Friends With Microbes: How A Hyderabad-Based Duo Is Pioneering Homegrown Fermentation

Skincare has got really wholesome in the last couple of years with the shift of focus from active ingredients to diet and overall health and especially gut health. A recent viral video stated the use of white rice vinegar in the Japanese culture before meals for better digestion and a a healthy gut. This is however just an offset of the rise of fermentation in food culture. From Kimchi in Korea to Miso in Japan and tempeh in Indonesia to the Eurasian kefir, fermentation has been used in cuisines from across the world. Foods that are produced with fermentation are rich in probiotics and vitamin B12, helping with inflammation, obesity, and reducing the risks of heart attacks and diabetes.

Here at home a duo is cultivating fermenting techniques with seasonal ingredients, to help bring a boost of gut-healthy microorganisms to your food. Sarojini Dantapalli and Dwithya Raghavan explore various age-old ways of fermentation through workshops, recipes, shared book readings, conversations, and curated dinners. Operating as a collective called Opika which translates to 'patience' in Telugu, the duo has an experimental kitchen in Begumpet, Hyderabad where they find the most mindful way to use seasonal produce while also 'making friends with microbes', as their Instagram bio puts it.

From lacto-fermented sea buckthorn berries sourced from Spiti Valley, to Golbhenda ra Mulako Bhiuko Achar from Nepal, the duo is on a mission to try ferment food and techniques from around the world and teach people how to use them with local, seasonal ingredients. They've also produced bottled products like their Pomegranate, Orange & Coffee Kombucha along with Raw Mango Kefir Soda & Ginger Ale that were available for sale at True Black coffee shop in Hyderabad.

Opika's approach to fermentation is a wholesome one. It's a journey of discovery that allows them to learn about how microorganisms, biomes and rhythms of nature inorder to cook and consume food in a mindful and intentional way. Dwithya explains it best in an interview with The Hindu, "We reclaimed our relationships with the natural world and saw ourselves in a new light; as part of a vibrant community that is symbiotic, a community that supports mutual growth and thrives in diversity."

Follow Opika here.

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