Cultured Guru Logo
Cultured Guru Logo
  • Start Here
  • RecipesWe love to create delicious recipes with gut health in mind. By using our recipes, you can easily create any dish knowing that it’s good for gut health! Our recipe blog also includes Vegan Recipes, Vegetarian Recipes, Gluten Free Recipes, and Paleo Recipes.
  • About
  • Learn
  • Shop
  • Contact
  • Start Here
  • RecipesWe love to create delicious recipes with gut health in mind. By using our recipes, you can easily create any dish knowing that it’s good for gut health! Our recipe blog also includes Vegan Recipes, Vegetarian Recipes, Gluten Free Recipes, and Paleo Recipes.
  • About
  • Learn
  • Shop
  • Contact
Peppers & Sauces

Fermented Leeks: How to Ferment Leek Tops

Are you wondering what to do with leek tops or leek greens? You should make fermented leeks! Fermented leek tops are delicious additions to many recipes.

Prep: 10 minutes
Jump to Recipe Rate Recipe

RECIPE INDEX

|

Ferment | Peppers & Sauces

Fermented Leeks: How to Ferment Leek Tops

Are you wondering what to do with leek tops or leek greens? You should make fermented leeks! Fermented leek tops are delicious additions to many recipes.

What to do With Leek Tops

When we cook leeks, we often have many green tops left. Leek tops are perfectly edible and acceptable for cooking, but I usually only use the bottom portion in recipes. If you’ve made it to this blog post, you’re probably in the same predicament, wondering what to do with leek tops, and I recommend making fermented leeks with the tops!

Fresh whole leeks on a white marble surface.

Fermented Leeks

I prefer to ferment the tops over the more fleshy bottom when making fermented leeks. The leek greens don’t contain as many sugars as the bottom portion, so they are more suited for Lacto-fermentation.

fermented leeks in a clear glass jar. The leek greens were just added to the jar, so fermentation has not started yet. The brine is clear and the leek tops are vibrant green.

You are probably wondering what you would use fermented leek tops for. There are so many options! You can mince them and add them to any cooking recipe that calls for onions. You can blend them in a food processor with pesto or chimichurri, and I like to mix them in a food processor with sour cream and horseradish to make creamy steak sauce. Get creative and enjoy the flavor!

Ingredients and Equipment to Make Fermented Leeks

Here are all the supplies and equipment you will need to make this recipe:

  • 32 ounce Wide Mouth Mason Jar
  • Fermentation Weight
  • Standard Metal Mason Jar Lid (this can rust in the presence of salt)
  • OR Rust Free Plastic Lid
  • or you can use a Weck Jar (without the gasket; only use the clips to secure the lid)
  • Scale
  • Mixing Bowl 

The ingredients are so simple:

  • Leek tops
  • Sea Salt
  • Water
vibrant colored leek greens in a jar with salter water brine, soon to start fermenting.

Fermenting Leek Greens

I recommend sticking to leek greens only. With this recipe, however, you can use the whole leek.

If you use the fleshy bottom portion of the leek, you may find that the smell is more pungent and bubbles a lot more. You may even find that it tastes effervescent with hints of alcohol.

fermented leeks in a clear glass jar. The ingredients were just added to the jar, so fermentation has not started yet. The brine is clear and the leek tops are vibrant green.

Wild Fermented Leek Tops

This recipe is simple! The hardest part is waiting 3-4 weeks for the fermentation process to finish. Why at least three weeks? Well, here’s what happens when leek tops are fermented for 3-4 weeks at about 76° F:

24 – 72 hours: All contents in the jar should be submerged beneath the brine. At this time, Gram-negative bacteria, yeasts, fungi, and possible pathogens are still present. This is normal and the natural way wild fermentation begins, with all sorts of microbes from the soil.
  
 72 hours – 7 days: After 72 hours, you should start to see lots of bubbles produced, and the green leek tops will begin to change color. This is where you will burp the jar (if using a mason jar). This is when the ferment enters stage two of vegetable fermentation. Leuconostoc bacteria begin to thrive and produce a lot of carbon dioxide. Gram negative organisms from stage one have all died off. 

7 – 16 days: The bubbles in the brine will decrease as the ferment leaves stage two and enters stage three. The mixture will become cloudy and start to develop a pleasantly sour smell. Lactobacillus species are most abundant during this period.

16 – 28 days: Lactobacillus dominates the microbial population. They produce copious amounts of lactic acid, making the ferment smell even more pleasantly sour. This is the time in which the leek tops become preserved. This is when you want to smell and taste test.

