We speak to Stephen Sinniah about all things fermented
The first time I met Stephen Sinniah, it was at his pop-up at arts and cultural hub RexKL. Sinniah is the founder of Kuno, which specialises in producing and supplying ferments to restaurants and consumers. Kuno has collaborated on special menus with various restaurants, such as Akar Dining, one of Tatler Dining’s Top 20 Restaurants in 2023.
Sinniah has since started to host fermentation classes in an effort to educate the public about the process of fermentation. At the fermentation class I attended, we made three ferments: pumpkin seed miso, quinoa tempeh, and quinoa natto.
After the class, Sinniah shared about what first interested him in ferments and the future of Kuno.
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What does fermentation do to foods?
Fermentation is a chemical reaction. Basically, it is the controlled decomposition of foods through enzymes or bacteria, which result in the ingredient being preserved.
What sparked your interest in fermentation?
In 2014, I came across the blog of a Nordic food lab started by Noma and the University of Copenhagen. The science of cooking had always interested me, and the information on the website was a treasure trove of new techniques.
There were recipes demonstrating how to use koji (a naturally occurring culture that grows on steamed rice) to make miso, or produce kombucha or tea out of wood. This kickstarted my interest in fermentation, and I started making my own lacto-ferments—fermenting chilli to make hot sauce and yoghurt.
In 2016, I went to the US, and I was exposed to kombucha, microbreweries that made different beers, and lots of other ferments. I started making my own kombucha, wine and beer. It was an ongoing process, picking up these different techniques and trying to execute them to a level of high quality.
