Fermented Baked Milk
Another great thing about it, is that ryazhenka itself is a perfect ingredient for baking. Depending on its consistency, which can be runny or quite thick, ryazhenka is something in between a drink and a dessert.
Ingredients
- 8 cups whole milk
- A tablespoon of mixture of sour cream and plain yogurt for every two cups of baked milk.
Instructions
The first way is to use a slow cooker.
- Pour 8 cups of whole milk into a slow cooker and leave the lid slightly open to allow moisture to escape. Turn on low and leave for 8-10 hours, or until golden crust forms. Slow cooking it on high for 4-5 hours also works well, but it’s been more convenient for me to leave it in the crock pot overnight.When the baked milk is ready let it cool for 30 minutes, then remove the crust and strain through a fine strainer into a pot.
A second way is to bake the milk in the oven.
- When the baked milk is ready let it cool for 30 minutes, then remove the crust and strain through a fine strainer into a pot.Pour the milk into an oven-safe 9x13-inch casserole dish. Bake at 350F degrees for 4-5 hours until a golden-brown crust forms on top of the milk.
- Add a tablespoon of sour cream or buttermilk for every two cups of baked milk. Ilike to use a mixture of sour cream and plain yogurt. I mix it with a small amount of warm baked milk until it’s smooth in texture. Then I pour it into the pan with the remaining warm milk and mix until it has an even consistency. Sour cream cultures give it a creamier, more yogurt-like consistency. With buttermilk or kefir, you get a bit of a grainy texture and amore sour taste.
- Cover the pot and leave at room temperature until it thickens (anywhere from 4 to 12 hours). The higher the temperature, the faster the fermentation.
- Pour the final product into the jars and store it in the refrigerator.