Butter, Buttermilk, and Sour Cream

Posted on July 3, 2011. Filed under: Cultured, Cured, or Fermented |

I’ve been making my own cultured milk products for awhile now. It’s so easy to do and I like the freshly cultured flavor.

Ingredients:

1/4 tsp cheese culture

Buttermilk:

1 quart whole milk

Sour Cream:

1 pint heavy cream

Butter:

1 pint heavy cream

I use a Mesophilic 100 starter purchased from thecheesemaker. I use this culture for Fermented Sauerkraut as well. One small bag lasts me for at least a year. The picture shows the ingredients for butter or sour cream.

For the buttermilk, sour cream, and butter combine the milk or cream with the cheese culture and leave on the counter overnight. In the morning place in the refrigerator to cool. The buttermilk has a slightly lumpy appearance. Here’s what the butter and sour cream look like.

For the butter cool it in the refrigerator for a little while. I think there’s an optimal temperature, but I haven’t found much difference in how I do it. Start blending it using a mixer. It will start getting fluffy like whipped cream.

Keep mixing it. It will start to turn yellowish and get a little grainy. This is after 15 minutes.

Once it starts to turn grainy it is very close. Continue to mix another 2 or 3 minutes until the butter has completely separated.

Strain the buttermilk from the butter. Add about a cup of ice water to the butter, mix, and strain to remove any excess liquid. Repeat two or three times. Add salt if desired and refrigerate.