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kumiss

Posted: Sat Jan 28, 2006 3:23 pm
by metricben
hi, does anyone know how to brew kumiss -

i have searched all over the web, and found about 4 recipes, but they are all different. Some call for it to be pressurized, some use lactose.

i just need a simple recipe for a small amount
i have just started: 1/2 pint whole milk, 1/2 pint semi-skimmed, 3 tsp. sugar, and winemaking yeast - a slight variation of a recipe i found

any help appreciated

ps. you can spell kumiss, koumiss, kumis, koumyss + more - doesn't help!!!

Posted: Sat Jan 28, 2006 10:48 pm
by Chickenlady
I'd love to help, but I've never heard of it! Sounds intriguing...

Posted: Sat Jan 28, 2006 11:36 pm
by Wombat
Koumiss is fermented mares (traditionally) milk.

Bill Mollison, in his book "Ferment and Human nutrition" records -

"an older European recipe and worth a try -

Dissolve 56gm compressed yeast in 2 tbsp lukewarm water. Heat 1 litre of milk until likewarm (or cool boiled milk)then stir in the yeast and 2 tbspn of sugar. Fill airtignt bottles to within 4 cm of the top, cork and invert in a stand for 6 hours, if possible at 27degC. Store chilled."

I've never tried it!

Nev

Posted: Sun Jan 29, 2006 2:02 pm
by ina
What is it good for? It sounds a bit like the sad waste of a perfectly good litre of milk...

Ina

Posted: Sun Jan 29, 2006 8:19 pm
by Wombat
You drink it Ina!

Posted: Sun Jan 29, 2006 8:44 pm
by ina
But I could do that with milk! Does the fermenting increase the health qualities, or the flavour?

Ina

Posted: Mon Jan 30, 2006 1:22 am
by Wombat
It makes it alcoholic!

If you like that sort of thing, it may improve the flavour. I think it also improves how long it keeps for.

Nev

chang?

Posted: Thu Apr 27, 2006 12:46 am
by elfcurry
I had some drink made from fermented milk in northern India in the foothills of the Himalayas. I think it was called chang but not sure if that's how you spell it!

It came in a tall glass with small bits of somethin black on the top (unless that was accidental!) and was only available in the kind of places the locals frequented. And by locals I mean people who looked more like Tibetan yak drivers than most Indians. It was dirt cheap (20 years ago) only a 2p a glass or so.

Not very alcoholic (what do you expect for 2p!) and not unpleasant but one glass was enough to see what it was like.

I never wondered before what animal produced the milk. :shock: