To avoid the cost of buying commercial mixes for a Bokashi kitchen composter use this original recipe and make it at home:

Original Recipe Bokashi Mix (from Stephen Willis)

Dry ingredients (Choose A or B)

Preparation A

10 litres rice bran or wheat bran

5 litres fish meal or bone meal or chicken manure

5 litres seed remains after oil extraction (canola, soya, sunflower, sesame or linseed)

Preparation B

10 litres rice bran or wheat bran

10 litres fallen leaves or pine needles (will provide local fungi)

2.5 litres seed remains after oil extraction (canola, soya, sunflower, sesame or linseed)

2 litres fish meal or bone meal or chicken manure

Wet ingredients for both preparations

2 litres water (pure rainwater or filtered water. Chlorine will kill the bacteria and fungi)

20 ml molasses or brown sugar (dissolved in the water)

20 ml lactic acid*

Method

1. Mix dry ingredients in large bucket or crate (either Preparation A or B)
2. Combine with wet ingredients
3. Knead together until mixture becomes crumbly yet sticky, like biscuit base
4. Put into a heavy duty garbage bag, remove all of the air, seal and store for about 1-2 weeks inside a plastic tub with an airtight lid. Check after 5 or so days. When it is ready it will crumble to the touch. It will smell sweet and fermented when finished, even without opening the bag. Do not use if it is still fermenting.

*How to obtain lactic acid

1. Let water that has come from rinsing white rice sit for 5 days until it smells sour
2. Mix some rice bran with the sour water and leave to float to the surface
3. Remove floating bran. Remaining liquid is the lactic acid

To use lactic acid in Bokashi preparation:

1. Mix one part lactic acid to two parts milk
2. Leave for a few days until the milk protein separates from the water which can be removed from the top
3. This leaves a creamy yellow water which you can use
4. To keep, add equal parts of molasses or brown sugar and store in the fridge

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