Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall
MORE RECIPES
Cauliflower clafoutis with ham and parsley; Polenta croquettes; Jerusalem artichoke and seaweed tart; Smoked haddock jacket potatoes; Wineberries with peaches and custard; Melon and milk sorbet; Vanilla and rhubarb ice cream; Chocolate, brandy and star anise ice cream; Beer ice cream; Drip scones; Spelt and honey pikelets
We’ve drunk milk for thousands of years and cooked with it for centuries. It is an everyday staple, a food so thoroughly embedded in our way of life – and indeed, so cheap – that it flies under our radar. Sloshing milk on to our cornflakes, or adding a dash to our tea or coffee, for most of us, are barely conscious actions.
Yet milk comes with its share of issues. While it is nutritious and a good source of calcium – and while dairy marketing boards have done their best to convince us otherwise – we don’t need it. It’s not meant for human systems (obviously) and the larger part of the world’s population do not produce the enzyme, lactase, needed to digest it properly. (People of European and Scandinavian descent are much more likely to be able to digest milk comfortably than Asians or Africans.)
And then there’s animal welfare. Dairy farming is one of the most exploitative of all forms of animal agriculture. Dairy cows are bred to produce large quantities of milk. They are in calf roughly once a year, their calves removed from them almost immediately after birth, and they are then milked for about 10 months before a 2-month ‘dry’ period prior to them giving birth again. A dairy cow can go through up to thirteen of these cycles in her lifetime.
It’s incumbent on those of us who want to consume milk to minimise the discomfort of the animals who produce it. For me, that means choosing organic milk from pasture-fed cows kept in small herds. Cows are supposed to graze; they are designed to digest grass. In modern systems, cows’ feed is supplemented with other ingredients, known as ‘concentrates’, that are much higher in energy and protein, in order to boost their milk production. Most dairy cattle are brought indoors during the winter when grass is not growing, where they may be fed on silage or hay – again often supplemented with other feeds.
Organic standards state that cows must spend the majority of their lives outdoors and that their diet must contain a minimum 60 per cent forage, such as grass and clover or roots. Average yields for organic dairy cows are around one-third less than for conventional cows – a statistic which might make some farmers shudder but that I find reassuring. Take into account that organic milk has been shown to contain higher levels of nutrients such as omega-3 and vitamin E, and it seems an obvious choice.
Milk is an ingredient I have cut back on but I still enjoy organic milk, as it offers something unique: the velvety sweetness of dairy without the richness of cream. At around 4 per cent fat, even whole milk is still a relatively low-fat food and I don’t see much point in skimmed or semi-skimmed milks, where, for the sake of losing a few calories, you also lose flavour, body and a small dose of fat-soluble vitamins. Whole milk tastes better and cooks better too: béchamel sauces, bubbling, cheesy rarebits, mellow rice puddings and wobbling crème caramels all owe their character to milk.
Milk heated with even mildly acidic ingredients, including fruits and vegetables, is prone to curdling. Milky soups such as chowders can have a slightly grainy appearance because of this. To tackle it, a very small measure of flour can be stirred into the soup base – mixed into well-sweated onions, for instance – to help stabilise the milk.
Sometimes, however, that characteristic curdling is just what you want. You can produce a simple home-made cheese (very similar to the Indian paneer) by warming whole milk with lemon juice until it ‘splits’, then draining the whey from the curdy solids through muslin. The traditional Italian dish arrosto di maiale al latte is another way to celebrate the split, by braising pork in milk until it curdles and cooks down to nutty sweetness.
Non-cow’s milk and unpasteurised milk
Other milks – from goats, sheep and buffalo – are becoming increasingly popular because some people find them easier to tolerate than cow’s milk. You might assume that these ‘alternative’ milks are produced in less intensive systems than cow’s milk, but this is not necessarily the case. Most of our dairy goats are raised in zero-grazing systems and are far less likely to be allowed outside than dairy cows. Organic goat’s milk is available, though rare, and there are some free-range producers. Dairy sheep (as with sheep bred for meat) and buffalo tend to do well outdoors for most of the year – but it’s worth researching how the animals are kept before you buy.
There’s a small but passionate following for raw milk in this country. In England, Wales and Northern Ireland, you can buy it direct from the producer, for example at farmers’ markets and farm shops, though in Scotland it’s banned altogether.
Pasteurisation kills off most of the bacteria and enzymes in milk and, some believe, turns it into a lifeless and less nutritious product. I can certainly vouch for the fact that unpasteurised milk has good flavour and character.
There is always a risk attached to drinking unpasteurised milk because it can contain seriously nasty bacteria including campylobacter, E. coli and listeria. Producers have to follow very stringent hygiene rules but raw milk does, occasionally, cause food poisoning. These outbreaks are rare but potentially very serious, especially for people with other health problems, or pregnant women.
A1 and A2 milk
The latest debate about cow’s milk centres on the identification of two different types, labelled A1 and A2 according to the form of protein they contain. All cow’s milk used to be A2. The A1 protein arose as the result of a genetic mutation, but is now found in milk from many modern breeds – including ‘Holstein-Friesian’, which dominates our market. Some other breeds (including Channel Island cows) still produce largely A2 milk. The issue now at large concerns a ‘peptide’ produced in the gut when you drink A1 milk, that some believe can affect digestion, immunity and even the nervous system. More scientific evidence is needed but, if you’re persuaded of its merits, you can now buy A2 milk in many UK supermarkets.
Doodh means milk in Hindi and masala chai doodh is milky, spiced tea – or spicy tea-ey milk, to be more accurate. Fragrant and sweet, it’s equally refreshing drunk piping hot or icy cold. Serves 2
1 heaped tsp loose-leaf Assam tea
4 cardamom pods, crushed
4cm piece of root ginger, bashed
A large pinch of ground cinnamon (optional)
400ml cold whole milk
1–2 tsp sugar, or to taste
Put the tea in a medium pan with the cardamom, ginger and cinnamon, if using. Add 100ml boiling water, swirl the tea and spices in the water and place over a medium heat. As the water comes to the boil, add a big splosh of the cold milk. Bring back to the boil. Repeat this process, adding milk and heating 3 or 4 times until you have added it all.
Add sugar to taste and give the chai a final fierce boil for about 2 minutes – watch it carefully all the time and whip it off the heat for a moment if it threatens to boil over.
Strain the chai into cups and drink piping hot, adding more sugar if you like. Alternatively, strain, cool and chill the chai, skim off any skin that forms, and serve it over ice (you could call this a spicy cool doodh).
