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Original Rezept

Wilt du machen ein gebraten milich, So nim, do niht veiztes zv^o si, die kummen vnd, die gelebt si, den hafen, zv^o slahe, daz sie sanfte her vz glite vf ein bu^etel tu^och, dor in bewint sie vnd beswer sie sanfte von erst vnd dor noch baz, laz sie ligen von dem morgen biz hin zv^o abent. so snit sie du^enne vnd spizze sie, besprenge sie mit saltze vnd lege sie vf einen hv^elzinen rost vnd la sie wol ro^esten. vnd wirf ein wenic pheffers dor vf vnd betreyfe sie mit butern oder mit smaltze, ob ez fleischtac si, vnd gib sie hin.

Übersetzung

If you wish to make fried milk, do not use milk that is too fatty and has curdled. Pour it into a pot and then gently transfer it into a cloth bag. Tie the bag shut and weigh it down—gently at first, then more firmly—and let it sit from morning until evening. Then, slice it thinly and place the pieces on a skewer. Sprinkle with salt, lay them on a wooden grate, and roast them thoroughly. Dust with a little pepper and drizzle with butter or lard—if it is a meat day—and serve.

Recreation

This recipe was likely a way to use up milk that had curdled. Since the milk sold in supermarkets today is homogenized and pasteurized, it is actually quite difficult to get it to curdle without it simply going bad. So, I heated the milk to 80 degrees and curdled it using a little vinegar. Then, I poured the mixture through a cheesecloth to separate the curds from the whey—essentially making ricotta. However, the subsequent steps were still interesting, as the cheese is then pressed and fried.

But returning to the milk: the recipe mentions right at the start that the milk shouldn’t be too high in fat. This could refer to a few different things. Raw cow’s milk typically has a fat content of around 4.2%, whereas modern whole milk is slightly lower (about 3.5%), so that might be worth a try. Alternatively, the recipe could mean skimmed milk. To produce this, raw milk is simply left to stand, and the cream that rises to the top is skimmed off. If this process isn’t carried out particularly thoroughly—or isn’t repeated—the remaining fat content is likely to be under 1.5%, a level easily achieved using low-fat milk.

Since I couldn’t be sure what was actually intended, I tried it with both whole milk and low-fat milk, and the result was clear: using whole milk yields ricotta, as expected. However, this type doesn’t press well; even after about 20 hours of pressing, it remained crumbly and couldn’t be put onto a skewer. The low-fat milk, on the other hand, produced a block firm enough to be skewered just as described in the recipe.

What both versions had in common was that they softened during grilling, making them difficult to handle on a skewer. I then decided to pan-fry them (in butter), which worked very well.

The two versions were markedly different. While the whole-milk version remained crumbly, the low-fat variant became creamy and strongly resembled mozzarella. I therefore assume that skimmed milk was actually intended as the base, as it works significantly better with the described technique.

In terms of taste, both versions were excellent, but the low-fat milk version was better. The whole-milk variant tastes like fried ricotta—which isn’t a bad thing, of course. However, the low-fat version had a lovely, slightly firm texture and tasted rather like extra-milky mozzarella. Frying (or baking) it in butter naturally added some roasted notes as well. The pepper goes well with it, too, though it isn’t strictly necessary.

Fried Milk

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Prep Time 30 minutes mins

Cook Time 30 minutes mins

Servings: 2

Course: Side Dish, Snack

Cuisine: German, Medieval

Ingredients Method

Ingredients

  

• 1.7 L low-fat milk 1–1.5% fat
• 60 ml vinegar
• 1 pinch of salt
• Ground pepper
• 1 tablespoon butter

Method

 

1. Heat the milk in a large pot over medium heat, stirring regularly. Ideally, use a thermometer. Remove from the heat when the milk reaches approximately 80°C. If you do not have a thermometer: the target temperature is reached when plenty of steam rises and small bubbles form around the edge of the pot.
2. Pour the vinegar into the milk and stir for about 5 seconds. Let the milk sit for 10 minutes.
3. Option 1 (Tofu press): Place the tofu press in the sink and line it with cheesecloth. Slowly pour the milk into the press, ensuring nothing spills over. Place a layer of cheesecloth over the top, followed by the lid. Weigh it down with approximately 1 kg of weight (e.g., a water bottle).
4. Option 2: Place a draining rack over the sink and cover it with cheesecloth. Slowly pour the milk onto it. Push the mixture together into a rectangle measuring roughly 15 cm on each side. Cover the mixture with another piece of cheesecloth and place a large cutting board on top.
5. After about three hours, increase the pressing weight to approximately three kg.
6. After a total of about 12 hours of pressing, remove the mixture from the press and carefully peel away the cheesecloth. Cut into wide strips or cubes as desired.
7. Option 1: Fry the pieces in butter in a pan over medium heat until golden brown on both sides.
8. Option 2: Preheat the oven to 180°C (convection/fan setting). Spread the pieces out on a baking sheet and drizzle with melted butter. Bake for about 10–15 minutes, or until the desired level of browning is achieved.
9. Season with salt and pepper. Serve warm.