Post by Granny Smith on Mar 2, 2008 16:22:20 GMT -5
Cultured Buttermilk
The price of milk has been outrageous here, but buttermilk is even worse - more than a dollar a gallon more! While I don't like buttermilk to drink, I love cooking with it, so I thought I'd try making my own.
I had about a cup of cultured buttermilk left, so I added it to a gallon of whole milk (I think any kind of milk would work, but that's what I had). I didn't heat the milk first. I shook it very well, then left it sitting on the counter overnight. The next morning, I had buttermilk! I doubt it would be good for drinking (and I'm not going to try it), but it's GREAT for cooking!
I should warn you, though, the longer it sits in the refrigerator, the thicker it gets. After 5 or 6 days, it was about the thickness of sour cream, but it didn't seem to affect it's use in any recipe. I've made this 4 times, so far, from just that first cup of store-bought buttermilk and have been quite pleased with the results.
UPDATE: Since I wrote this, it has been almost a year. I am still making buttermilk from the original culture and it's still good. I just made some Friday night and made biscuits with it this morning.
The price of milk has been outrageous here, but buttermilk is even worse - more than a dollar a gallon more! While I don't like buttermilk to drink, I love cooking with it, so I thought I'd try making my own.
I had about a cup of cultured buttermilk left, so I added it to a gallon of whole milk (I think any kind of milk would work, but that's what I had). I didn't heat the milk first. I shook it very well, then left it sitting on the counter overnight. The next morning, I had buttermilk! I doubt it would be good for drinking (and I'm not going to try it), but it's GREAT for cooking!
I should warn you, though, the longer it sits in the refrigerator, the thicker it gets. After 5 or 6 days, it was about the thickness of sour cream, but it didn't seem to affect it's use in any recipe. I've made this 4 times, so far, from just that first cup of store-bought buttermilk and have been quite pleased with the results.
UPDATE: Since I wrote this, it has been almost a year. I am still making buttermilk from the original culture and it's still good. I just made some Friday night and made biscuits with it this morning.