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Fermented milk from Iceland

Súrmjólksúrmjólk

Súrmjólk is pasteurised, homogenised milk soured with lactic bacteria. Iceland's dairy regulation named the cultures, Lactococcus lactis subsp. lactis and cremoris, the diacetyl-forming L. lactis and Leuconostoc citrovorum, and allowed whole, low-fat, skim or reconstituted milk.

Fully documentedFermented milk0.3 min – 30 min

Recipe

No fixed amounts recordedIndustrial product with no fixed batch size. The regulation sets the milk and the cultures, not the amounts.
Whole milk, low-fat milk, skim milk or reconstituted milkWhole milk for plain súrmjólk[reg851][wp-is]
Lactic cultureLactococcus lactis/cremoris, Lactococcus lactis subsp. diacetylactis and Leuconostoc citrovorum[reg851]
Starterdefined culture: Lactococcus lactis/cremoris, L. lactis subsp. diacetylactis and Leuconostoc citrovorum

Total time across the recorded steps: 0.3 min – 30 min

Start
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62–78 °C

What changes: The milk is pasteurised before souring

Step 1 of 4
Pasteurise the milk
Time
0.3–30 min
Set
Temperature
62–78 °C
Set
Salt
None given
Acidity
Not documented
Which microbes the steps name, step by step
Lactococcus
Leuconostoc citrovorum

The regulation defines whole milk (nýmjólk) as pasteurised milk, and Mjólkursamsalan lists its súrmjólk as made from pasteurised whole milk. Output: pasteurised milk.

Flavour
Not documented
Texture
liquid
Colour
Not documented

Microbes at work in this step

heat kills the milk's own bacteria

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

Súrmjólk is pasteurised, homogenised milk soured with lactic bacteria. Iceland's dairy regulation named the cultures, Lactococcus lactis subsp. lactis and cremoris, the diacetyl-forming L. lactis and Leuconostoc citrovorum, and allowed whole, low-fat, skim or reconstituted milk. Made in 4 steps over 0.3 min – 30 min. The longest step, pasteurise the milk, takes 0.3–30 min (Reglugerð nr. 851/2012 um mjólkurvörur (Icela…) and runs at 62–78 °C (Reglugerð nr. 851/2012 um mjólkurvörur (Icela…). Lactococcus lactis subsp. lactis and subsp. cremoris and Lactococcus lactis subsp. diacetylactis do most of the fermenting.

Key numbers
Main step0.3–30 minSet[reg851]Pasteurise the milk
Temperature62–78 °CSet[reg851]Pasteurise the milk

What makes this one different

Súrmjólk is soured with lactococci and Leuconostoc cultures, like Nordic filmjölk. Skyr, the other Icelandic soured milk, is made from skim milk and strained.

Fat in plain súrmjólk
3.9 g fat per 100 g, with 3.3 g protein and 3.7 g carbohydrate (Mjólkursamsalan product page for the 1000 g pack)
Shelf life
35 days for the plain 1000 g pack (Mjólkursamsalan product page)

Related ferments

Variants

  • SúrmjólkurréttirSúrmjólk with added flavourings and other ingredients.
  • AB-mjólkA related Icelandic soured milk (named as related on is.wikipedia).

Safety

The milk is pasteurised before the culture goes in.

History and sources

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

The cultures and milks are defined in Icelandic regulation 851/2012 on dairy products, read in the version in force from 19 October 2012 to 30 December 2016.

  1. [reg851] Reglugerð nr. 851/2012 um mjólkurvörur (Icelandic regulation on dairy products), version in force 19 October 2012 to 30 December 2016, annex sections on pasteurisation and soured milk productsspec
  2. [wp-is] is.wikipedia, Súrmjólk (nutrition box citing the Mjólkursamsalan product page)wiki
  3. [ms-surmjolk] Mjólkursamsalan (MS), Súrmjólk 1000 g, product page with ingredients, nutrition and shelf lifeweb