Fermentationist
Fermentation types / Cultured dairy

Cultured dairy

Kefir, labneh, quark, sour cream, tvorog and ryazhenka, alongside skyr and yogurt.

A bowl, a glass or a spread: choose the texture you enjoy.

A bowl of cultured dairy beside a milk bottle, berries and a wooden spoon

Make it and fix it

Eight foods, starting with skyr

Choose by ingredient, texture and how you want to serve it.

Compare all eight
A blue bowl of thick skyr, a spoonful and two blueberries

Skyr

Dense, smooth and made for a spoon. Our starting point for cultured dairy.

Starts with
Milk, often skimmed
Texture
Thick and spoonable

At the table: Berries, oats or a savoury dip

Read about skyr
A glass yogurt pot with a spoon

Yogurt

Cultured milk that sets into a soft gel. A familiar place to learn temperature control.

Starts with
Milk
Texture
Soft-set or stirred

At the table: Breakfast bowls and dressings

More about yogurt
A bottle and glass of milk kefir beside kefir grains

Milk kefir

A pourable milk ferment with a community of bacteria and yeasts.

Starts with
Milk
Texture
Usually pourable

At the table: A glass or a smoothie

More about milk kefir
A shallow plate of labneh with olive oil and herbs

Labneh

Yogurt drained into a tangy spread. The extra step is removing whey.

Starts with
Yogurt
Texture
Thick and spreadable

At the table: Toast, herbs and olive oil

More about labneh
Soft quark in a cloth-lined strainer above a bowl

Quark

A soft fresh cheese formed through acidification, with the whey separated.

Starts with
Milk
Texture
Soft, smooth curd

At the table: Herb spreads and baking

More about quark
A small pot of sour cream with chives and a spoon

Sour cream

Cream takes the lead: cultures bring tang to a rich spoonful.

Starts with
Cream
Texture
Rich and spoonable

At the table: Potatoes, soups and dips

More about sour cream
A bowl of soft white tvorog curds with a wooden spoon

Tvorog

Fresh cultured curds with a texture of their own.

Starts with
Milk
Texture
Soft, loose curds

At the table: Breakfast, herb fillings and syrniki

More about tvorog
A terracotta pot and a glass of beige cultured baked milk on a blue cloth

Ryazhenka

Cultured baked milk with a creamy beige colour and baked-milk character.

Starts with
Baked milk
Texture
Creamy; varies by method

At the table: A chilled glass with breakfast

More about ryazhenka

Choose by what you want to eat: a thick bowl, a drink, a spread or fresh curds. Milk and cream respond differently to their cultures and to the way the finished food is handled. University of Guelph: Cultured dairy products and cheese

Skyr and yogurt each have their own introduction. This collection brings the wider family together, including baked-milk ryazhenka and fresh tvorog. Compare all eight foods before choosing the next one to try.

What would you like to eat?

Choose a spoonable bowl, a drink, a spread or a rich topping. These are different projects, so use a complete method and the starter intended for your chosen food.

Sources

Sources checked 11 September 2026.