If you are looking for fermenting books we have you covered with five thorough books on fermentation. Our fermentation books cover a number of subjects and have detailed step-by-step instructions. These books are filled with recipes and also have troubleshooting sections that are based on our own experiences and the questions we have gotten over the years, in classes or through email.

Fermented Vegetables (Strikes Again) 10th Anniversary Edition

Best-selling Fermented Vegetables is being reissued as a second edition and 10th Anniversary, on April 16, 2024. The first edition has been translated into 6 languages, a copy is on display in the Kimchi Museum in Seoul, Korea, it has sold over 250K copies. 

Head to your local bookstore to order or online order here.

Christopher and Kirsten Shockey have captured in this book all of the passion and joie de vivre that attracted me to cider so many years ago. In a friendly, straightforward manner they describe the whole process of making cider on a variety of scales, and present an impressive palette of options for neophytes, hobbyists, and even more experienced cidermakers. Their long experience with fermentation, in all its forms, provides a sound basis for success, your first time out, and every time. And the information they give on making yeast cultures from foraged fruits and flowers puts an exciting and innovative local spin on this unique beverage—one  that’s had a proud, yet humble pedigree and that promises to have an even brighter future.

—Ben Watson, author of Cider, Hard and Sweet

Miso, Tempeh, Natto & Other Tasty Ferments

We are pretty excited about our latest work and have been so excited by the response from everyone who has it.

It is available anywhere you buy books—at your local independent bookstore, Powell’s, Bookshop.org, Barnes & Noble, Books-a-Million.

"What an exciting new resource for fermentation enthusiasts! Kirsten and Christopher Shockey explain in clear step-by-step detail classic methods from different parts of Asia for fermenting legumes and grains, as well an innovative new applications. The ferments in this book include some of the most complex, technically demanding, and potentially intimidating, but Kirsten and Christopher demystify them and make them readily accessible for home and restaurant kitchens. This book opens the door to amazing culinary adventures and incomparable umami flavors."

—Sandor Ellix Katz, Author of Wild Fermentation and The Art of Fermentation

“Kirsten and Christopher have written a beautifully researched and approachable book for lovers of Asian ferments. This book demystifies the processes and methods for producing foods such as tempeh, miso, and koji, and will enable anyone to make these foods successfully at home or in a professional kitchen. I’ve been waiting for a book of this magnitude and approachability for a long time. I now have something to keep in my kitchen to guide me down the rabbit hole that is Asian fermented foods.”

— Jeremy Umansky, larder master, wild food forager, and cofounder of Larder, a curated delicatessen , Cleveland and co-author Koji Alchemy

Praise for Fiery Ferments

“Buyers of this book should have two qualities: a love of cooking challenges, and patience. The first because Fiery Ferments moves hot and spicy cooking into a new dimension, and second because fermenting takes a lot of time. I love this colorful and adventurous cookbook and recommend it highly.”

-Dave DeWitt, “The Pope of Peppers”

“Thanks to my Texas taco residency, my midwestern flavor receptors have been schooled by sauces and spices of all sorts, most of which make you sweat. In spite of 15 years of expanding my palate in the south, I learned so much about hot stuff—the compendium of chiles and other spicy ferments and methods—from Kirsten & Christopher’s book. I can’t wait to share this fabulous resource with students and friends who love turning up the heat with ferments you can easily make at home.”

-Kate Payne of Hip Girl’s Guide to Homemaking

“This guide to creating your own lively ferments brings the tradition of fermentation to a wondrous new level. Each recipe is accessible for even a beginner, entertaining for the maker, and — most especially — delicious for everyone!”

-Amanda Blake Soule, editor of Taproot magazine

Excerpt from the foreword by Davld Zilber, Director of Fermentation, noma, Denmark, Co-Author of The Noma Guide to Fermentation

“…The Shockeys have put together a thorough and masterful work that builds on that same theme — that education and knowledge are essential. Though our daily lives are very different, in many ways, we work in parallel track. But if there’s one thing I know about fermenters and their world, it’s that they only ever want it to grow. They seek to share their microbial cultures, the bits and bobs, the know-how; and in doing so, they hope to enlarge the community of it all. While cooking might bring people together, fermentation weaves those people into a common tapestry. All life comes from life, all cells from cells, and all culture from culture. As the authors will explain, fermentation has persisted for so long because it has helped civilizations the world over to sustain themselves and thrive.

