by Tom Stobart
5) Thickening. If the yoghurt is not thick enough, put it gently into a square of double muslin and hang it up to drip until it is as you want it. (Long draining makes yoghurt cheese or labneh, which is eaten with olive oil, Arab bread and black olives.) An alternative is carefully to make a well in the surface with a ladle; after some time, the well fills with watery whey, which can be spooned out. If necessary, you can repeat the process until the yoghurt is thick but it will still be almost undisturbed in the pot.
6) Troubles. There are three main reasons for failure. The first is failing to keep the pot warm enough. This happens if the insulation is insufficient or if you are trying to make yoghurt in too small a quantity. Try better insulation, a hot-water bottle or the airing cupboard. The next is using a dud yoghurt as a starter, it must contain living bacteria. Alternatively, you may have been killing the bacteria by putting them into milk that was too hot. Finally, you cannot use milk that contains antibiotics (which have been used to dose sick cows) or preservatives. Such things stop the organisms growing.
7) Cooking.Yoghurt is much used in the cooking of the region from the Balkans to lndia. Yoghurt made from goat’s milk can be boiled (carefully) without it ‘breaking’, but cow’s milk yoghurt needs something to stabilize it. Add a teaspoon of cornflour or of *besan flour and the white of an egg to every litre (1¾ pt) of yoghurt. Boil it warily, and stir it smoothly in one direction, a teaspoon of salt per litre (1¾ pt) is normally added as well.
Doogh (Iran)
One of the best refreshing drinks for hot weather. Beat 6 cups of yoghurt with about 10 cups of water and salt it very well (you need salt to replace what you have lost in sweating) – about 2 dessertspoons is normal for this quantity although it is added to taste. Chill thoroughly. I prefer to chill the yoghurt and to dilute it with soda water. Gassed, bottled doogh can be bought in Iran. Lebanese ayran or ‘ayraan and Indian lassi are similar.
Curd Curry (India)
This is delicious served as a soup, with rice if you like. Mix 4 cups of yoghurt with up to 8 cups water (depending on how thick you like it) and beat in 1-2 tablespoons *besan flour. Chop and add a 2½ cm (1 in) piece of fresh ginger and 4 green chillies (powdered ginger and chili powder can be used, but the taste is different). Put a tablespoonful of oil in a ladle, heat it and add 6 cloves, 2 sticks 5 cm (2 in) long of cinnamon, about 10 curry leaves, ½ teaspoon of asafoetida and a teaspoon of black mustard seed. When the mustard seeds begin to splutter immediately quench the whole ladle of goodies in the yoghurt mixture, which is then put on the heat. Add 1 teaspoon gur or dark brown sugar and salt to taste. Cook, stirring to begin with, until the soup is well thickened and the flavour has developed. Strain and serve garnished with chopped green coriander leaves if these are available. This is one of my favourite foods in hot weather. I use less water and the double quantity of besan, with a little powdered turmeric which slightly alters the taste and gives colour. Diced cucumber or okra can also be cooked in the soup.
Ab doogh khiar (Iran)
Finely chop 2 small cucumbers (ridge size), 3 spring onions, and a herb mixture (say, 2 sprigs each of mint, basil and savory). Also chop ½ cup raisins and ¼ cup walnuts. Mix with 4 cups thick yoghurt, season with salt and chill in the refrigerator. This dish is correctly served as a kind of salad, but makes a healthy lunch in summer.
[Yoghurt – French: yaourt, yogourt German: Joghurt Italian: yog(h)urt Spanish: yogur]
YOUNGBERRY. See raspberry.
YSAÑO. See yam (ysaño).
YUCA. See cassava.
z
ZAMIKAND. See yam (elephant’s foot).
ZAMPONE. A North Italian sausage for boiling. For this famous speciality, originally from around Modena, a boned pig’s foot – correctly a forefoot – is stuffed with minced pork including some of the soft skin from the head and snout (as in *cotechino), which gives it the splendidly soft, gelatinous texture that it has when cooked. Zampone is flavoured with salt, pepper and garlic, but there are fancy varieties such as zampone al cedro (which contains candied citron peel and sweet white wine). In Emilia, pieces of pig skin are cut into convenient shapes – squares, ovals, rounds – and stuffed with the zampone mixture. They have names like bombonetti, cappelletti, monchi and vesicichette. Zampone needs to be simmered for about 2 hours (some soak it first) and is served, cut in thick slices like cotechino, with lentils or as part of a bollito misto with a piquant sauce such as salsa verde. Zampone is food for cold weather.
ZAPOTE. See sapodilla.
ZEDOARY. A spice, the dried rhizome of a plant (Curcuma zedoaria) related to turmeric and ginger, which is native to South east Asia. The taste is something like musty camphor, and it is used in Malay and Indonesian cooking. Zedoary can be obtained in dried bits in some shops that specialize in exotic ingredients. It is usually sold under its Dutch name kentjoer.
[Zedoary – French: zedoaire German: Zitwertwurzel Italian: zedoaria Spanish: cedoaria]
ZEST. Originally the tough outer skin of the walnut, but now used to denote the outer skin of citrus fruits, especially of lemon and orange, which contains the essential flavouring oils.
[Zest – French: zeste German: Stückchen Orange od Zitronenschale Italian: scarzetta Spanish: luquete]
ZIGEUNER SPECK. See bacon.
ZINC (Zn). An essential trace metal. It is thought that 10 mg a day is the usual human requirement Rich sources are oysters (270-600 parts per million) and herrings (700-1200).Wheatgerm and wheat bran are also rich in zinc, but it may not be absorbed efficiently from vegetable sources. Other sources are peanuts, liver, beef and mutton, cheese and cocoa, eggs and pulses. Although zinc deficiency is not common, it occurs in some communities. Zinc is lost in sweat, which is one reason why deficiency is more likely to occur in hot countries. In quantity, zinc salts are emetic. Metallic zinc is used as a coating for iron to stop rusting. This is known as galvanizing. As zinc is very easily dissolved by acids, it is important not to put acid substances in galvanized boilers and buckets. Brass can be an alloy of zinc and copper.
[Zinc – French: zinc German: Zink Italian: zinco Spanish: zinc, cinc]
ZITE. See pasta
ZUCCHINI. See marrow.