Sýrublanda — Soured Whey Drink
Whey left to sour for weeks, then cut with fresh water to make a tangy, thirst-quenching, slightly fizzy drink. The Icelandic equivalent of sour whey, sharp and invigorating.
Whey left to sour for weeks, then cut with fresh water to make a tangy, thirst-quenching, slightly fizzy drink. The Icelandic equivalent of sour whey, sharp and invigorating.
When you make skyr, there remains this clear whey that no one would throw away: you keep it in a barrel, and time sours it as it should. Cut one measure with three measures of water, and there you have what to quench the thirst of the mowers all summer — no beer for us, which comes from so far and costs so dear. It pricks the tongue and wakes a man. In that same barrel of *sýra*, know this, we also plunge meats to keep them through the winter.
- •Sýra (whey from skyr, soured) — the residue from each batch of skyr (acidic base)
- •Water — three parts to one part sýra (dilutes the drink)
Sýrublanda — Soured Whey Drink
Whey left to sour for weeks, then cut with fresh water to make a tangy, thirst-quenching, slightly fizzy drink. The Icelandic equivalent of sour whey, sharp and invigorating.
Why this dish? This was the everyday drink in Árni's Iceland, where beer remained an imported luxury and water was sometimes suspect. A byproduct of the skyr from his childhood at Kvennabrekka, *sýra* quenched the thirst of farms from north to south — the most ordinary drink of his Icelandic life.
When you make skyr, there remains this clear whey that no one would throw away: you keep it in a barrel, and time sours it as it should. Cut one measure with three measures of water, and there you have what to quench the thirst of the mowers all summer — no beer for us, which comes from so far and costs so dear. It pricks the tongue and wakes a man. In that same barrel of *sýra*, know this, we also plunge meats to keep them through the winter.
Ingredients (period version)
- Sýra (whey from skyr, soured) — the residue from each batch of skyr (acidic base)
- Water — three parts to one part sýra (dilutes the drink)
Ingredients
- Whey (from skyr or homemade fresh cheese) — 250 ml (base)
- Fresh water — 750 ml (dilution)
- Honey — 1 tsp (optional) (sweetens for modern palates)
Method
- Collect the whey when making skyr or fresh cheese.
- Let it sour, covered, in a cool place for several days to develop acidity (taste regularly).
- At serving time, dilute one part sýra with three parts very cold water.
- Optionally add a touch of honey for modern palates, and serve very cold.
How it was made : Sýra was both drink and preservative: meats, offal, and blood sausages (*slátur*) were submerged in it in barrels to keep for months, the lactic acid serving as a refrigerator. Cut with water, it became *blanda*, the daily thirst-quencher of a country where barley for beer had to be imported and was reserved for festive days.
The contemporary twist : Rehabilitated by contemporary Nordic cuisine, *mysa* (whey) returns as a trendy probiotic drink: serve sýrublanda over ice with a leaf of angelica, a plant dear to Icelanders.
Sources : Hallgerður Gísladóttir, Íslensk matarhefð, Mál og menning, 1999
Árni Magnússon · Charactorium