How to turn excess hard veg into fridge-raid sauerkraut – recipe | Waste not
The dry-salting fermentation method used to make sauerkraut works brilliantly on almost any firm vegetable, so you can happily explore beyond the traditional cabbage.I had a couple of carrots and a piece of squash that needed saving, so I turned them into a golden kraut with ginger, turmeric and a little orange zest for brightness.Use whatever you have to hand and let the ingredients lead your creativity.Fermenting is an enjoyable way to make the most of a seasonal ingredient or to use up surplus produce.At our restaurant, whenever we had a glut that needed using up, we used to rely on fermentation, because not only did it saves us money in the long term, it also helped us to create imaginative, delicious new products to cook with.
Classic cabbage kraut is, of course, glorious, but there are all manner of alternatives, and some magic combinations.Just get creative, use what you have and eat the rainbow.As with classic sauerkraut, the general rule of thumb is that you need about 3% salt to the total weight of vegetables.Now, just a few notes on fermentation in general.Keep the jar out of direct sunlight and check on it every day.
Give it some love, and a stir, perhaps, and make sure the ingredients are always submerged in the liquid (a fermentation weight will help here, as would any other clean weight).Only use organic unwaxed citrus zest, because conventional citrus tends to be subjected to very high levels of fungicides and pesticides.Finally, if you’re new to fermenting, maybe consider making two jars: keep one in the fridge and leave the other to ferment on the counter, then taste both over time to teach your tastebuds how the flavour of each develops as it matures.You will need a large sterilised jar with a lid.Makes 1 x 500g jar400g mixed hard vegetables (carrot, squash, beetroot, kohlrabi, turnip, radish, celeriac, broccoli stems – any combination you like), all washed and grated or finely sliced12g sea saltOptional extras Finely grated zest of 1 unwaxed organic lemon or ½ orange, to taste1-3 tsp grated fresh ginger, to taste1 small piece fresh turmeric, or 1 tsp ground turmeric (this will dye the food yellow)1-2 tsp caraway, cumin or coriander seeds, whole or ground, to tasteTip the grated vegetables into a large bowl, scatter over the salt, then add any of the optional extras that you fancy.
Mix everything with your hands, and massage firmly for a few minutes, until the vegetables start to soften and release their juices.Spoon the mixture into a large sterilised jar, press it down tightly, then pour in any brine from the bottom of the bowl and firmly push the vegetables beneath the liquid; if they aren’t fully submerged, top up with a splash of filtered water mixed with a tiny pinch of salt.Place the lid loosely on top of the jar – this will allow the gases to escape – then leave at room temperature for at least four days, checking regularly until it’s bubbling and the brine tastes lightly acidic.If you prefer a deeper, more complex flavour, keep it fermenting it on the counter for longer.Otherwise, for a milder kraut, seal and put in the fridge, where it will keep for four to six months.
UK ministers considering leaving X amid concern over AI tool images
UK ministers are considering leaving X as a result of the controversy over the platform’s AI tool, which has been allowing users to generate digitally altered pictures of people – including children – with their clothes removed.Anna Turley, the chair of the Labour party and a minister without portfolio in the Cabinet Office, said on Friday that conversations were happening within the government and Labour about their continued use of the social media platform, which is controlled by Elon Musk.The government has come under mounting pressure to leave X after the site was flooded with images including sexualised and unclothed pictures of children generated by its AI tool, Grok.Turley told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “X, first and foremost, has to get its act together and prevent this. It has the powers to do this, and we need to make sure there are firm consequences for that
Grok turns off image generator for most users after outcry over sexualised AI imagery
Grok, Elon Musk’s AI tool, has switched off its image creation function for the vast majority of users after a widespread outcry about its use to create sexually explicit and violent imagery.The move comes after Musk was threatened with fines, regulatory action and reports of a possible ban on X in the UK.The tool had been used to manipulate images of women to remove their clothes and put them in sexualised positions. The function to do so has been switched off except for paying subscribers.Posting on X, Musk’s social media network, Grok said: “Image generation and editing are currently limited to paying subscribers
Grok being used to create sexually violent videos featuring women, research finds
Elon Musk’s AI tool Grok has been used to create sexually violent and explicit video content featuring women, according to new research, as the British prime minister added to condemnation of images it has created.Grok has also been used to undress an image of Renee Nicole Good, the woman killed by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent in the US on Wednesday, and to portray her with a bullet wound in her forehead.Research by AI Forensics, a Paris-based non-profit organisation, found about 800 images and videos created by the Grok Imagine app that included pornographic content. Paul Bouchaud, a researcher at AI Forensics, said: “These are fully pornographic videos and they look professional.”One photorealistic AI video viewed by the NGO showed a woman, tattooed with the slogan “do not resuscitate”, with a knife between her legs
Grok AI: is it legal to produce or post undressed images of people without their consent?
The deluge of images of partly clothed women – stripped by the Grok AI tool – on Elon Musk’s X has raised further questions over regulation of the technology. Is it legal to produce these images without the subject’s consent? Should they be taken off X?In the UK alone there is some doubt over the answers to these queries. Social media regulation is a nascent area, let alone trying to control the deployment of artificial intelligence. There are laws in place to tackle the problem, such as the Online Safety Act, but the government has yet to introduce additional measures such as banning nudifying apps.It is a criminal offence to share intimate images of someone without their consent under the Sexual Offences Act in England and Wales, which includes images created by AI
Hundreds of nonconsensual AI images being created by Grok on X, data shows
New research that samples X users prompting Elon Musk’s AI chatbot Grok demonstrates how frequently people are creating sexualized images with it. Nearly three-quarters of posts collected and analyzed by a PhD researcher at Dublin’s Trinity College were requests for nonconsensual images of real women or minors with items of clothing removed or added.The posts offer a new level of detail on how the images are generated and shared on X, with users coaching one another on prompts; suggesting iterations on Grok’s presentations of women in lingerie or swimsuits, or with areas of their body covered in semen; and asking Grok to remove outer clothing in replies to posts containing self-portraits by female users.Among hundreds of posts identified by Nana Nwachukwu as direct, nonconsensual requests for Grok to remove or replace clothing, dozens reviewed by the Guardian show users posting pictures of women including celebrities, models, stock photos and women who are not public figures posing in snapshots.Several posts in the trove reviewed by the Guardian have received tens of thousands of impressions and come from premium, “blue check” accounts, including accounts with tens of thousands of followers
Musk lawsuit over OpenAI for-profit conversion can go to trial, US judge says
Elon Musk’s lawsuit against OpenAI is to go to trial after a US judge said there is plenty of evidence to support the billionaire’s case.The world’s richest man, who co-founded OpenAI, is suing the ChatGPT developer and its chief executive, Sam Altman, over claims its leaders violated the organisation’s founding mission by shifting to a for-profit model.The US district judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers in Oakland, California, told a hearing there was plenty of evidence that suggested OpenAI’s leaders made assurances that its original nonprofit structure was going to be maintained.She said there were enough disputed facts to let a jury consider the claims at a trial scheduled for March, rather than decide the issues herself. Rogers said she would issue a written order after the hearing that addresses OpenAI’s attempt to throw out the case
How to turn excess hard veg into fridge-raid sauerkraut – recipe | Waste not
Hurrah for veganism and Victorian sewers | Letters
What can I use in vegetarian curries instead of coconut milk? | Kitchen aide
Kenji Morimoto’s recipe for root vegetable rösti with crisp chickpeas
Adults in England eating as much salt a day as in 22 bags of crisps, study shows
Rukmini Iyer’s quick and easy recipe for roast sweet potato, feta and butter bean traybake | Quick and easy