Buttermilk in a Pinch

"When you're out of buttermilk, and you need it in a pinch for a recipe, this "Joy of Cooking" suggestion will help you out. I've used it numerous times over the years, and although the real thing is always preferable, this substitution works just fine."
 
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photo by a food.com user photo by a food.com user
Ready In:
2mins
Ingredients:
2
Yields:
1 cup
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ingredients

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directions

  • Place the tablespoon of vinegar or lemon juice in the bottom of a (one cup) measuring cup.
  • Fill the cup with milk.

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Reviews

  1. This is a great tip! It has come in handy so often, since I rarely need enough buttermilk to justify purchasing a lot. Thanks for sharing!
     
  2. I never, ever have buttermilk, so I have always use this method. If I need just half a cup, I eye ball the lemon juice and add enough milk to equal 1/2 cup. I gave up using bottled lemon juice years ago (because of the expiry date... the stuff always seemed to go bad on me)....so this works even better with fresh lemons. Even tried it with whipping cream when I was making my sourdough buttermilk biscuits. They turned out really, really well! Who needs buttermilk when you have this method!!
     
  3. Excellent. Worked perfectly with the vinegar I used. I also let it sit and work for awhile to thicken up. I found it works better when the milk is a little warmer than fridge temperature, also when it is 2% or whole milk. Thanks!
     
  4. This is a very old recipe. I have found in cookbooks over 125 years old. I always use this recipe to make buttermilk pancakes, cakes, muffins, waffles and of course, biscuits.Sometimes, if you have a fresh lemon, do not cut, place in a glass measuring cup, whole, heat for about 45 seconds to 1 minute, take out of cup, poke a hole in the top, and squeeze the juice. I use a mitt to hold the lemon. More juice and it seems to work the milk faster into buttermilk clabber. If you q\squeeze the lemon into the measuring cup, you can then cool and save or freeze the balance.
     
  5. This is exactly what I do. I also leave it for a while for the juice to work on the milk.
     
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RECIPE SUBMITTED BY

I love how cooking brings people together, whether it's sharing recipes or sharing a special meal. My sister and I love to talk recipes, and she is great at researching any recipe questions and hunting down recipes. My whole family enjoys cooking, so holidays are particularly fun when we're all cooking together. I teach social studies, and I incorporate historical recipes and foods into my lessons about culture. Cooking connects the past and present. I've realized how relaxing cooking is to me, so despite being very busy with teaching, I make time to cook.
 
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