Often times, we tend to talk a lot about food and the various delicacies that we can relish from different cuisines but the drinks counter gets sidelined. The rich and diverse food variety tends to overshadow and overpower the beverages. Some drinks are fusion creations and relatively new, while others are traditional, classic recipes. They can alcoholic or non-alcoholic, fruity or creamy, sweet, salty or bitter. Now, when you are eating something, you are bound to need something to wash it down and well drinks do that job. Back in school, in the days of sweltering summer, I would be extremely exhausted and in need of a refreshing drink. That’s when buttermilk came to my rescue.
Buttermilk, also known as chaas in Hindi, is a salty milk preparation that was traditionally obtained as a residue. The cooling properties of its ingredients make it an ideal summer drink. Lassi is a thick, curd based milk drink which can be sweet, salty or both. However, chaas is generally salty. In the olden times, buttermilk was referred to the liquid that was a by-product of the process of churning butter from cultured cream. These days, cultured buttermilk is the most commonly consumed drink. In this case, pasturised milk is curdled with a lactic acid to be fermented into a different form of milk. This usually contains lesser amount of fat than milk and has a thick consistency.
Why consume store-bought buttermilk when you can easily whip it up at home with minimum ingredients. Here are four ways in which you can prep it up at home.
1. Sour Cream
Since you an acidic agent to ferment the buttermilk, you can use sour cream along with milk to obtain a thick consistency. For this, you would need ¾ cups of sour cream in ¼ cup milk. Whisk till you get a thick and creamy texture that is ideal for your use.
2. Lemon Juice
Well, lemon juice comes at your rescue each time you need to curdle something. This time, the hack is to take a little lemon juice (approx. 1 tbsp) and stir it in a glass of milk. After 10 minutes of resting time, you’ll notice that the milk has curdled to the perfect state.
3. Yoghurt
Thickness of the yoghurt will determine how much of it you need for the preparation of buttermilk. Here too, you have to take the same measurements as the sour cream and milk recipe and whisk it well. This might take a while so you need to be patient to get the desired consistency.
4. Vinegar
Here, you need to add one tablespoon of vinegar to a glass of plain milk. Stirring it well and letting it rest for 10 minutes will curdle the milk for you.
Now once you have your buttermilk ready, you can mix it in water and make a refreshing drink, top it on your pancakes and waffles or simply layer it on your cakes and muffins as a drizzle.