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Leben (Middle Eastern Sour Milk)

Leben (Middle Eastern Sour Milk)
DrinksInternational⏱ 20 minServes 4EasyGluten-freeEgg-freeVegetarianNut-free
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🌾 Gluten-free by ingredient. Every ingredient in this recipe was checked against our strict gluten-free list. It has not been test-cooked or lab-tested. If you have coeliac disease, check the label of every product you use (for example “gluten-free” on spices, stock or oats) and avoid cross-contact in your own kitchen. How we check recipes

Ingredients

  • 1 gallon homogenized whole milk
  • 1 cup unflavored (plain) yogurt
  • 1 quart half and half cream (optional)
  • 1 tsp citric acid (optional)
  • 1 tsp sugar (optional)

Method

  1. Add the milk to a large pot. Boil until it starts to foam.
  2. Turn off the heat and wait for the milk to cool to room temperature.
  3. Stir in the yogurt and half and half.
  4. To make your leben more sour, boil the mixture and add the citric acid along with it until it starts to foam. To make your leben more sweet, boil the mixture and add the sugar along with it until it starts to foam. It is not recommended to add the sugar and citric acid together in your leben. This will worsen its taste.
  5. Stir well, cover with a towel, and let rest overnight at room temperature.
  6. Uncover and stir, then enjoy.
  7. To preserve your leben, cool it as a regular dairy product.

Recipe source: Wikibooks Cookbook · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikibooks contributors (history) · Wiki markup removed and reformatted
Photo: Lben 1 cropped by Sabah HAANA (CC BY-SA 4.0) · source