Fifth Generation

Airag was mentioned in a post before about yogurt. Airag, however, is a little bit different from kefir and other yogurt drinks. It is a Mongolian specialty and made out of mare’s milk. Yes, that is mare as in horse. Airag is fermented mare’s milk and yes it can intoxicate you. The drink is also popular in Kazakhstan (it is milk not urine, Borat) and Tibet.
This is how to make it next time you are hanging out in Mongolia and have about 12 mares in front of your ger.

“Women milk the mares about every 2 hours. Horses are called in and foals are allowed to drink for a minute to start the flow of milk, then the women milk into a bucket. Filled buckets are then poured into large leather bags and then hung on the wall inside the ger. Everyone who enters or leaves the ger is expected stir the milk as they pass. A long thick wooden stick is plunged up and down inside the bag. This is similar to hand churning cream into butter. Younger children count and practice their numbers as they do this. The milk is left in the bag to ferment over night. When morning comes, the airag is ready. Family members start their day with a drink before their daily chores begin.”

From: http://www.ctwm.org/airag.htm