Our Fermented Lives: Bridging the Gap Between Modern People and Historic Food with Julia Skinner of Root Kitchens

Our Fermented Lives: Bridging the Gap Between Modern People and Historic Food with Julia Skinner of Root Kitchens

From The Good Dirt: Sustainability Explained by Lady Farmer

August 1, 2025 · 58 min

About this episode

In this encore episode, Mary and Emma discuss the intersection of historic food and modern cooking with Julia Skinner, focusing on fermentation and community connections through food.

This is an ENCORE EPISODE, originally published on August 5, 2022 In this episode, Mary and Emma are talking to Julia Skinner of Root: Historic Food for the Modern World. Root was born from Julia's deep love for community and a belief in the power of food to tell stories, connect us to place and to each other, and to build a bridge to the past. Julia's work is all about food, history, food stories, where it comes from and the people behind it. She loves fostering connections with other people and with the earth around us. Julia is especially interested in learning and teaching about fermentation, demonstrating to people the ease and accessibility of preparing delicious and healthy food using this ancient and powerful food preservation technique. Topics Covered: Exploring historic cookbooks Julia’s discovery of historical cooking traditions Types of fermentation she has explored How to start fermenting The growing popularity of traditional foods Shifting food interests during the pandemic Food Access Milk Kefir Food as medicine Resources Mentioned: Julia's website-- Root Kitchens Our Fermented Lives . by Julia Skinner The English Housewife by Gervase Markham The Art of…

People in this episode

Hosts: Mary, Emma

Guest: Julia Skinner

Topics covered

  • fermentation
  • historic food
  • food stories
  • community
  • food access
  • traditional foods

Keywords

  • fermentation
  • historic cookbooks
  • food preservation
  • traditional foods
  • food access
  • milk kefir
  • food as medicine

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Root Kitchens, Free99Fridge, Umi Feeds, Goodr, Sowans, The Fermentation School

Books & works: Our Fermented Lives, The English Housewife, The Art of Fermentation, Son-Mat

Places: Atlanta

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