Baked milk facts for kids
Baked milk (also called toplyonoye moloko in Russian) is a special kind of milk. It's very popular in countries like Russia, Ukraine, and Belarus. It's made by cooking milk very slowly on low heat for eight hours or even longer. This long, slow cooking gives it a unique creamy color and a delicious caramel taste.
How Baked Milk is Made
Baked milk was once made in homes, especially in the countryside. People would leave a jug of boiled milk in an oven overnight. This simple method created baked milk. More detailed recipes also existed.
When milk is heated for a long time, its natural parts change. The milk's amino acids and sugars react together. This creates new compounds called melanoidins. These are what give baked milk its creamy, light brown color and its special caramel flavor. Also, a lot of the water in the milk evaporates. This makes the milk thicker and creamier.
In old Russian log houses, called izbas, people used a special oven called a Russian stove. This stove could keep different temperatures in different spots. This was perfect for slowly baking milk.
Today, companies make baked milk in large factories. Like scalded milk, it's free of germs and enzymes. This means it can be stored safely at room temperature for a long time, sometimes up to forty hours. People also use homemade baked milk to make many tasty treats. These include cakes, pies, and cookies.
Some people find that drinking baked milk regularly can help if they have trouble digesting milk, known as lactose intolerance. However, this isn't always the case for everyone.
Fermented Baked Milk
There are also special drinks made from baked milk. These are called Ryazhenka and varenets. They are like a traditional type of yogurt. These drinks are a common breakfast choice in Ukraine, Belarus, and Russia.
Long ago, in farming villages, varenets was made by baking sour milk in the traditional East Slavic oven until it turned a golden brown. Later, during the Soviet era, the name "ryazhenka" was used for a creamy, government-produced drink. This drink did not have the thick skin that homemade baked milk often gets.
