To put it very simply, whey is the watery part of milk and is rich in lactobacilli (friendly bacteria which produce lactic acid). I use it to start many food-prep processes, including soaking oatmeal, lacto-fermentation, preserving homemade mayo, and preparing raw fish. Before I started buying whey through our buyers' club, I made my own from a container of plain organic yogurt. I use Seven Stars, which worked well, but you could use any kind -- just make sure it's unflavored and full fat. As a byproduct (or really the whey is the byproduct I suppose) you will also have a sort of homemade cream cheese which is delicious spread on muffins. I take my recipe (and most of my recipes) from Nourishing Traditions, by Sally Fallon. Here's what she writes:
"Line a large strainer set over a bowl with a clean dish towel. Pour in the yogurt, cover with a towel, and let stand at room temperature for about a day. The whey will run into the bowl and the milk solids will stay in the strainer. After a day, tie up the towel with the milk solids inside, being careful not to squeeze. Tie this little sack to a wooden spoon placed across the top of a container so that more whey can drip out. When the bag stops dripping, the cream cheese is ready. Store whey in a glass jar and cream cheese in a covered glass container. Refrigerated, the cream cheese keeps for about 1 month and the whey for about 6 months."
I just tried making whey from raw milk, and the end result is more milky than I expected. Is this normal? Did I not get all the milk proteins out? I followed Sally Fallon's recipe pretty closely.
ReplyDeleteHello Viola,
ReplyDeleteI have not made whey from raw milk before I don't think...perhaps once, when I let the milk separate naturally at room temperature, but I'm not sure. I generally buy it from farmers who have it as a by-product of cheese-making or other processes, or else I strain the yogurt myself. In fact, whenever I make yogurt "cream cheese" I am left with a nice amount of whey. I would recommend straining yogurt the next time. It can sometimes look a little milky, but any milk solids remaining usually settle to the bottom after you have left it in a jar for a little while.