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Fermented milk from Bangladesh

Borhaniবোরহানি

Borhani is a savoury, spiced drink made by blending sour curd (tok doi) with mint, ground spices, chilli, salt, sugar and water, then straining it over ice. It is a boundary entry, a drink mixed from a ferment with no fermentation of its own, like lassi and chaas.

Fully documentedFermented milk5 h

Recipe

Borhani, a photo from Wikimedia Commons
Photo: DarkSpartan, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Amounts from a sourceThe lab recipe of Bari et al. 2020 for 1 kg of curd, tested with whole-milk, skim-milk and powdered-milk curds; whole-milk curd scored best.
Sour milk curd1.0 kg[bari2020]
Water300 mL[bari2020]
Mint paste20 g[bari2020]
Ground coriander, ground cumin, ground white mustard5 g each[bari2020]
Ground white pepper3.5 g[bari2020]
Green chilli paste, tamarind extract5 g each[bari2020]
Rock salt7 g[bari2020]
Salt5 g[bari2020]
Sugar160 g[bari2020]
Ice100 mLAdded after straining[bari2020]
Startera 1.5 % mixed starter culture the study does not describe, used to set the curd

Total time across the recorded steps: 5 h

Start
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40–45 °C

What changes: The milk is boiled, then cooled until it is warm

Step 1 of 4
Boil the milk and cool it
Time
Not documented
Temperature
40–45 °C
Reported
Salt
None given
Acidity
Not documented

Output: boiled milk ready for starter.

Flavour
Not documented
Texture
Not documented
Colour
Not documented

Microbes at work in this step

Not documented for this step.

Method

Measured measured in a studySet fixed by a specification or tested recipeReported one source reports itTypical a general value, not sourced for this fermentUnconfirmed not yet checked against a source

At a glance

Borhani is a savoury, spiced drink made by blending sour curd (tok doi) with mint, ground spices, chilli, salt, sugar and water, then straining it over ice. It is a boundary entry, a drink mixed from a ferment with no fermentation of its own, like lassi and chaas. Made in 4 steps over 5 h. The longest step, set the sour curd, takes 5 h (Bari A 2020) and runs at 42 °C (Bari A 2020). Salt is 0.8 % (Bari A 2020).

Key numbers
Main step5 hReported[bari2020]Set the sour curd
Temperature42 °CReported[bari2020]Set the sour curd
Salt0.8 %Reported[bari2020]Blend the curd with spices, sugar, salt and water
AciditypH 4–4.3Measured[bari2020]Strain through muslin and add ice

What makes this one different

Borhani is a drink blended from sour curd, not a ferment in its own right. Unlike sweet lassi it is savoury and hot with mustard, chilli and pepper, and unlike chaas it is strained over ice.

Boundary
A drink made from a ferment (sour curd); there is no second fermentation, as with lassi and chaas

Related ferments

Variants

  • Whole-milk, skim-milk and powdered-milk borhaniSkim-milk borhani is the most sour (pH 3.95); whole-milk borhani scored best on taste and in total score, and powdered-milk borhani scored highest on body and consistency.
  • Home borhani with sweet doiSome home recipes mix a little sweet doi into the sour doi (bn.wikipedia).

Safety

In the lab study the finished borhani measured pH 3.95–4.25, depending on the curd, but the raw herbs, water and ice are added after the curd sets. The three lab borhani types (whole-milk, skim-milk and powdered-milk curd) had no coliforms and 3–10 cfu/mL of yeast and mould, with total viable counts of about 6–8 × 10^5 cfu/mL. A survey of 50 Dhaka dairy products, sold by street vendors and in shops, found coliforms in borhani up to the 10^9 dilution, Staphylococcus spp. in yoghurt, borhani and labang, and Salmonella in about 17 % of all the products. Use boiled milk, clean water and clean ice, and drink it fresh.

Hazards the sources name: Coliforms (found in borhani), Staphylococcus spp. (found in yoghurt, borhani and labang) and Salmonella spp. (in about 17 % of all the dairy products) in a survey of Dhaka street and shop dairy products.

History and sources

Every number is labelled with how it is known. How this atlas is made

Borhani is drunk in Dhaka and Chittagong at weddings and iftar gatherings in Ramadan, usually after heavy dishes such as biryani, morog polao and tehari (Wikipedia).

  1. [bari2020] Bari A., Hossain M.A., Camy M.L.Y. et al. 2020, Evaluation of borhani prepared from whole milk, skim milk and full cream powdered milk curd, Asian-Australas. J. Food Saf. Secur. 4(2):58–65, doi:10.3329/aajfss.v4i2.53882paper
  2. [hossain2017] Hossain M.N., Humayun S., Haque M.Z., Ahmed M.M. 2017, Microbiological quality assessment and acceptance of dairy products in Dhaka city, Asian-Australas. J. Food Saf. Secur. 1(1):58–64, doi:10.3329/aajfss.v1i1.55762 (abstract)paper
  3. [wp] Wikipedia, Borhani; bn.wikipedia বোরহানি (outline; when it is served)wiki