Make a crock of something live and set it to ferment

The Recipe

1. Read enough in the morning to trust the salt ratio, then go to the market for a glut of one vegetable: cabbage, radish, chilli, whatever is cheap in quantity.
2. Prepare it and weigh it, so you know how much salt it needs.
3. Work the right weight of salt through it with your hands until it releases its own liquid.
4. Pack it tight into a clean jar or crock so the brine covers it and nothing pokes above the surface.
5. Weigh it down, cover it loosely so it can breathe, and set it out of the sun.
6. Taste it every day and watch it turn: the smell, the fizz, the sourness rising.
7. Move it to the fridge when it tastes the way you want, and start eating it.
8. Write down the date and the ratio so the next batch is yours, not a recipe's.