flipBlack Bread Kvass
Black Bread Kvass
Why this dish? The quintessential Russian national drink, kvass quenched the thirst at every table, from the humblest to official banquets. For a man of the people like Yeltsin, it was the everyday drink, low-alcohol, made from stale black bread that was never thrown away.
A sparkling, brown, slightly tangy drink made by fermenting toasted rye bread. Refreshing, barely sweet, low in alcohol: served cold in summer and also used as a base for cold soups.
In our house, we never threw anything away, especially bread. Stale black bread, you toast it, put it in water with a little sugar and starter, and nature does the rest: it bubbles on its own, it fizzes. Kvass is the worker's drink; it quenches your thirst better than anything when you've sweated all day. Chilled, a little sharp on the tongue — that's what we drank before foreign bottles arrived.
- •Rye bread (black bread), stale — several slices (fermentable base)
- •Water — a large bucket (liquid)
- •Honey or sugar — a good handful (feed fermentation)
- •Sourdough starter or old kvass lees — a little (ferment)
- •Raisins — a handful (boost fizz)
Black Bread Kvass
A sparkling, brown, slightly tangy drink made by fermenting toasted rye bread. Refreshing, barely sweet, low in alcohol: served cold in summer and also used as a base for cold soups.
Why this dish? The quintessential Russian national drink, kvass quenched the thirst at every table, from the humblest to official banquets. For a man of the people like Yeltsin, it was the everyday drink, low-alcohol, made from stale black bread that was never thrown away.
In our house, we never threw anything away, especially bread. Stale black bread, you toast it, put it in water with a little sugar and starter, and nature does the rest: it bubbles on its own, it fizzes. Kvass is the worker's drink; it quenches your thirst better than anything when you've sweated all day. Chilled, a little sharp on the tongue — that's what we drank before foreign bottles arrived.
Ingredients (period version)
- Rye bread (black bread), stale — several slices (fermentable base)
- Water — a large bucket (liquid)
- Honey or sugar — a good handful (feed fermentation)
- Sourdough starter or old kvass lees — a little (ferment)
- Raisins — a handful (boost fizz)
Ingredients
- Whole rye bread — 250 g (fermentable base)
- Water — 2 liters (liquid)
- Sugar — 4 tbsp (fermentation and sweetness)
- Fresh baker's yeast — 5 g (ferment)
- Raisins — 1 handful (natural effervescence)
Method
- Cut the bread into pieces and toast in the oven until dry and dark (this gives color and roasted flavor).
- Pour boiling water over the bread, cover, and let steep for 4 to 6 hours.
- Strain through a cloth. Add sugar, then the yeast dissolved once the liquid is lukewarm.
- Pour into a jar, add raisins, cover with a cloth, and let ferment at room temperature for 1 to 2 days, until it starts to fizz.
- Bottle, seal, and refrigerate for 12 hours to carbonate. Serve well chilled.
- Be careful not to tighten the caps too much in the first hours: gas builds up quickly.
How it was made : Kvass dates back at least to the Slavic Middle Ages. An ubiquitous drink, it typically contained less than 1.5% alcohol. Kvass vendors (kvasniki) sold it by the ladle on the streets. It also served as a base for okroshka, a cold summer soup.
The contemporary twist : An infusion of mint leaves or a lemon zest at the end of fermentation for a livelier summer version.
Boris Yeltsin · Charactorium
