Nothing will quench thirst in summer heat like kvass. However, the producers of this drink, despite the observance of the recipe, are not able to make it as tasty as at home. Making kvass at home from malt is easy. The only thing left is to find your favorite proven recipe.
Old Russian drink - kvass
Russia is rightfully considered the birthplace of kvass. In ancient chronicles, information has been preserved that in Kievan Rus, a bread drink was always and everywhere consumed - by princes and ordinary people. Already in those days, there were several dozen options for making homemade kvass. Many recipes have survived and have survived to the present day. On Russian soil, it has long been believed that kvass on the table is a symbol of prosperity in the house.
The fact that kvass in Russia has always been held in high esteem is also evidenced by the fact of the existence of such a profession as kvass. He was a specialist in the preparation of a refreshing drink of various types: bread, fruit, berry, okroshny, milk.
Real kvass has a pleasant, slightly harsh, refreshing taste, and thanks to the content of lactic and acetic acids perfectly quenches thirst.
What is kvass made from?
Kvass is formed as a result of an unfinished process of fermentation of wort. That is why this drink has ethyl alcohol in the amount of 1.2 percent. Due to its alcohol content, kvass in Russia is classified as a historical traditional beer.
This invigorating drink is made only from natural ingredients. Kvass is prepared at home from malt, rye or barley bread and additives (raisins, dried apricots). And nothing else is needed. But such a composition happens only with kvass, cooked at home. In addition to the required ingredients, in-store products contain sweeteners, flavorings, carbon dioxide. It will not bring benefits to the body, but considerable harm can cause.
What is malt? What does he happen to be?
As mentioned above, the main ingredient in the manufacture of kvass is malt, which is obtained from germinated grain. They make it from wheat, rye, barley, oats and millet. The grain is first germinated, then dried and ground. In the first case, green malt is obtained, in the latter - dry.
Most in demand are rye and barley malt, used for brewing. Other varieties are mainly used in baking bread.
Rye malt is fermented (dark) and unfermented (light). The differences between these species are not only in the method of preparation and color, but also in the scope of use. To give the malt a red-brown dark color, the germinated grain is subjected to fermentation before drying, that is, languishing at high temperature. To prepare such malt at home is almost impossible. Difficulties usually arise in maintaining the desired temperature for a long time. But light or white malt, from which you get okvass kvass, can be cooked at home.
The recipe for malt for kvass
Ready-made dry malt can be bought at the store. You can cook it yourself. To make kvass from rye malt at home, you need to start with the preparation of the ingredients.
To make malt:
- Rinse grains thoroughly, remove spoiled and empty seeds.
- Fold them in a container with a layer of no more than two centimeters. Cover with sterile gauze on top. Spray from the spray gun several times a day. Make sure that the grains do not dry out and are not too wet.
- After 3-4 days, sprouts appear. When they become grain size or larger, the first step can be considered completed. Sprouted grains are green malt.
- Then they need to be dried at room temperature for two days.
- After the grains have dried, they can be ground all at once or put in a clean container with a lid and taken as needed. So dry malt is obtained.
Now you can start cooking kvass.
White kvass from dry malt
White or okvass kvass can be made from self-prepared malt. To do this, you need the following ingredients:
- wheat flour - ½ cup;
- unfermented dry malt - 1 cup;
- pure drinking water (preferably spring or bottled) - 3 liters;
- ready-made yeast yeast - 1 teaspoon;
- raisins - 10-12 pieces.
If the house does not have yeast yeast, you can cook it yourself. To do this, mix 5-10 grams of
pressed yeast with one tablespoon of sugar and two tablespoons of flour. Pour the mixture ½ cup warm
boiled water and leave on the table for half an hour. Such starter culture should be stored in the refrigerator for no more than two weeks.
The preparation of kvass from malt at home begins with the preparation of the wort. To do this, malt and flour are brewed in a liter of boiling water, transferred to earthenware and cooled to 38 degrees. Then you need to add dry raisins and yeast yeast. Stir and leave for a day for fermentation. After the specified time, add the rest of the water, and after another day or two (depending on the desired acid of the drink), the kvass will be ready. It must be poured into clean jars and refrigerated.
Rye kvass at home from fermented malt
Fragrant and invigorating dark kvass with a pleasant smack of honey is obtained from fermented malt. The process of obtaining it is quite time-consuming, so it would be better to buy the main ingredient of the bread drink in the finished form.
Before you prepare kvass from malt at home, you should prepare the sourdough. To do this, a glass of dry fermented rye malt is brewed with a liter of boiling water. After a couple of hours, when the mixture cools down to 38 degrees, it is necessary to add 4 tablespoons of sugar and 2 teaspoons of dry yeast to it. After that, the jar is well mixed. We can assume that the leaven is ready.
Further, in order to directly obtain kvass from dry malt at home, you need to take 1 cup of sourdough, pour it with three liters of cold boiled water, add 5 tablespoons of sugar, 10 pieces of raisins and send to a cool place for a day. According to this recipe, rye kvass is cooked very quickly. After the indicated time, the bread drink is filtered into a clean container through several layers of gauze. The remaining thickets do not need to be thrown away. It is freshened up with ½ cup of sourdough from the refrigerator, add sugar, pour cold boiled water and set the kvass to ripen again.
A delicious recipe for kvass from malt at home based on barley
Barley kvass is no less palatable and healthy. It is prepared from dry malt or liquid malt extract based on barley grains.
Kvass at home from malt make the following ingredients:
- liquid malt barley extract - 2 tablespoons;
- sugar - 250 g;
- dry yeast - 1 teaspoon;
- citric acid - ½ teaspoon;
- boiled water - 3 liters;
- raisins - 10-12 pieces.
In a container, pour 3 liters of boiled water at room temperature, add sugar, citric acid and malt extract, mix. Pour dry yeast on top. Without stirring, leave for 6 hours for fermentation. After the specified time, pour the kvass into bottles or jars, add raisins to each few and put in the refrigerator for a day until maturing.
Barley kvass is obtained with a soft grain aftertaste, slightly carbonated and very useful.
Kvass from malt: benefit or harm?
Real homemade kvass made from malt contains a huge amount of vitamins and minerals, so its regular use will bring the body only benefit. But people with gastritis, cirrhosis and hypertension should limit its use. This is explained by the content of ethyl alcohol and various acids in the composition of the bread drink.
Kvass at home from malt has a number of useful properties, among which the following can be distinguished:
- quenches thirst, saturates the body with vital energy, vitamins and minerals;
- favorably affects the digestive system, promotes the rapid digestion of food and the restoration of normal acidity of the stomach;
- high vitamin C content allows the use of kvass for the prevention of respiratory and viral diseases;
- lactic acid in its composition contributes to the destruction of pathogenic microflora, and supports beneficial bacteria in the right amount;
- Kvass is an excellent tool for weight loss, gives vigor and improves performance.
And it should be remembered that never a drink purchased in a store will replace a real homemade kvass from malt.