Frequently asked questions for Buttermilk Blend:

Question: What is the difference between SACO Buttermilk Blend and liquid buttermilk?

Answer: The liquid buttermilk on today's market, is made from only cultured skim milk, and contains not even one drop of real buttermilk. While it may work in recipes that call for buttermilk, as does soured milk, it does not provide the benefits of using real buttermilk.

SACO Cultured Buttermilk Blend is made from real buttermilk! When cream is agitated in a butter churn, the membranes around the fat globule membrane separate from the fat globule. This allows the butterfat to precipitate out in the form of butter. The phospholipids, meanwhile, remain in the fluid phase. The fluid that remains, after all the butterfat has been removed as butter, is similar to skim milk except it contains the phospholipids and proteins from the fat globule membranes. These phospholipids are natural emulsifiers! When real buttermilk is used in a recipe, the presence of these emulsifiers results in finer dispersing of the shortening throughout the batter. The smaller air cells which form in the presence of the emulsifier make the grain of baked goods finer, the volume and texture superior. This is by far the most important advantage of using real buttermilk for cooking and baking.

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Question: I am allergic to whey. Can I use SACO Buttermilk Blend safely?

Answer: Whey is the byproduct of cheese making. To make cheese you start with pasteurized milk, add a lactic starter, then, once sufficient acidity is reached in the milk, an enzyme (generally rennin) is added to initiate the first step in the conversion to cheese. The gel or clot that eventually forms is cut into small pieces, which permits the liquid whey to drain from the curds. Whey increases the tenderness and improves the color in baked goods, which is why we add it to our Buttermilk Blend.

The amount of whey consumed, from the Buttermilk Blend, in one serving of any baked good made with the product, would be so minimal that it would more than likely not to cause any trouble for you, but the decision whether to use it or not lies with you.

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Question: If SACO Buttermilk Blend is real buttermilk, how can it be low in fat. Isn't buttermilk high in fat?

Answer: No. There's always been a misconception about exactly what buttermilk is. Many think it contains a lot of fat, which is not true. Buttermilk is the milk left over after churning sweet cream into butter. The fat goes into the butter, and the low fat milk left over is buttermilk.

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Question: Can I use the Buttermilk Blend in recipes for cheese, yogurt, or salad dressings?

Answer: Liquid buttermilk contains a live culture, which is needed as a starter for making cheese or yogurt. During the drying process in getting the liquid buttermilk into a powdered form, the live culture dies. Therefore, our Buttermilk Blend is not suitable for making either of these items.

The live culture in liquid buttermilk is what gives liquid buttermilk it's thickness. For most salad dressing recipes, calling for buttermilk, the thickness in the liquid buttermilk is necessary to achieve the proper consistency for the dressing. However, through experimenting with recipes, you can increase ingredients such as mayonnaise, sour cream, etc., to make up for the lack of thickness when using our Buttermilk Blend and water. Since SACO Buttermilk Blend is real buttermilk, unlike the liquid buttermilk which is merely cultured skim milk, using our product will allow the real buttermilk flavor to enhance the dressing recipe. Adjusting salad dressing recipes to incorporate the use of the Buttermilk Blend is very easy.

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Question: Some of my recipes tell me to scald my buttermilk, and others tell me to just heat the buttermilk. How do you do this using the Buttermilk Blend?

Answer: For Recipes Telling you to Scald your Buttermilk...
Scalding is a method found in older recipes that was used to kill bacteria in unpasteurized milk products. Since all milk is pasteurized in today's market, this is not necessary. Some people may find that they like heating the buttermilk because it helps their ingredients blend together more smoothly. If this is the case, still add the Buttermilk Blend to your dry ingredients, then heat the water and add it in the same manner as the recipe tells you to add the liquid buttermilk.

For Recipes Telling you to Just Heat your Buttermilk...
Some yeast bread recipes tell you to heat the buttermilk. The purpose of heating the buttermilk is to activate the yeast. When using the Buttermilk Blend in these recipes simply add the Buttermilk Blend to your dry ingredients, as usual, then heat the water and use it in the same manner as the recipe instructs you to add the heated liquid buttermilk.

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