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pouring milk into liquid measuring cup with lemon juice.

DIY Buttermilk Substitute

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Description

If you don’t have buttermilk on hand and need it for a baking recipe, use this easy method to make a DIY buttermilk “soured milk” substitute. This is a great substitution for buttermilk in most baking recipes. However, you’ll begin to notice a flavor and texture change in recipes that call for more than 1 cup of buttermilk. For best flavor and texture, I recommend using real buttermilk when you can.


Ingredients

  • 2 teaspoons white vinegar or fresh lemon juice
  • 1 cup minus 2 teaspoons (about 235ml) whole milk


Instructions

  1. Place vinegar/lemon juice in a liquid measuring cup. Pour in the milk until it reaches the 1-cup line. Give it a stir, then let sit for 5 minutes. The milk will be slightly soured/curdled and ready to use in your recipe in place of buttermilk.

Notes

  1. Special Tools: Liquid Measuring Cup
  2. Can I Use Apple Cider Vinegar? Yes.
  3. Other Milks: I strongly recommend using whole milk, but 2% reduced-fat milk can work in a pinch. If you want to use nondairy milk, I recommend almond or oat milk. In general, the thicker, the better.
  4. Can I Use Sour Cream or Yogurt & Milk Instead? See section above.
  5. Can I Use Kefir Instead of Buttermilk? Yes, kefir can work as a 1:1 substitute if you have it on hand.
  6. Ratio Cheat Sheet: 3/4 cup milk + 1 and 1/2 teaspoons vinegar/lemon juice || 1/2 cup milk + 1 teaspoon vinegar/lemon juice || 1/4 cup milk + 1/2 teaspoon vinegar/lemon juice