More Fermentation Recipes to Try

  • The Best Lacto-Fermented Green Beans with Ginger and Scallions
  • Turmeric Napa Cabbage Sauerkraut
  • Easy and Nutritious Fermented Giardiniera
Print
Peppers & Sauces

5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

5 from 1 review

Fermented Leeks: How to Ferment Leek Tops

Are you wondering what to do with leek tops or leek greens? You should make fermented leeks! Fermented leek tops are delicious additions to stews and braises or used in sauces, dips, and marinades.

  • Prep: 10 minutes
  • Total Time: 504 hours 10 minutes

Ingredients

  • 200 grams leek greens
  • 500 grams water
  • 21 grams sea salt

Instructions

  1. Cut the tops off of the fresh leeks and rinse them well in cool water.
  2. Dissolve the 21 grams of sea salt in 500 grams of water.
  3. Cut the leek tops to fit in the jar. You can cut them in small pieces, or cut them to the height of the jar allowing room for a fermentation weight.
  4. Add the leek green to the jar, and fill the jar with the water and salt mixture.
  5. Place your fermentation weight in the jar and make sure the weight and all the leek tops are submerged in the salt brine.
  6. Place the lid on the jar and secure it closed.
  7. Allow for fermentation at room temperature for 3 to 4 weeks.
  8. During the first few days, expect a lot of carbon dioxide production. You will need to gently open the jar lid to let some of the gas out daily. At the one week mark, you should notice the bubbles decreasing and eventually stopping completely.
  9. After 3-4 weeks of fermenting at room temperature, store the fermented leeks in the fridge. You can check the pH with a pH strip to make sure it is below 4.

Notes

You can add spices to the fermented leek tops if you want to. Try adding black pepper, garlic and/or turmeric.

Did you make this recipe?

Please leave a 5-star review below if you loved it! Tag @cultured.guru on Instagram

 

Nutrition information is auto-calculated and estimated as close as possible. We are not responsible for any errors. We have tested the recipe for accuracy, but your results may vary.

author avatar
Kaitlynn Fenley Author, Educator, Food Microbiologist
Kaitlynn is a food microbiologist and fermentation expert teaching people how to ferment foods and drinks at home.
See Full Bio
fermentation food microbiology sourdough sauerkraut fermenting at home fermented foods fermented drinks
social network icon social network icon social network icon social network icon

welcome!

hey i’m kaitlynn, i’m a microbiologist and together with my husband jon we are cultured guru.

more about us

let’s connect!

newest recipe

Sourdough Cottage Cheese Banana Bread (High Protein)
Sourdough Discard

Sourdough Cottage Cheese Banana Bread (High Protein)

never miss a thing

learn more about microbes from a microbiologist
Loading

on pinterest

Instant Pot Vegan Chicken Noodle Soup
Sourdough Smores Cookies
High Protein Cottage Cheese Mac and Cheese
Sourdough & Miso Chicolate Chip Cookies
Sourdough Dinner Rolls
Homemade Cottage Cheese

top rated recipes

How to Make Moroccan Preserved Lemons with Sea Salt
Fruits & Roots

How to Make Moroccan Preserved Lemons with Sea Salt

Slow Cooked Pork Roast with Sauerkraut Potatoes and Carrots
Protein

Slow Cooked Pork Roast with Sauerkraut Potatoes and Carrots

Sparkling Golden Beet Kvass Made the Traditional Way
Fizzy Drinks

Sparkling Golden Beet Kvass Made the Traditional Way

learn more

Understand microbes and master fermentation with our online courses!

learn

rate and review
We would love to hear what you think!
Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe rating 5 Stars 4 Stars 3 Stars 2 Stars 1 Star

  1. Lauren
    01|06|2024

    More of an in-progress question…. I’m at the end of week 2 and it is quite cloudy and no longer bubbly/gas, with a bit of what I’ll call flotsam on the top. Like bubbles and a vague particulate matter on the top. It smells as I would expect, onion-y and sour, not unpleasant. Am I on track? The 3-4 week wait always makes me nervous. I’ve only ever done it with a jalapeño salsa, which turned out great. I’m very much looking forward to making a steak sauce with the leeks so I’m hoping I didn’t botch this.

    Reply
    1. Kaitlynn Fenley
      01|08|2024

      It sounds like it’s going fine! It’s supposed to be cloudy and the bubbles should stop right around that time. Since the bubbles already stopped you can go ahead and put it in the fridge if you’re concerned! It can finish fermenting slowly in the fridge.

