Cool Cultures
Sydney chef and teacher Holly Davis reveals some of the delights from her new book, Ferment, a modern take on the ancient way of ‘cooking’ with probiotic ingredients.
Palate-pleasing recipes that include fermented ingredients for probiotic goodness.
LABNEH (above) is the Middle Eastern name for strained yoghurt. When making it from scratch, you decide how thick you want it to be. To make, line a sieve with a double layer of muslin, leaving plenty of overhang. Pour 1kg live plain cows’, goats’ or sheep’s yoghurt into sieve and wrap muslin over the top so that it’s well covered. Gather muslin and sit yoghurt over a bowl (to catch the whey). Leave at room temperature or put in the fridge for anywhere between 3 and 12 hours, depending on how thick you would like the labneh. When you are happy with the texture, remove the labneh from the muslin, transfer to an airtight container and refrigerate. It will keep like this for up to a week. HERBY LEMON & GARLIC LABNEH In a bowl, combine 1 cup labneh with 1 large clove garlic (chopped) and 2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil. In a separate bowl, mix together 1 bunch finely chopped flat-leaf parsley, finely sliced zest of 1 lemon, and a little sea salt and black pepper. Place labneh in a serving dish, sprinkle herb and lemon mixture over, season to taste and serve. >