Making whey for the first time

[Guest guest]

Hello Everyone,

This is my first post. I just found this group by following links

from Sally Fallon's " Nourishing Traditions " . What a great book! I

do believe it is going to save my life.

Anyway, my first project from the book was to make whey using raw

milk. The instructions say to let it set out at room temperature for

2-4 days until it seperates. It is now in the middle of the third

day and I can't see any changes in it. Granted, the spot may have

been a little cool during the nights - 66 to 68 degrees.

I was just wondering if it will be obvious when it seperates or if I

should just go ahead and strain it after the fourth day even if it

still looks the same?

Thanks in advance,

[Guest guest]

--- In , " Burns " <jburns62@b...>

wrote:

> I was just wondering if it will be obvious when it seperates or if I

> should just go ahead and strain it after the fourth day even if it

> still looks the same?

,

It will be very obvious. The milk solids/white stuff will float up

and clearish liquid will be below. Important: don't fret--it won't

go " bad " and you can't do anything " wrong " that I can think of.

B.

/MAP sure to send a list of what could go wrong?

//I asked for it?

[Guest guest]

>I was just wondering if it will be obvious when it seperates or if I

>should just go ahead and strain it after the fourth day even if it

>still looks the same?

>

>Thanks in advance,

>

>

It probably won't strain if it still " looks the same " . The thing about fermented

stuff is: it's not exact. It will change from batch to batch and even from

kitchen

to kitchen. It teaches you to not be a robot ... life varies ... ok, I'm not a

good

yoga teacher. Anyway, it ain't exact. It WILL separate eventually, it will take

longer in cold weather. You can put it on a hot pad or in a warm place to

speed things up, get it to about 90 degrees if you want.

I personally have MUCH better results with fermenting by using kefir

grains for starters for everything. Cow milk varies depending on the

cow, but kefir is pretty predictable, and it has great probiotic effects.

Far better than any yogurt, though I never experimented much with

raw milk (it is hard to get here, and I can't drink it anyway).

Also, although NT relies a lot on whey for a " starter " , most of the

traditional fermentation processes do not use any starter. Whey is

a safe, easy way to go, but you don't need it for most things, so

don't sweat it if you can't get it right away.

Heidi Jean

[Guest guest]

>

> >I was just wondering if it will be obvious when it seperates or if

I

> >should just go ahead and strain it after the fourth day even if it

> >still looks the same?

> >

> >Thanks in advance,

> >

> >

>

> It probably won't strain if it still " looks the same " . The thing

about fermented

> stuff is: it's not exact. It will change from batch to batch and

even from kitchen

> to kitchen. It teaches you to not be a robot ... life varies ...

ok, I'm not a good

> yoga teacher. Anyway, it ain't exact. It WILL separate eventually,

it will take

> longer in cold weather. You can put it on a hot pad or in a warm

place to

> speed things up, get it to about 90 degrees if you want.

>

> I personally have MUCH better results with fermenting by using kefir

> grains for starters for everything. Cow milk varies depending on

the

> cow, but kefir is pretty predictable, and it has great probiotic

effects.

> Far better than any yogurt, though I never experimented much with

> raw milk (it is hard to get here, and I can't drink it anyway).

>

> Also, although NT relies a lot on whey for a " starter " , most of the

> traditional fermentation processes do not use any starter. Whey is

> a safe, easy way to go, but you don't need it for most things, so

> don't sweat it if you can't get it right away.

>

>

> Heidi Jean

Thanks everyone for all the advice! I found a warmer spot in the

house and moved it there. I'll give it more time and won't " fret

about it " . :-)

I took a sniff and it does have a verrry pleasant smell. It's nice

to know that it can't go bad. This is so different from pasturized

milk that goes bad in the fridge. I had a hard time believing the

book when I read about leaving milk products out at room temperature

for days a time. Now I'm a believer!

This is fun. I feel empowered. Can't wait to try the next thing!

Thanks again,