Wildcrafted Fermentation

Exploring, Transforming, and Preserving the Wild Flavors of Your Local Terroir

Publisher: Chelsea Green Publishing

“I am in awe of this book”―Sandor Katz, author of The Art of Fermentation

Wild krauts and kimchis, fermented forest brews, seawater brines, plant-based cheeses, and more with over 100 easy-to-follow recipes! 

Featured in The Independent’s (UK) “7 Best Fermentation Books of 2020”

One of the most influential tastemakers of our time invites you on an extraordinary culinary journey into the lacto-fermentation universe of common wild edibles. Used for thousands of years by different cultures all around the world, lacto-fermentation is the easiest, safest, and most delicious way to preserve food. And nature provides all the necessary ingredients: plants, salt, and the beneficial lactic acid bacteria found everywhere.

In Wildcrafted Fermentation, Pascal Baudar describes in detail and through step-by-step color photos how to create rich flavorful ferments:

  • At home
  • From the wild plants in your local landscape
  • From the cultivated plants in your garden

From sauerkrauts and kimchis to savory pastes, hot sauces, and dehydrated spice blends, Baudar includes more than 100 easy-to-follow, plant-based recipes to inspire even the most jaded palate. The step-by-step photos illustrate foraging, preparation, and fermentation techniques for both wild and cultivated plants that will change your relationship to the edible landscape and give you the confidence to succeed like a pro.

So much more than a cookbook, Wildcrafted Fermentation offers a deeply rewarding way to reconnect with nature through the greens, stems, roots, berries, fruits, and seeds of your local terroir. Adventurous and creative, this cookbook will help you rewild your probiotic palate and “create a cuisine unique to you and your environment.”

Reviews and Praise

  • Booklist

    “Baudar’s genial voice guides readers through his preferred methods and conveys his passion for this process, followed by explorations into local, wild ingredients and the ways they can be used. Not every ingredient used is wild, and the 100-plus recipes include room for ingredient variation according to what is available in the reader”s region.”


More Reviews and Praise


  • “Pascal Baudar is a culinary visionary who is also excellent at clearly explaining his ideas and methods to make them accessible. I am in awe of this book as well as his two earlier ones. Get ready to be inspired.”—Sandor Ellix Katz, author of Wild Fermentation and The Art of Fermentation

  • Wildcrafted Fermentation is an amazing, passion-based work! Looking outside at the snow-covered ground, I’m more eager than ever for the return of musk mustards, lamb’s quarters, and other wild plants to add to ferments. And I especially appreciate the use of the Latin names for plants and the cheerful and repeated reassurances that nothing can go wrong—just what a nervous fermenter wants to hear. This is a stunning book.”—Deborah Madison, author of Vegetable Literacy and The New Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone

  • “Pascal Baudar is back. His distinctive approach to wildcrafting is enhanced this time by connecting wild plants to the transformative power of lactic acid fermentation. In doing so, Pascal elevates commonly found roots, shoots, seeds, weeds, and leaves to foods with astounding flavors. He encourages the reader to explore the ‘flavorshed’ of their own region while understanding how to responsibly be part of their local ecology. The book is exciting, creative, and beautiful. Perhaps more importantly, it offers inspiring, adaptable recipes that employ solid and safe techniques. It is a must-have for both foragers and fermentation enthusiasts.”—Kirsten Shockey, coauthor of Fermented Vegetables, Fiery Ferments, and Miso, Tempeh, Natto and Other Tasty Ferments

  • “With a rare combination of humility and wisdom, Baudar shares his deep immersion into the seam between wild foods and fermentation so that we all may embark on or enhance our own exploration of these lost arts. Risks of error deter many people from attempting either wild food harvesting or home ferments, but Baudar puts all of our instinctive concerns in perspective, cautioning us to follow some basic rules and encouraging us not be afraid to experiment.

    “My favorite recipe titles include Fermented Forest Floor Paste and Roasted Oak Bark Hot Sauce. Those who doubt the utility of his innovative creations need look only at the earth around them. The possibilities, as he suggests, are limited only by the eye (and palate) of the beholder.”—Evan Mallett, chef/owner, Black Trumpet bistro; author of Black Trumpet



About The Author


About Pascal Baudar

Pascal Baudar is the author of three previous books: Wildcrafted Fermentation (2020), The Wildcrafting Brewer (2018), and The New Wildcrafted Cuisine (2016). A self-described “culinary alchemist,” he leads classes in traditional food preservation techniques. Through his business, Urban Outdoor Skills, he has introduced thousands of home cooks, celebrity chefs, and foodies to the flavors offered by their wild landscapes. In 2014, Baudar was named one of the most influential local tastemakers by Los Angeles Magazine.

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Books By Pascal Baudar

Pages:304 pages
Book Art:Full-color photographs throughout
Size: 7 x 10 inch
Publisher:Chelsea Green Publishing
US Pub. Date: March 12, 2020
UK Pub. Date: April 16, 2020
Paperback: 9781603588515

Available In/Retail Price

Paperback, 304 pages, $29.95USD, £25.00GBP