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Fermentation Atlas

Vegetables from Nepal, Sikkim, Darjeeling, Kalimpong, Bhutan

Gundrukगुन्द्रुक

Leaves of rayo saag, mustard, radish or cauliflower are wilted, shredded and packed tightly into an earthen pot with no salt. Lactic bacteria sour them for about a week, then the leaves are sun-dried into a sour food that keeps for years. Made in 5 steps over 9 days – 16 days. The longest step, ferment, takes 5–10 days (Battcock M. and Azam-Ali S. 1998) and runs at 18–22 °C (Battcock M. and Azam-Ali S. 1998). Salt is 0 % (Battcock M. and Azam-Ali S. 1998). Levilactobacillus brevis and Pediococcus pentosaceus, which start the ferment and Lactiplantibacillus plantarum, which finishes it do most of the fermenting.

Key numbers
Main step5–10 daysReported[fao134][ghimire2020]Ferment
Temperature18–22 °CReported[fao134][ghimire2020]Ferment
Salt0 %Reported[fao134]Pack tightly into an earthen pot
AciditypH 6.6 → 3.71Measured[ghimire2020][fao134]Ferment
Fully documentedVegetables9 days – 16 daysMore vegetablesMore from IndiaMore from NepalMore from Bhutan

Recipe

No fixed amounts recordedA household process with no fixed amounts; it is passed down within families. A lab version packed 400 g of crushed mustard leaves into each 500 mL jar (Ghimire et al.).
Fresh leafy greens · Rayo saag, mustard, radish or cauliflower leaves[fao134][ghimire2020]
No salt · Nothing is added but warm water[fao134]
Warm water, about 30 °C · Poured over the packed leaves in FAO's account[fao134]
Starter: spontaneous

Total time across the recorded steps: 9 days – 16 days

Start
Drag the bar or press Play

What changes: The leaves wilt in the sun as water leaves them

Step 1 of 5
Wilt the leaves
Time
24 h – 2 days
Reported
Temperature
Not documented
Salt
None given
Acidity
Not documented
Which microbes the steps name, step by step
Levilactobacillus brevis
Pediococcus pentosaceus
L. plantarum
L. cellobiosus

Output: wilted leaves.

Flavour
Not documented
Texture
Not documented
Colour
Not documented

Microbes at work in this step

Not documented for this step.

Method

Measured measured in a studySet fixed by a specification or tested recipeReported one source reports itTypical a general value, not sourced for this fermentUnconfirmed not yet checked against a source

What makes this one different

Gundruk uses no salt at all, and it is dried after fermenting, so it keeps for years without a fridge. Sinki is the same unsalted, sun-dried ferment made from radish roots.

Related ferments

Variants

  • Bhutanese gundrukThe same unsalted method with regional greens.
  • Gundruk acharDried gundruk made into a pickle.

Safety

With no salt, gundruk relies on a fast fall in pH, to about 3.7–4.0, and then on drying. A pH below 4.6 holds back Clostridium botulinum in fermented vegetables (Snyder et al.). A 2025 survey in Sikkim found Listeria monocytogenes in 2 market samples of gundruk, so clean handling during drying and storage matters.

Hazards the sources name: Listeria monocytogenes, found in 2 market samples in Sikkim.

History and sources

Every number is labelled with how it is known. How this atlas is made

Gundruk is made at family level and the method passes from mother to daughter.

  1. [fao134] Battcock M. and Azam-Ali S. 1998, Fermented fruits and vegetables, a global perspective, FAO Agricultural Services Bulletin 134, section 6.3.1 Gundrukgov
  2. [tamang2010] Tamang B. and Tamang J.P. 2010, In situ fermentation dynamics during production of gundruk and khalpi, ethnic fermented vegetable products of the Himalayas, Indian Journal of Microbiology 50 (Suppl 1), 93–98paper
  3. [ghimire2020] Ghimire A., Kumar Sah A. and Poudel R. 2020, Kinetics and modeling of growth and lactic acid production in gundruk, a Himalayan fermented vegetable dish, Food Science and Nutrition 8(10), 5591–5600paper
  4. [byahut2025] Byahut A., Das M., Chowdhury G. et al. 2025, Exploring the prevalence and antibiotic resistance of Listeria monocytogenes in diverse food commodities across Sikkim, India, Brazilian Journal of Microbiology 57(1)paper
  5. [snyder2020] Snyder A., Breidt F., Andress E.L. and Ingham B.H. 2020, Manufacture of traditionally fermented vegetable products, best practice for small businesses and retail food establishments, Food Protection Trends 40(4), 251–263paper