Fermented Milk Products from All Over the World • Prostokvasha (Russia, Ukraine, Belarus)

Prostokvasha, which can be translated as “simply fermented”, is a dairy product that is extremely simple to make, as it solely involves allowing the fresh milk to ferment naturally, at room temperature, without intervening in any way. In other words, prostokvasha is clabbered milk. This was the creative way of Russians to prevent milk from being thrown out once it stopped being fresh. Thus, before the milk went off, they used to leave it at room temperature until it thickened, becoming similar to yogurt, due to a natural fermentation process. The amount of time required for the milk to turn into prostokvasha depends on how fresh is the milk. The less fresh it is, the faster the process will be. So, don’t forget to check on it quite often, to see if it thickened, as leaving it to ferment for too long will spoil its taste. Once the milk got thick, put it in the fridge. Serve it as it is, with fruits, sugar, bread, cereals, or add it to various recipes, like pancakes, soups, and so on.