Scalded Milk?

[Mr_Dove]

How do you go about scalding milk and what is the purpose of doing so?

I have a clam chowder recipe that calls for scalded milk.

[Shaheen]

Scalding milk means to heat milk till just before it begins to boil, at about 185 degrees. Its usually done in a thick bottomed pan. Keep stirring to prevent a thin film from forming.

Scalding is done to kill bacteria and also to destroy enzymes in the milk that prevent thickening in recipes.

[Michael in FtW]

To scald milk: Place the milk into a saucepan on medium temperature and heat just until it starts to boil. Immediately remove from stove and set aside.

In the case of soups or some sauces: Scalding the milk will help prevent it from curdling.

This information is explained in the first paragraph under "Preparation" for the Sweet Tomatoes' Clam Chowder recipe IcyMist posted for you in the Soup Thread you started.

In the case of bread: Scalding kills a protein which causes a reduction in volume - a protein which is present in both raw/pasteurized-homogenized fresh and powdered non-fat dry milk.

[Chef_Jimmy]

Don't leave the pan that the milk is in! As soon as it hits the boiling point, it will VERY rapidly boil over.........everywhere!

[desertland]

Listen to Chef_Jimmy - I've made that mistake too :-) (only once!) If you leave it, it will also get stuck to the bottom of the pan. Be sure to stir it while heating.

[Regis]

My question here was why a recipe calls for scalded, cooled milk?



Thanks,
Regis

[simplicity]

There is a subtle change of flavoring when scalded milk is used. It's beyond me to describe the change in writing. Scalded milk, when a recipe specifies it, will enhance the dish.

If you skip this step, it may not make a great deal of difference to anyone else.