## 4 Discussion  
In the present study, the recreation of a highly appreciated product, based on information that is available in ancient texts, was attempted. This information included the type of the raw materials, the texture and the organoleptic characteristics of the final product. The information that was not available and had to be inferred referred to the quantity of the raw materials and the production procedure. The raw materials included leafy vegetables, leak, cardamom, garlic, raisins, pomergnate and mustard seeds; all of them are still used for the production of a variety of products. This list of ingredients was derived from ancient texts and may not be exhaustive; however, it is indicative of a product consisting of several ingredients, some of which may largely contribute to the aroma and taste formation of the final product. Their relative proportion to the recipe was inferred by their modern-day use. A wide range of leafy vegetables are currently used as the basic substrate for lactic acid fermentation. In Asia, the most commonly used belong to the _Brassica_ genus, namely, mustard leaves, cauliflower leaves and cabbage leaves [9]. The type of leaves employed, direct the initial processing steps that are necessary to soften their texture and improve their edibility and palatability. Indeed, mustard leaves are very often subjected to sun wilting or soaking in boiled water. In the present study, in order to simplify the procedure, only cabbage leaves were used, which do not require such processing. However, the existence of such or other processing steps may not be excluded. The use of leak as a basic ingredient [11; 12; 22] as well as an optional ingredient, in order to contribute to the overall taste [23; 24] has been reported. The special reference to the leak content of avyrtake, made by [PERSON] (5 th century B.C.) in his work 'Theseus' [3], led to the conclusion that it could be among the basic ingredients. However, due to the intense aroma and flavor, its use at a proportion of 1:2.5 (leek to cabbage), was decided. Garlic is very often included in the recipe of mixtures subjected to spontaneous lactic acid fermentation, such as kimchi [24; 25; 26] and Sichuan pao cai [27], but always in a proportion of less than 3% of the total ingredient weight. Garlic is particularly rich in sulfur compounds [28] and it has been reported to enhance LAB growth during the early \begin{table}
\begin{tabular}{c c} \hline
**Attribute** & **Score** \\ \hline \multicolumn{3}{c}{product evaluation} \\ \hline Aroma & 7.0 (0.93) \({}^{\text{ab}}\) \\ Flavor & 7.6 (0.91) \({}^{\text{c}}\) \\ Color & 7.4 (0.81) \({}^{\text{bc}}\) \\ Texture & 6.6 (0.87) \({}^{\text{a}}\) \\ Overall acceptability & 7.6 (0.96) \({}^{\text{c}}\) \\ \hline \multicolumn{3}{c}{taste description} \\ \hline Sourness & 5.9 (0.88) \({}^{\text{a}}\) \\ Bitterness & 2.3 (0.97) \({}^{\text{c}}\) \\ Sweetness & 4.8 (1.04) \({}^{\text{b}}\) \\ Saltiness & 4.8 (0.94) \({}^{\text{b}}\) \\ Umami & 4.4 (1.57) \({}^{\text{b}}\) \\ \hline \end{tabular} The average values are presented. Standard deviation is given in parenthesis. Different superscript letters designate statistically significant differences between the scores of the attributes referring to product evaluation and taste description (\(p<0.05\)).  
\end{table} 
Table 2: Sensory evaluation of spontaneously fermented avyrtake. stages of kimchi fermentation [26]. The functional potential of pomergnate juice, due to its high polyphenic content, has been adequately highlighted [29]. In addition, its suitability as a substrate for lactic acid fermentation [30] as well as being a probiotic carrier [31], has been exhibited. From a technological perspective, pomergnate seeds and raisins enrich the vegetable mixture with carbohydrates [32; 33], assisting water extraction from the plant tissues and providing the microorganisms with fermentable carbon sources. The use of cardamom and mustard seeds has also been reported [1; 34; 35].