Biodiverse · Alive · Use like salsa

    Purple YOUR Gut!

    Kimchi & kraut that's ALIVE!

    Meet the family. Tap one.

    New to kimchi? Start here

    Every Try All 3 order includes a FREE Brine Boost shot · Free local delivery on orders $40+

    Most jars on the shelf are heat-treated for shelf life, which kills the cultures. Ours are wild-fermented in small batches and hand-delivered cold in San Diego.

    Every lid traced to its batch
    pH tested every batch
    Made in San Diego
    Kept cold to your door
    Purple Gut booth at a San Diego farmers market with tasting cups of biodiverse kraut

    Most food is dead. This isn't.

    Most fermented food on grocery shelves has been pasteurized — heat-treated until the cultures are dead. Here's what we do instead.

    Alive & Refrigerated

    Every jar is alive. No heat treatment. No kill step or vinegar. The cultures are biologically active when we pack it — and when you open it.

    Made in San Diego

    Handcrafted in small batches right here in San Diego. Fresh, local, and never mass-produced.

    Fermented. Not Preserved.

    Fermentation doesn't preserve food — it transforms it. Royal is sharp, tangy, alive, and built first for flavor.

    New to fermented food?

    Never had kimchi or kraut? Start here.

    1. 1

      Start with Classic Royal.

      Our mildest — no heat, clean and savory.

      Royce, the purple Classic Royal character, giving a thumbs up and holding a jar of Classic Royal
    2. 2

      Don't eat it plain first.

      Put a forkful on eggs, tacos, rice, or a sandwich.

    3. 3

      Give it a couple of meals.

      It's a new taste. Most people find their favorite way to eat it by the second jar.

    "I have never tried kimchi before this and I was convinced to try it at the Vista farmers market and I am so glad I did."
    — Kurt S., Vista Farmers Market customer

    Under the Microscope

    We sent our cultures to a lab.

    Sequenced byZymo Research

    Most brands claim their food is "alive." We wanted proof. So we sent samples of our ferments to Zymo Research, a microbiome sequencing lab in Irvine, CA, for 16S rRNA sequencing — the same DNA-based method used in microbiome research. See the results in our Living Microbe Report.

    Start small, then subscribe

    1

    Try all 3 for $45

    A quick, low-commitment way to taste the whole lineup.

    2

    See how it fits your routine

    Add it to meals, snacks, or sides.

    3

    Upgrade to a ritual

    Free Tuesday delivery on Convert and up, never run out.

    Try Me

    Try All 3

    One 16oz jar of each of our living ferments — American Kimchi, La Kimchi Mexicana, and Classic Royal. Biologically active, alive, still working when they arrive.

    Always Refrigerated Free local delivery included
    Illustrated Purple Gut family celebrating together with their jars
    16oz jar of Purple Gut American Kimchi, biodiverse and alive16oz jar of Purple Gut La Kimchi Mexicana with tomatillo salsa verde16oz jar of Purple Gut Classic Royal, biodiverse purple cabbage sauerkrautBest for First-Time Buyers

    Try Purple Gut Trio

    Classic RoyalAmerican KimchiMexicana

    3 × 16oz Jars · One-Time · Free local delivery included

    $45/ one-time

    Alive in the jar, kept cold to your door.

    Try All 3 for $45

    Delivering Vista to Chula Vista

    More foods & flavors coming soon!

    Delivered Monthly

    Everyone starts as a skeptic.

    Start small. Most people don't stay skeptics for long.

    Start with Skeptic at $30 for market pickup, then move up to Convert or higher for free Tuesday delivery anywhere from Vista to Chula Vista — pause, skip, or cancel anytime.

    Skeptic

    Great for trying a monthly routine

    Starter plan — 2 small jars (16oz each) per month, picked up at market

    $30/month
    • 2 × 16oz jars per month
    • Market pickup only
    • One flavor per month
    • Pause, skip, or cancel anytime
    Start Skeptic Plan

    Market pickup only

    Most Popular

    Convert

    Most popular plan

    Regular plan — 2 large jars (32oz each) per month

    $50/month
    • 2 × 32oz jars per month
    • Free Tuesday delivery
    • Mix and match Classic Royal, American Kimchi & La Kimchi Mexicana
    • Pause, skip, or cancel anytime
    Start Convert Plan

    Free Tuesday delivery

    Believer

    Best for committed fans & families

    Family plan — 4 large jars (32oz each) per month

    $100/month
    • 4 × 32oz jars per month
    • Free Tuesday delivery
    • Mix and match Classic Royal, American Kimchi & La Kimchi Mexicana
    • 2 Brine Boost shots included
    • Early access to limited drops
    • Pause, skip, or cancel anytime
    Start Believer Plan

    Free Tuesday delivery

    Want to go all in?