There’s beauty in the idea that you have to share ferments to make them. Because you have to share knowledge, too, to create it. And within these pages, you’ll find a wealth of it.”

Fiery Ferments!

While the title says Fiery this book is really about fermented condiments, fantastic flavor to add to any meal. We think this book is pretty great but don't take it from us, here is an excerpt from the foreword by Darra Goldstein,

"Food is life, but as Kirsten and Christopher Shockey demonstrate in this marvelous book, it is also alive. That is, food ferments. It bubbles and churns, froths and foams, releasing compounds that benefit our health. But Fiery Ferments isn’t primarily about nutrition (though that’s a nice bonus). The Shockeys celebrate flavor, specifically flavor that zings, and they are excellent guides into the lively world of fermentation—the wonders of microbial action, the magical transformations it achieves. And what magic! Fiery Ferments travels the globe as the recipes progress from familiar hot sauces and salsas to condiments other cultures enjoy: Haitian pikliz, Indian achar, Indonesian rempah, Yemeni zhug. And they’re all presented in a spirit of experimentation and fun. Why stick to traditional kimchi made with cabbage when you can use nettles, green beans, summer squash, or rhubarb instead?"

Purchase at your local bookstore or order from your favorite on-line retailer. Powell's Books, Bookshop.org, Barnes & Noble.

“Kirsten and Christopher's diverse collection of approachable and tasty recipes is dedicated to fermented spice and is thus a must-have for home chefs who adore the wonders of fermentation and believe any dish is elevated by a slight or generous dose of heat.”

-Tara Whitsitt, founder (and author) of Fermentation on Wheels

“Fiery Ferments is a worthy, warm, and delicious marriage of fermented and spicy. Like a good hot sauce, its components are in perfect balance: some history and context to intrigue the reader and provide trailheads for follow-up;  some how-to and practical to encourage folks who may not have fermented a lot before; some tips that were clearly earned by way of thorough research; and some inspired and inspiring recipes that address the question "so what do we do with these things" before it can be asked..”

-Alex Lewin, Author of Real Food Fermentation and Kombucha, Kefir, and Beyond.

Fermented Vegetables

 Available to buy :: Powell's Books, Bookshop.org, Barnes & Noble

"For anyone interested in delving deeper into the fermentation of vegetables, this book is a valuable resource, one of the most impressive new additions to the growing literature of fermentation. Fermented Vegetables offers a thorough review of basic concepts, tools, ingredients, and processes, and a great recipe section, organized by vegetable, perfect for gardeners or anyone looking for creative ideas for using and preserving seasonal abundance."

—Sandor Ellix Katz, Fermentation Revivalist and Author of the Art of Fermentation and Wild Fermentation

"Fermented Vegetables is nothing if not thorough, which is exactly what I was hoping to find in this handsome, detailed, in-depth book. Such good information and so much of it!"

—Deborah Madison, Author of Vegetable Literacy, Cooking and Gardening with Twelve Families from the Edible Plant Kingdom

"Kirsten Shockey and Christopher Shockey take the art of lacto-fermentation to a whole new level in Fermented Vegetables.  The authors provide precise instruction for beginners and then inspire the reader with wonderfully creative ways to use sauerkraut and all its cousins in everything from quiche to enchiladas.  This beautifully illustrated book belongs on the shelves of both amateur and professional chefs."

—Sally Fallon Morell, President The Weston A. Price Foundation, author of Nourishing Traditions

"How to do it and what to do with it! This book covers all the aspects of fermentation. Eggplant, kimchees, fermented Basil, sweet to savory. All you need to know lies in this book. Le pigeon now has a new "how to" to grace our book shelves."

—Gabriel Rucker, Le Pigeon restaurant, Portland, Oregon