Kisel

I have been sick the past couple of days, so I've taken advantage of this opportunity to eat lots of kasha and drink lots of Kalmyk tea. I've also tried a mix for Russian kisel that I bought a while ago. Kisel is a semi-thick juice that is eaten as a dessert or can be a drink if diluted with milk.

I did not make homemade kisel but instead used a mix from the grocery store that reminded me a little of Kool-Aid. The directions say to mix it with cold water in a small portion and then mix that cold water mix into hot water and boil. This is what I did to create a sort of thickened gel dessert/drink. It is sweet, smooth, and refreshing. When I was in Elista about a month ago, I also tried the more liquid version mixed with milk and enjoyed it. This is more like a berry milkshake almost.

Homemade kisel is made by mixing and heating berries, water, and sugar to create a syrup and then adding potato start to thicken the mixture. The process appears to be relatively simple (see the recipe here), but until I feel a little better, I'm going to be making mine using a packet!

Kalmyk Tea

Several weeks ago I visited the city of Elista, capital of the semi-autonomous Kalmyk Republic in south-western Russia. The Kalmyks are a Mongolic people and were historically Buddhist. They have a fascinating and sometimes tragic history (including deportation under Stalin's rule) that is far too long for me to elaborate on here, but I highly recommend reading more about the Kalmyks.

Although today most Kalmyks speak Russian and have adopted many Russian traditions, they have also retained many of their own. Traditional Kalmyk food is one arena where this can be seen. In Elista, I tried several Kalmyk dishes, but the one that intrigued me most was Kalmyk tea (Kalmytskiy chay). This is a black tea made with milk, butter, and salt. It was clearly developed for a nomadic people -- the salt was probably used to keep the tea from freezing in cold temperatures (and maybe for preservation?), and the butter and milk make it nourishing.

I found Kalmyk tea to be a real "comfort food." I can best describe it with the words warmth and nourishment. It's great when you feel tired, hungry, and cold. After I drank it, I felt like a had a stomach full of rich, warm calories that stuck with me for hours! I have to admit, however, that the predominate taste for me was butter, so it was a little like drinking a cup of butter.

Today I decided to try to make my own Kalmyk tea. I found a few recipes online. This is a good one for English speakers, and this one and this one are in Russian. They suggest that you might add nutmeg or bay leaves, which might give the tea a deeper flavor, but the version I have tried had neither of these, so I made mine without it.

The recipes give directions for making a large amount of tea, and I only wanted one cup, so I modified them a little, and my version turned out very close to the original. It is remarkably easy to make, and I highly recommend giving it a try.

Kalmyk Tea

Makes one teacup

1 cup water

1/4 cup milk (I recommend not using skim milk)

1 black tea bag (or loose tea -- this is the more authenitc way to make it)

1/2 tablespoon unsalted butter

1/4-1/2 teaspoon salt

1. Pour the water into a tea kettle or saucepan and bring to a boil. When the water comes to a boil, add the tea bag or tea leaves. Boil for 2-3 minutes. Remove leaves or bag and turn heat down to low.

2. Add milk, butter, and salt. Heat until butter has melted. (If you want to try it with nutmeg, add some here.)

3. Pour into a cup and enjoy!

I think I added closer to 3/4 tablespoon of butter when I made it, and the taste was a little overwhelming. Aim for 1/2, and if even that seems like too much for your Western obsession with low-fat, start with 1/4 tablespoon and then taste the tea with a spoon while it's over the heat and add more to taste. Enjoy!