    Premium Tier

    Disciple

    All-in plan — 10 large jars per month

    $230/month
    10 × 32oz jars per month
    Free Tuesday delivery
    Mix and match Classic Royal, American Kimchi & La Kimchi Mexicana
    4 Brine Boost shots included
    Named batch credit
    First access to new products
    Join the Disciple Plan

    Free Tuesday delivery

    Refrigerated Local Delivery

    Delivery orders are hand-delivered cold — from our kitchen straight to your fridge. No shipping boxes, no middlemen.

    Always cold Vista to Chula Vista Pause anytime

    More flavors and products coming soon. New here? Start with Classic Royal.

    Meal Inspo

    Eat It

    Our ferments go with everything. Here are our favorite ways to enjoy it.

    🌮

    Tacos

    Top your fish, carnitas, or veggie tacos with a big spoonful of kraut.

    🦠

    After Fasting

    Break your fast with a forkful — tangy, crunchy, alive.

    🍚

    Rice/Poke Bowls

    Add crunch and tang to grain bowls, bibimbap, or poke bowls.

    🥩

    Grilled Meats

    The perfect tangy sidekick to sausages, burgers, and grilled chicken.

    From real customers

    Scanned the lid. Left a note.

    Every jar has a batch QR code. Here's what people said after scanning theirs.

    "Flavor, texture, everything — new staple!"
    — Batch 040 customer
    "Flavor on point and the smell is a convenient conversation starter. 10/10 with rice."
    — Batch 020 customer
    "The flavor!! I enjoy the pickled ginger taste and texture of the kraut (:"
    — Batch 014 customer
    "Love the flavor and great to pair with guac and salsa."
    — Batch 047 customer
    "Texture was great — and the tangy taste, great on anything."
    — Batch 020 customer
    "Delicious zesty flavor."
    — Batch 033 customer
    Stellan and Nicole of Purple Gut holding a jar of their raw fermented kraut

    Our Story

    If you've ever bought 'fermented' food and wondered whether anything in the jar was still alive — we were you. Most 'fermented' food on the shelf is cooked, pasteurized, and shelf-stabilized — every living culture killed for a longer expiration date. So we make it the slow way: wild-fermented, never heated, always alive. We're Stellan and Nicole, a two-person operation in San Diego. Stellan is from Minnesota, Nicole is from Guadalajara, and we met right in the middle — in San Diego. Every jar is our way of sharing the food, color, and flavor we love with the city we now call home.

    Ingredients

    What's Inside

    American Kimchi

    Bold, funky, a slow-building heat

    • Red + Napa Cabbage— double-cabbage living base
    • Organic Carrots— earthy sweetness + color
    • Daikon Radish— clean, peppery bite
    • Organic Green Onion— fresh allium snap
    • Ginger + Red Onion— warmth and savory sharpness
    • Korean Red Chili Powder (Gochugaru)— slow heat, no vinegar burn
    • Shiitake Mushroom— deep, earthy umami
    • Garlic— the aromatic backbone
    • Ginseng— earthy, slightly bitter depth
    • Organic Blue Agave Syrup— wild sugars that feed the microbes
    • Sea Salt— minerals + the engine of fermentation

    Classic Royal

    Clean, savory depth

    • Red + Napa Cabbage— the bold, vibrant base
    • Organic Carrots + Daikon Radish— crisp, earthy sweetness
    • Ginger— warmth and brightness
    • Garlic + Red Onion— savory sharpness
    • Dill— fresh, herbal lift
    • Organic Blue Agave Syrup— wild sugars that feed the microbes
    • Sea Salt— minerals + the engine of fermentation

    La Kimchi Mexicana

    Bright, tangy, tomatillo-forward heat

    • Red + Napa Cabbage— double-cabbage living base
    • Organic Carrots— earthy sweetness + color
    • Daikon— clean, peppery bite
    • Tomatillos— fresh, tangy salsa verde soul
    • White Onion— savory, salsa-stand sharpness
    • Garlic + Ginger— the aromatic backbone
    • Cilantro— bright herbal lift
    • Chile Serrano— fresh, green, honest heat
    • Organic Blue Agave— wild sugars that feed the microbes
    • Sea Salt— minerals + the engine of fermentation

    Simple ingredients. Diverse microbes. Never Vinegar. Always Chilled.

    FAQ

    Common Questions?

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    Talk to Purple Gut

    Questions about products, subscriptions, rituals, or wholesale? Drop us a line.

    Delivery Area

    San Diego, CA — Free local delivery on orders $40+, anywhere from Vista to Chula Vista.

    Email

    hello@purplegut.com

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    @purplegut_sd