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homemade buttermilk
2023-07-23 14:15Recently I bought some cultured buttermilk to drink, then read/watched up on it. Modern cultured buttermilk is made by adding bacterial cultures, like yogurt. According to Adam Ragusea, while yogurt bacteria is thermophilic (wanting warm temperatures, thus heating the milk), buttermilk bacteria are mesophilic, liking room temperature. So you can put milk and some (live/active) buttermilk in a container, and let it sit for 1-2 days. I have done this, a couple times now.
Result: nothing like the starting buttermilk. Not as sour (also no added salt, natch), and not an easily drinkable liquid. It's a stretchable goo, much like my first batch of yogurt years ago. It in fact mostly seems like a mild yogurt, eatable with a spoon.
Given where I live, possibly my kitchen wasn't warm enough even for mesophilic bacteria to be happy.
Instructions from https://www.foodiewithfamily.com/homemade-cultured-buttermilk/
Cost? Well, the _cheap_ buttermilk from my local store was $2/quart, and that didn't promise active cultures; the one that does was $3.50 a quart. Milk is like $4 for a half-gallon aka 2 quarts, so making your own has a big saving.
Result: nothing like the starting buttermilk. Not as sour (also no added salt, natch), and not an easily drinkable liquid. It's a stretchable goo, much like my first batch of yogurt years ago. It in fact mostly seems like a mild yogurt, eatable with a spoon.
Given where I live, possibly my kitchen wasn't warm enough even for mesophilic bacteria to be happy.
Instructions from https://www.foodiewithfamily.com/homemade-cultured-buttermilk/
Cost? Well, the _cheap_ buttermilk from my local store was $2/quart, and that didn't promise active cultures; the one that does was $3.50 a quart. Milk is like $4 for a half-gallon aka 2 quarts, so making your own has a big saving.