Ingredients
Soured milk
- 2 litreswhole milk, cow’s or goat’s
- 4 tbsplive soured milk or plain live yoghurt, as starter
To serve
- millet or sorghum porridge, hot
- a pinch of salt
- sugar, if drinking it plain
Directions
- Warm the milk to about 35°C (95°F) — blood heat, no more. Herders start from milk still warm from the animal and heat nothing.
- Stir in the starter until it is evenly through the milk.
- Pour into a gourd or a jar, cover with a cloth so gas can escape, and leave at warm room temperature for 24 to 36 hours until set and sour.
- Churn or beat it hard for several minutes. Traditionally this is done by rocking the gourd, and a little butter rises to the surface as it goes.
- Skim off any butter and keep it for cooking. What remains is rob: thin, tangy and pourable.
- Chill thoroughly. Add a pinch of salt if drinking it plain, or sugar to taste.
- Serve cold, poured over hot millet porridge so it cuts the starch, or drunk from a bowl.
Technique
- Keep four spoonfuls back for the next batch. A gourd used regularly holds its own culture and needs no starter at all.
- The churning is what makes it rob rather than plain soured milk, and it is also how the household gets its butter.
- Cover with cloth, not a lid — a sealed vessel makes the curd rise and separate unevenly.
Substitutions
- Buttermilk as a starter, closer in character than yoghurt.
- Camel’s milk, which herders in northern Chad use and which sours faster.
Variations
- Left undrained and unchurned it is simply thick soured milk, drunk as it is.
- Rob (Libya) is an entirely different thing under the same name — a date syrup, with no milk in it at all.
History
Arab and Fulani herders sour milk in gourds and churn it; the tangy remainder is drunk plain and used to moisten millet dishes.
Frequently asked questions
What is Rob?
Rob is a cheese & dairy from Chad: soured herders’ milk, drunk cold or stirred into millet porridge. Arab and Fulani herders sour milk in gourds and churn it; the tangy remainder is drunk plain and used to moisten millet dishes.
How long does Rob take to make?
Rob takes 10 min plus 1 to 2 days souring of preparation and no cooking at all. The recipe makes makes about 1.5 litres. It is rated easy to make.
What can I substitute in Rob?
Yes, within limits. Buttermilk as a starter, closer in character than yoghurt. Camel’s milk, which herders in northern Chad use and which sours faster.
What is the most important thing to get right in Rob?
The churning is what makes it rob rather than plain soured milk, and it is also how the household gets its butter.