      Reply

you may also like

Beginner Friendly Fermented Peppers (How to Ferment Any Type of Pepper)
Peppers & Sauces View Recipe

Fermented Peppers (How to Ferment Any Type of Pepper)

Beginner Friendly Fermented Radish and Leek Sauerkraut, One Gallon Recipe
Sauerkraut & Kimchi View Recipe

Fermented Radish and Leek Sauerkraut, One Gallon Recipe

High Protein Venison Osso Buco with Miso Braised Leeks and Mushrooms
Wild Game View Recipe

Venison Osso Buco with Miso Braised Leeks and Mushrooms

join us on insta

@cultured.guru

sourdough discard 🤝 cottage cheese combined tw sourdough discard 🤝 cottage cheese

combined two of the best fermented foods to make the best pancakes. And yes, you can ferment the batter overnight in the fridge for easier digestion. 

My recipe makes 15 pancakes and each serving of 3 pancakes had 17 grams of protein! 

Get the recipe from my recipe index, linked in my profile✨

#sourdough #cottagecheese #pancakes #fermentation
It can suppress overgrowth of Candida albicans, wh It can suppress overgrowth of Candida albicans, while boosting good bacteria in your gut! 

Roasting garlic increases beneficial garlic compounds like diallyl sulfide and diallyl disulfide — or DADS, for short. Both of these compounds have been studied for their anti-inflammatory (anti-cancer), antioxidant, and antifungal properties.

It’s definitely a sauerkraut you should keep in your rotation.

To get the recipe google “garlic sauerkraut.” and you’ll see mine it’s the first one.

Sources:
PMC8777027 (Diallyl Disulfide (DADS) Ameliorates Intestinal Candida albicansInfection by Modulating the Gut microbiota and Metabolites and Providing Intestinal Protection)

https://doi.org/10.3390/fishes9100401 (diallyl disulfide (DADS) shows a substantial increase, with concentrations rising from 1.6 mg/g in non-fermented garlic to 4.8 mg/g in its fermented counterpart, suggesting enhanced bioactivity through fermentation)
✨Cottage Cheese Ice Cream✨with Brown Butter an ✨Cottage Cheese Ice Cream✨with Brown Butter and Vanilla

I know, I know, I’m making everything with cottage cheese right now. But how can I not? Cottage cheese is one of the most protein-rich fermented foods.

If you love ice cream and cheesecake-like flavor, you’ll love this recipe. it’s high in protein, requires only four simple ingredients, and does not require churning. So, you do not need an ice cream maker!

A half-cup serving of this ice cream has 12 grams of protein, making it a healthy and balanced sweet snack. Get the recipe from the recipe index linked in my profile. 

#cottagecheese #icecream
Baked ✨Cottage Cheese✨ Queso Dip It’s crea Baked ✨Cottage Cheese✨ Queso Dip 

It’s creamy, cheesy, and packed with protein, but with fewer calories thanks to the cottage cheese base. And it’s only 6 ingredients +toppings! 

I love it topped with cilantro, diced tomatoes, onions and fresh jalapeños! 

Get the full recipe from my recipe index, linked in my bio. 

#queso #cheese #cottagecheese
Why do you add water to sauerkraut? To that I as Why do you add water to sauerkraut? 

To that I ask: who told y’all you can’t add water to sauerkraut? 

Adding water standardizes my recipes, making sure everyone gets enough brine, regardless of cabbage variability. 

Google “cultured guru sauerkraut” and you’ll see my recipes! 

#sauerkraut #fermentation
Bok choy is similar in texture to Napa cabbage and Bok choy is similar in texture to Napa cabbage and lovely for fermentation. 

Since bok choy and all cabbages grow low and very close to the soil, their microbiome composition is wonderful! This makes all cabbages easy vegetables to ferment, and fermented bok choy is one of my absolute favorites.

Google fermented bok choy and you’ll see my recipe, it’s the first one. ☝🏼 #cabbage #fermentation #homestead 

Ps. I used some tiny weck jar lids for weights in my bigger weck jar and it worked great!
LEARN ABOUT MICROBES FROM A MICROBIOLoGIST
Loading

recipes

  • Sourdough
  • Sauerkraut
  • Yogurt & Kefir
  • Pickles
  • Sweets & Snacks

more

  • Start Here
  • About
  • Learn
  • Shop
  • Contact

social

  • TikTokVisit Cultured Guru TikTok Account
  • InstagramCultured Guru Instagram Account
  • PinterestVisit Cultured Guru’s Pinterest Account
  • FacebookVisit Cultured Guru’s Facebook page
  • Privacy & Terms
copyright

©2025

Cultured Guru

.

website by saevil row + MTT. all rights reserved.