Sour milk is a regular item in a baker’s pantry. Even Moms who love to bake makes sure that they have one to grab when they need it. But how about if you run out of it? If you are really the kind who is curious enough to love challenges in the baking world, I am pretty sure you already Googled for the recipe or substitute.
Do you want to learn how to make sour milk? Read on!
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What Is Sour Milk?
I bake all the time, but even once, I have not tried buying sour milk from the store. I always make it myself. Besides, you do not need to put a lot of sour milk in every recipe.
Recipes call for sour milk as a substitute for buttermilk. Both kinds of milk are a little bit acidic and they are required in baking just to neutralize the acidity of the recipe’s ingredients. It is also the starter ingredient when making yogurt and cheese. Sour milk is a result of an acidification of milk. If you like to taste it, it is a little bit tart than sour.
- Yogurt and tofu are also a great substitutes for sour milk.
How To Make Sour Milk?
You can make a sour milk by adding some acid like lemon juice, vinegar or through bacterial fermentation. If you like to know how to do it, then welcome to the world of making it from scratch!
Things You Will Need
- 1 cup milk (I do not have raw so I use pasteurized milk).
- Pitcher or any container for the milk.
- 1 tablespoon vinegar or squeezed lemon juice.
- Fork or any stirring material.
- Kitchen timer or your watch will do.
Here Are The Steps
- Prepare 1 cup milk or any measurement called for your recipe.
- Heat the milk in the microwave, a little bit warm will do. If you do not have a microwave, the stove top is applicable. However, you can totally skip this step. I just prefer to warm it up since milk sour fast when it is warm.
- Add 1 tablespoon vinegar or lemon juice to sour the milk. One good substitute is one-half the amount of cream of tartar. (the ratio should be 1 teaspoon of cream of tartar for every 1 cup of milk).
- Stir it for 30 seconds. Use a fork to stir it or anything available. If you are using a substitute, stir a little bit longer. You need to ensure that it is totally dissolved.
- Usually, it is ready to be used after 3-5 minutes. You set the timer, let the milk rest on your table top and use it when the timer goes off. You would know when it is ready when you notice that it already separates. It is quite normal since that is an indication that the milk’s casein protein has thickened and it is beginning to turn sour.
- You can now add and combine the soured milk to the rest of your baking ingredients or as instructed by your recipe.
Here is a video on how to make sour milk to make it easier for you to follow:
I have made it clear above that I use sour milk for my baking needs. However, do you know that you can also drink your homemade sour milk? I know, we can just buy any favorite dairy products in the supermarket. But for the sake of learning, it is good to know some things that might be important to apply in the future. Any knowledge comes handy as always.
The quality of your sour milk is dependent on the following:
- What kind of milk did you use for fermentation? It is recommendable to use raw milk for this process.
- How long did the milk ferment? How warm is the temperature when fermented? I guess, the more natural the process the better. The natural process takes a long time.
- What starter did you use? For best result, a starter that has a high content of lactic acid bacteria must be used.
- It all depends on the acid and oxygen content of your products and the conditions that can influence it.
- The temperature used while the product is being fermented.
The Benefits When You Use Sour Milk
I wonder when did we find out that soured milk can have its own uses after all? If we come to think of it, sour milk is the very first of all dairy products and it has been a prominent pick in our stores today.
Our forefathers have rocked their brains out on how to store milk longer so they still have a supply after sometime. Special thanks to our ancestors who figured out the great use of fermented milk.
These are the advantages that sour milk can give us:
- Easy to digest.
- We adapt to it very well.
- Improves appetite.
- Accelerate the function of the pancreas, liver and the excretion of bile.
- A source of minerals (calcium, potassium, magnesium, phosphorus, sulfur, sodium compounds).
- Contains Vitamins (B2, B5, B12) and micronutrients.
- A small amount if microelements (zinc, selenium, molybdenum, cobalt, iodine).
- Good for the digestive system. It let the intestine work well so it eliminates constipation.
- A source of antibiotics.
- Lowers the cholesterol of our body, reducing the chances of heart attack.
- Contains anti-cancer properties.
- Lactose intolerant people can drink this kind of milk. Thanks to the fermentation, it already broke.
- Boosting the immune system.
Did You Know?
- That sour milk is much safer to drink than fresh milk? The lactic acid and the bacteriocins in the sour milk kill the coliforms and other harmful bacteria like E-coli.
- When raw milk turns to sour, it means that the probiotics have used up the lactose which made it more beneficial to health while pasteurized milk has no enzymes. The moment it turns sour, you need to throw it out, otherwise, it will cause you illness.
- You can freeze sour milk so you can use it later.
What Can You Make Out Of Sour Cream?
If you have made a lot of sour cream than needed, what is the best you can make out of it? Truly you will learn a lot! So there is no need for you to rush consuming it all before it expires.
+ Cottage Cheese
Use a boiler to cook cottage cheese. Let it simmer until you see that the liquid part has separated from the cheese. Strain it after to get rid of the extra liquid. Add some cream and seasonings. There is your cottage cheese!
+ Yogurt
Home-made yogurt out of sour milk is much higher in quality in terms of texture and flavor than those that we buy from stores. It is way cheaper too.
+ Beauty
I just knew that sour milk could be an ingredient for facial masks. So it also makes our skin smooth, even and has a consistent color. Apply sour milk all over your face, rinse it off with milk (what?) followed by water.
+ Pet Food
Good idea for pet food. Make dog biscuits or you can just let it curdle and feed it to your chicken.
+ Fertilizer
Dump it at the base of your plants, it will make a very effective fertilizer.
+ Cleaning Solution
Use to soak silver ornaments with it. The result will be clean, shiny silvers!
+ Cooking
Tenderize meat by soaking it to sour milk before cooking. You can also add a little bit of sour milk to recipes who are creamy.
+ Baking
Sour milk is known in baking as a substitute for buttermilk. It does not require a large quantity each recipe but it always serves its purpose.
- Warning:
Do not drink milk that is already spoiled for a long time. It will cause you illness. We are talking about milk that has a sour taste but is not spoiled yet and is safe to drink. To give you an idea, milk turns sour 3 days after its expiration date. If it is not yet opened, it can go beyond a week or two after expiration. However, it varies depending on how you store it.
Do you already know how to make sour milk? That was a long read actually, but it did clarify a lot of things about sour milk. You did not only learn how to make it but also knew the different uses for it. It was surprising to know the benefits it can give for our health.
I am excited to know how you are doing out there? Is your first try a success? Share it with us right here. Till next time!
