Soured milk and fermented dairy

In short

• Milk is always heated first (85 °C / 185 °F, or boiled) and cooled to 20–25 °C; raw milk is never soured at room temperature.
• Kefir: 20–50 g of grains per 1 L of milk, 18–24 h at 20–25 °C (68–77 °F), then strain through a plastic sieve.
• Mesophilic soured milk and buttermilk: culture, 20–22 °C, 16–24 h.
• If milk with a culture hasn't set within 36 h, it isn't eaten.
• Finished products go into the fridge: kefir and soured milk keep roughly 5–7 days.

What's inside

Chapters

1. Dairy ferments: what goes where
2. Milk and safety
3. Kefir from grains
4. Looking after kefir grains
5. Kefir from a sachet
6. Mesophilic soured milk and buttermilk
7. Ayran, drinks and kefir cheese
8. Tarhana
9. Storage and spoilage
10. Common mistakes
11. Printable checklist

Worksheets

• Dairy ferments calendar
• Calculator
• Kefir log
• Grain and culture record
• Tarhana and labels