Virtually every culture has fermented food in its cuisine.  From the fermented walrus of the Inuit to cider gum sap beverages of the Australian Aborigines, fermentation is as ubiquitous as containers.  Sooner or later, someone leaves a clay pot, animal skin, or basket filled with food. 

I have a special relationship with green chili.  My father loves this dish, and would go out of his way to get a bowl from his favorite spot, when I was a boy.  I remember trying a taste, and being first alarmed by the spice, then intrigued by the evolving flavor.