill pickles and sauerkraut on hot dogs.
He thought he’d never leave the city—but then was diagnosed as HIV positive. As part of an attempt to take better care of his body and “get to know plants better,” he moved to Tennessee “to join a community of queer folks” on an off-the-grid farm, where “They ate together, argued, and danced in drag when the work was done.” (The community was part of the Radical Faerie movement, although the book doesn’t name it as such.) Katz de-stressed, gardened, and felt better, especially among the plants.
One day, however, an excess of cabbages led him to try making them into sauerkraut like he’d had as a kid—and then to riff on the idea by adding Korean kimchi spices, creating “kraut-chi.” He served it to all his friends (including one with a beard, large earrings, frilly gloves, and a pink headscarf), and began experimenting with other fermented foods from around the world. He’d found his calling, and soon traveled the world, learning, teaching, and sharing both his creations and his view that fermentation reflects “how we are in the world: always changing, not just taking, but adding back, kraut-chi-ing our way, making new out of old.”
Martin and Lee’s text is a delight, echoing the snap, crunch, and fizz of fermenting foods. Julie Wilson’s illustrations are colorful and casual, reflecting the vibe of the farm community and Katz himself. Katz’s queerness is not a focus of the story, but is nevertheless clear, as is the queerness of his community—a lovely example of how not to make every queer person’s biography “about” them being queer, but nevertheless to make their queerness visible.
At the end, readers are invited to “Picture you on Sandor’s kraut-chi crew!” and given a set of simple instructions for making kraut-chi, with plenty of opportunity to add their own creative twists by chopping however they like and adding their favorites spices. Back matter includes notes from Katz and the authors, more about microbes and about Katz’ life, a list of Katz’ books, and further resources.
A highly recommended book and a great spark for kids’ own adventures in the kitchen.
