From: miraftabi@hauli.lut.fi
Subject: Re: viili update
Date: Fri, 28 Aug 1992 14:37:28 GMT
Organization: Lappeenranta Univ. of Tech., FINLAND

In article <1992Aug27.151255.26320@hemlock.cray.com>, dadams@cray.com (David Adams) writes:
> I wrote:
> 
> |
> |This time it came out like a thick and slimy yogurt.  I suppose
> |this is more like what the viili was supposed to be like.  I
> |haven't tasted it yet.
> |
> 
> This morning I had a chance to tase the viili.  This was an 
> experience.  I can hardly describe it.

Dear Sourdough Friends,

I got such a pleasure out of reading that viili has reached the States.  I
have just found you all by chance in time to see David's reaction to viili.
I grew up in Butte, Montana in a Finnish community and my grandmother used
to make old fashioned viili which had a loooong stretch to it.  The viili
we eat now in Finland is usually lighter as your starter is probably giving,
and is eaten as formerly suggested, with fruit, jam, veggies and some people
even sprinkle sugar or pour honey on top.  I have also used it in place of
mayonnaise for potato salad or macaroni salad or I combine it with some
mayonnaise to get the mayo taste but cut down on that product.  It's a great
milk product.

Have fun!  Barbara Miraftabi
> 
> It supprised me that it has a very mild taste, almost tasteless.
> (How do you describe a new taste?  How do you describe the taste
> of tofu?)
> 
> I discovered there was a whole new dimension to "slimy".
> 
> When I first picked up the bottle it seemed that there was a 
> division in the jar.  The bottom was a smooth white.  Then about
> 2" from the bottom there was this flat line that divided the
> bottom from the top.  Above the line the stuff was a little
> more clear.  I stuck in a spoon to stir and wo!  The stuff was
> like *ecto-plasmic slime*.  I tried to spoon it out of the
> jar and this webby slime hung to the spoon and stretched about
> 2 feet from the spoon to the jar.  The micro-organisms must
> form a slimy web.  It was soooo fascinating.  I stired it up
> and poured a little into a bowl and mixed in some strawberry jam.
> I played in it with the spoon a bit.  This was really weird.
> The webbing tendency reduced quite a bit with the stirring, but
> it was still ecto-plasmic.  I diped the spoon in and pulled it
> out and the spoon was covered just like you would expect if it
> was yogurt.  Then I held the spoon upside down over the bowl
> and the ecto-plasmic slime fell off and left the spoon clean!
> 
> My kids came up and asked what it was.  I said, "It's viili.
> Ya' want some?"  They said "yea!"  I was shocked.  My fickle
> kids who won't touch my sourdough or eat anything with onions
> wanted this viili, without ever having tasted it before.
> 
> I divied it up, and they ate it all.  Left none for me.
> Well I still had most of what was in the jar.  It tasted
> milky, slimy, almost tasteless, and it seemed to be full
> of little bubbles, but you couldn't see any.  It was like
> this slimy fizz.  Really strange!
> 
> This batch was raised on powdered milk.  (No fat)  Siesmo
> indicated that the villi wasn't so slimy like when 
> whole milk was used so I will have to try that.
> 
> 
> For you fellow Estado Unodenses (US citizens) I will
> have viili culture available just like the sourdough
> cultures.  Send SASE and a SMALL ziplock bag to
> 
> David Adams
> 1625 Dixon Dr.
> St. Paul Park, MN 55071.
> 
> Please email me first.
> 
> ---
> --David C. Adams  Statistician  Cray Research Inc.  dadams@cray.com
> ___________________________________________________________________
>        member--Minnesotans for Global Warming.
> 
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