Buttermilk

For the past two weekends, I’ve featured recipes using buttermilk. In looking back through my posts, it seems that I use it quite often but it wasn’t until a recent conversation with a buttermilk aficionado that I realized I don’t really know that much about the substance other than it's good to cook with. So you know what that meant…research project!

BUTTERMILK

As it turns out, when talking about buttermilk there are two main types – traditional buttermilk and cultured buttermilk.

Traditional buttermilk refers to the liquid left behind after churning cream to make butter (so it doesn’t actually contain butter). The cream used has been cultured or fermented by allowing whole cow’s milk to sit out for a period of time. The cream separates from the milk and the naturally occurring lactic acid-producing bacteria present in the milk ferment it, making it easier to churn for butter. The acid is what gives buttermilk its tart taste.

Cultured buttermilk is contains cow’s milk that has been pasteurized and homogenized, then inoculated with the lactic acid-producing bacteria.

Then there's powdered buttermilk and condensed buttermilk which are used primarily in food industry for pancake mixes and ice cream making.

Buttermilk is actually very good for you. It’s traditionally low in fat, because the fat goes to make the butter, and doesn’t hang around in the buttermilk. The calorie content will depend on the type of milk it was made from. If 1% or 2% was used, it will have a lower fat content than that made from whole milk. Nutritionally, it is high in calcium, potassium, and riboflavin, and a source for protein.

Because buttermilk is a fermented milk product, it is considered a probiotic food (like yogurt). Adding probiotics to your diet will provide you with health-producing bacterial that hang out in your intestine to help improve immune function and also reduces diarrhea. I know, never a word you want to see related to food, but used in a good sense here.

You can drink buttermilk straight up, and I have talked with a couple of those folks this week, but most people use it for cooking. If you see a recipe that calls for sour milk, they mean buttermilk. Buttermilk is great in baking because it helps with the browning process and provides a nice flavor to baked goods.

And of course, the tangy flavor of buttermilk makes a nice complement with really sweet fruits like peaches (if only we had an ice cream recipe for that) or cherries. Pears too. Will have to try that out sometime.

Found a great suggestion for those watching their weight. When fixing up baked or mashed potatoes, substitute a couple of tablespoons of buttermilk for your butter and/or sour cream. You can still enjoy those tangy, buttery flavors without the added calories that come with them.

Because of the acidic properties of buttermilk, it makes a good marinade and works really well with poultry. It works especially well as a dip for dredging element in the pre-frying process.

So there you go…buttermilk. Does a body good.