Ingredients
Curd
- 3 litresthick sheep’s or cow’s yoghurt
- 3 tbspsalt
Equipment
- muslin, for hanging
- a flat basket or tray
- full sun and moving air, or a rooftop
To use it
- eaten dry, in the hand
- crushed into hot water, tea or soup
Directions
- Hang the yoghurt in muslin over a bowl for 24 hours until it is firm enough to roll — pressed, not squeezed.
- Work the salt right through it. Three tablespoons to three litres of milk is not seasoning but the preservative, and an underslated batch moulds on the roof rather than drying.
- Roll into balls the size of a walnut, rolling firmly between the palms until the surface is smooth and closed. Cracks let moisture stay trapped and that is where a ball rots from the middle.
- Set them well apart on a basket in full sun with air moving over them — in Uzbek towns they go on the flat rooftops for exactly this reason.
- Spacing matters. Balls touching each other stay damp where they meet and go mouldy in that one spot.
- Turn them once or twice a day and bring them in at night if there is dew.
- Dry for one to two weeks until they are rock hard and rattle on the tray. A thumbnail should not dent one.
- Half-dried qurt is the failure to avoid: hard on the outside and soft inside, it spoils in the bag without ever showing it.
- Store in a cloth bag somewhere dry. It keeps for years without refrigeration, which is why it is a travelling food and why it is sold in pyramids at every bazaar.
- Suck a ball slowly, or crush one into hot water for a salty drink, or crumble it into soup to sour and thicken it.
Technique
- Salt hard, roll smooth, dry until rock hard.
- Space them apart, turn them daily.
- Fiercely salty and jaw-breakingly hard is correct.
Substitutions
- Greek yoghurt, already strained, which skips the hanging.
- A dehydrator at 45°C (113°F) for two days.
- Flattened into discs, which dry faster than balls.
Variations
- Red qurt, rolled in chilli powder, which is sold alongside the plain kind.
- The Kazakh kurt, Turkmen gurt and Mongolian aaruul are the same preserve.
History
Dried on rooftops so milk keeps for years; sold in bazaar pyramids and eaten on journeys.
Frequently asked questions
What is Qurt?
Qurt is a cheese & dairy from Uzbekistan: hard salty balls of dried curd, sucked slowly like a sweet. Dried on rooftops so milk keeps for years; sold in bazaar pyramids and eaten on journeys.
How long does Qurt take to make?
Qurt takes 30 min plus 24 hours draining and 1 to 2 weeks drying of preparation and no cooking at all. The recipe makes makes about 40 balls. It is rated easy to make.
What can I substitute in Qurt?
Yes, within limits. Greek yoghurt, already strained, which skips the hanging. A dehydrator at 45°C (113°F) for two days. Flattened into discs, which dry faster than balls.
What is the most important thing to get right in Qurt?
Work the salt right through it. Three tablespoons to three litres of milk is not seasoning but the preservative, and an underslated batch moulds on the roof rather than drying.
