flipKurut (dried cheese balls)
Kurut (dried cheese balls)
Why this dish? The nomadic culture that Aïtmatov celebrated all his life relied on the art of preserving milk to survive the long Central Asian winters. Kurut, hard as a stone and lasting months, is the concentrated memory of the herds of his Kyrgyz childhood.
Fermented milk drained, salted, shaped into small balls and dried in the sun until hard. It is sucked as is, nibbled on the go, or dissolved in water or broth to thicken a dish.
When summer waned, the women pressed the curdled milk in cloths, salted it and rolled small balls that they lined up to dry on the roofs, in the full sun. When winter came and the snow locked the aïl, these white pebbles were worth gold: a kurut in the mouth, and the shepherd lasted hours in the cold. On the road, I always kept a few in the bottom of my pocket—a taste of salt and sour that brings back the whole steppe in an instant.
- •Fermented milk (curds from sheep, cow or mare) — in quantity (base)
- •Salt — generously (preservation and taste)
Kurut (dried cheese balls)
Fermented milk drained, salted, shaped into small balls and dried in the sun until hard. It is sucked as is, nibbled on the go, or dissolved in water or broth to thicken a dish.
Why this dish? The nomadic culture that Aïtmatov celebrated all his life relied on the art of preserving milk to survive the long Central Asian winters. Kurut, hard as a stone and lasting months, is the concentrated memory of the herds of his Kyrgyz childhood.
When summer waned, the women pressed the curdled milk in cloths, salted it and rolled small balls that they lined up to dry on the roofs, in the full sun. When winter came and the snow locked the aïl, these white pebbles were worth gold: a kurut in the mouth, and the shepherd lasted hours in the cold. On the road, I always kept a few in the bottom of my pocket—a taste of salt and sour that brings back the whole steppe in an instant.
Ingredients (period version)
- Fermented milk (curds from sheep, cow or mare) — in quantity (base)
- Salt — generously (preservation and taste)
Ingredients
- Full-fat plain yogurt or fermented milk — 1 kg (base)
- Salt — 2 tsp (preservation and taste)
Method
- Salt the yogurt, pour it into a clean cloth and hang for 24–48 hours in a cool place to drain into a firm paste (suzbe).
- Taste and adjust salt.
- Shape into small balls of 2–3 cm, pressing the paste firmly.
- Arrange on a rack in dry sun or a ventilated area (or in an oven left ajar at very low temperature) for several days, turning them.
- Dry until hard. Store away from moisture.
- Enjoy as is, or dissolve a ball in hot water to make a tangy milk drink.
How it was made : Dried in the sun on the roofs of yurts and houses, kurut could keep for an entire season without refrigeration. It was the food of the shepherd, the rider and the soldier: compact, rich, indestructible.
The contemporary twist : Grate a little dry kurut over a mutton soup just before serving, like a Parmesan from the steppes.
Chingiz Aitmatov · Charactorium
