Karin Van den Bogaert

Karin teaches the year-long course "The Power of Fermentation". This course consists of 10 lessons covering a wide range of fermentation techniques: short ferments (pickle press), dry vegetable ferments (such as sauerkraut), wet vegetable ferments (with water-salt solutions), classics (sauerkraut, kimchi, fermented lemon), giving a personal twist to classics (e.g., Flemish autumn kimchi with seasonal vegetables), fermented drinks (kefir, kombucha, kvass), natural vinegars, fermenting edible herbs and wild plants, making your own miso, bean ferments (such as natto and tempeh), grain ferments (koji, amasake, and recipes using amasake), and more.

By the end of this series, you'll have all the knowledge and experience to ferment creatively and add your own personal touch to your creations.

Taking control of my own health has always fascinated me, but I never really knew how to go about it. With an analytical mindset honed during my studies in biochemistry, I eventually found myself working in an industrial laboratory. After a workplace accident a few years ago, I "accidentally" ended up in a medicinal cooking workshop with Viviane Van Dyck and Rik Vermuyten. And from that moment, things started to change. The macrobiotic philosophy entered my life and has never left me since.

During the 3-year Medicinal Cooking course in Nutrition and Vitality (East West Centre), I finally learned how to cook healthily and deliciously according to the yin-yang philosophy and the five transformations that occur in our natural environment. I was fortunate to cross paths with many inspiring cooking teachers (Ingrid Debert, Carine Vanhalst, Katrien Cocquyt, Viviane Van Dyck, Nathalie De Mey, Annelies Van den Bleeken, Ellen Saen) who taught me the ins and outs of the craft. My kitchen has now become my home laboratory, where medicinal preparations are made, fermentation brews are transforming (including miso, shoyu, pickles, sourdoughs), and where food is prepared with great love and in a natural way. In this process, I feel like an eternal student, always eager to expand my vision. This is why I’ve participated in several year-long programs, such as Energetic Fundamentals, Medical Knowledge, the Wild Harvest Year Training “Herb Power,” Feng Shui, Natural Medicine, Resurfacing, Consciousness and Spirituality, Intuitive Development, and various short workshops on topics like immunity, the five transformations, paired organs, microbiome, skin, solar plexus, nervous system, women’s health, men’s health, and some “plant-based cooking classes” from the International Macrobiotic Institute in the UK. The macrobiotic diet and lifestyle have definitely helped me become a more balanced person, and I’m happy to assist others on their own path as well.