Filmjölk

Filmjölk, often just fil, is a Swedish cultured milk. Milk is fermented with lactic acid bacteria at room temperature, which makes it thick but pourable and mildly sour. It is thinner than yogurt, thicker than milk, and tastes fresh and gently tangy, less sour than buttermilk. Most Swedes eat it for breakfast in a bowl with muesli, cereal or berries.

How to use it

• Eat it cold with muesli, cereal, fruit or jam, the way it is most often served.
• Use it in baking in place of buttermilk or milk, for tender bread, scones and pancakes.
• Mix it into marinades for chicken or lamb.
• Stir it into cold soups and dressings.

Shops sell filmjölk at different fat levels, usually 3 percent for regular, and lighter versions. There are also flavored kinds and variants with extra probiotic cultures.

Substitutes

Outside Scandinavia, filmjölk is hard to find. Use one of these:

• Plain kefir, the closest in texture. It is a little fizzier and more sour.
• Buttermilk, which is thinner and tangier. It is the best swap in baking.
• Plain yogurt thinned with milk, about 3 parts yogurt to 1 part milk.

To make your own, stir 2 tablespoons of filmjölk into 1 liter (4 cups) of milk and leave it covered at room temperature for about 24 hours, until set. Keep a little back to start the next batch.

How to store it

Keep it in the fridge and use it within a few days of opening. It may separate into curds and whey. Shake the carton before pouring.

In recipes

Swedish baking recipes use filmjölk in filmjölksbröd, a quick bread raised with baking soda, and in soft gingerbread and spice cakes. In these, buttermilk swaps in one for one. Other Swedish cultured milks include gräddfil, which is thicker and richer like sour cream, and långfil, a stringy, stretchy fermented milk from the north. Neither swaps for filmjölk without changing the result. Swedish kvarg is a strained fresh cheese, not a drink. Filmjölk is a product of fermentation, so it keeps longer than fresh milk.