How to Make Buttermilk from Milk

Buttermilk is the milk from cultured butter. It's a tangy, slightly sweet, and wonderfully rich liquid that's reminiscent of yogurt. A lot of people enjoy making buttermilk pancakes early on a Saturday morning, but not a lot of people have buttermilk sitting in their refrigerator, nor know what to do with a quart of buttermilk when the pancakes are done. For this reason, it's often easier to make buttermilk from milk. This article will show you how to do exactly that, along with a couple substitutes you can use in a pinch, as well as how to make the real deal!

Ingredients

• 1 cup whole milk


• 1 teaspoon lemon juice or white vinegar

Steps

1. Mix your acid together with your milk. Many people prefer using lemon juice to curdle the milk, but vinegar is also used. Lemon juice add a lighter note that cuts through the richness of the milk perfectly while still making it tangy.
   
   
   
   
   
   
   


2. Stir together and let milk stand for 5 - 10 minutes. During this time, the milk will begin to curdle. Small solids will begin to form as a result of adding the lemon juice or vinegar.
   
   
   
   
   
   
   


3. Use your buttermilk as you would any other buttermilk. Try out any of the following recipes for just a smidgen of inspiration:
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   • Make buttermilk pancakes
   
   
   • Make buttermilk biscuits
   
   
   • Make buttermilk fried chicken
   
   
   • Make buttermilk dressing for salads
   
   
   • Make buttermilk scones
   
   
   
   


4. If you're interested, eventually learn to make real buttermilk. Real buttermilk is a byproduct of making butter from cream. A culture is added to the cream, and it helps separate the milk fats from the leftover liquids. These leftover liquids are real buttermilk.^[1] To make real buttermilk, learn how to make real butter!
   
   
   
   
   
   
   

Buttermilk Substitutes from Everyday Items

Though these quick recipes might not offer the cook the same taste or versatility of real buttermilk, they are quick and they work well as substitutions. If you want to experiment with them, they'll keep your recipes that call for buttermilk from falling apart.

1. Try making substitute buttermilk out of yogurt and water. Mix 3/4 cup plain yogurt with 1/4 cup of water and stir to combine.
   
   
   
   
   
   
   


2. Try making substitute buttermilk out of sour cream and water. Mix 3/4 cup sour cream with 1/4 cup of water and stir to combine.
   
   
   
   
   
   
   


3. Mix up milk and cream of tartar for a buttermilk substitute. Mix together 1 cup of milk with 1 3/4 teaspoons cream of tarter. Wait 5 - 10 minutes until milk is slightly thickened and curdled.^[2]
   
   
   
   
   
   
   

Video

Tips

• Store-bought buttermilk is often just skim milk with culture, or essentially soured milk. If you've never tasted real buttermilk, give it a try! Many find it has a wonderful taste that's far better than store-bought buttermilk.

Related wikiHows

• How to Make Buttermilk Using Lemon

Sources and Citations

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