If you’ve ever wondered what goes into the process of producing our award-winning dairy products or just want to find out about the proper use of them, please feel free to browse the categories below.
An Interview With Mark Silvas, the National Sales and Marketing Manager for the Humboldt Creamery where we get our powdered milk.
The process of making powdered milk is an interesting operation. Milk comes from dairy farms scattered across the countryside. Each morning, large tank trucks stop at each dairy farm and collect the milk that has accumulated over the past day. Then it is transported to the creamery.
Once it gets here to the creamery, it’s run through a filter and put into a holding tank. As it waits it’s turn to go through the first stage of processing, it’s run through a battery of tests to ensure it meets quality standards.
Milk first passes into the evaporator where about a third of it’s water is removed. The evaporator consists of 3 colandrais, together being about 4 feet in diameter and 6 stories tall. The evaporator has a partial vacuum put on it, lowering the boiling point to about 135 degrees F. This is important for two reasons. First, it makes it possible for the water in the milk to be evaporated at a low enough temperature that it won’t damage the milk. And second, it reduces the cost a substantial amount. Fresh, raw milk contains about 12% solids if you include the butterfat. During the evaporation process, water in the milk is removed until the solids increase to 50%.
During the evaporation process the milk is pasteurized. The pasteurization process reduces the bacteria content without heating the milk to the point that it is damaged. If you tried to heat the milk at home in a pan hot enough to accomplish this, you’d scorch the milk. In a creamery, the milk is run through small tubes where it’s heated up to the desired temperature of 175 degrees F for just 20 seconds then it is immediately force-cooled to prevent the milk from getting damaged.
Separating the Milk: From evaporator the milk runs through the separator which removes the cream or butterfat. The butterfat is placed in a separate storage tank to be used later. The skim milk now moves to the tanks where standardizing takes place.
Standardizing the Milk: After the milk has been separated, it is then standardized which means the different components of the milk are mixed automatically until we have a consistent product. Every batch must be exactly the same. For example, in our whole milk operation, the milk must contain 8.8% solids and 3.4% butterfat which comes to 12.2% total solids. Depending on the seasons of the year and other environmental conditions, these levels fluctuate in raw milk directly from the dairies. If the solids are below 8.8%, we condense until the desired milk solid percentage is reached. Then we add 3.4% butterfat. When the customer purchases a gallon of whole milk, it’s constituents will be exactly like every other jug of whole milk we produce. If we are making 2% or 1% milk, then only this amount of butterfat is added to the milk before packaging. During the standardization process, even some of the vitamins in the milk are checked to ensure they meet our standards. This way the customer is assured of a wholesome, healthy product that never changes.
The remaining evaporated, condensed milk is turned into powdered milk. Depending on our customer’s needs, we standardize this milk with butterfat levels ranging from less than 1% all the way up to 30% fat. Most of the milk powder we make, however is either non-fat milk or whole milk powder which contains 0% to 28.5% butterfat after it’s been reconstituted. It is impossible to see the difference between these two powders with the naked eye. But there is a huge difference in the taste. After the condensed milk has been standardized, it’s next stop is the drying tower.
Turning The Condensed Milk Into Milk Powder: Two types of drying are the spray nozzle and the newer atomization system. There are still many spray dryers in operation today. These dryer towers or dryers are 22 foot diameter cans that rise 12 stories into the air. In the top of the column are four spray nozzles that spray a fine mist of condensed milk into 400 degree F. swirling air. As the milk droplets fall, the swirling air quickly removes the water out of the droplets of milk until all that’s left is a small particle of milk powder not much larger than a speck of dust. As it falls, the air cools to about 250 degrees F until it settles into the funnel shaped hopper in the bottom of the tower where it’s removed. The operators can carefully control the moisture level of the finished product by controlling the swirling air in the tower.
Here at Humboldt we use the newer two stage compact dryer. Instead of using nozzles spraying the milk like you find in the spray tower, atomizing wheel turning at an extremely high speed atomizes the milk. This finely atomizes the milk into much finer droplets than you can get from a spray nozzle. Although our compact dryer has about the same diameter as a spray drying tower at about 20 feet, it’s only 3 stories high, 1/4 as high as a spray tower. This dryer is called a NIRO ‘Compact’ Drying system because even though it’s 3 stories high, it’s still compact compared to a spray drying tower. Because the droplets in a atomizing wheel are so much smaller, they dry much more quickly in a compact dryer. In a compact dryer the dry milk falls on a ‘fluidizing bed.’ To the lay person this term can be misleading as there’s no water, or any other liquid involved. It’s called a fluidizing bed because it’s constantly shaking or vibrating and the milk powder laying on it is in a constant ‘fluid’ motion or stirring. At this point any additives the customer wants are added to the agitating milk powder. Common additives are vitamins, minerals, lecithin or lactose as well as other compounds. The continual stirring action of the fluid bed finely mixes these additives into the milk powder. At this stage, we have regular, dehydrated milk powder.
Turning Regular Powdered Milk Into Instant Powered Milk: It’s also in the drying tower where regular milk is turned into instant milk. This can be done ‘on the fly.’ First, not more than 0.2% lecithin is sprayed on the finer, dry milk particles that have been sifted out of the rest of the milk. The lecithin makes the powdered milk dissolve better. It’s then moved back to the top of the drying tower and fed into the top of the tower near the spot where the atomizer is breaking up the condensed milk into microscopic droplets. As the dry and wet particles are mixed together, the wet particles stick to the dry particles and at the same time form air pockets. This larger particle dries as it falls down through the swirling air. This process gives you a much lighter product that is much more easily penetrated by water. Nutritionally, there’s very little difference between instant and regular powdered milk. It’s virtually the same product except the instant milk powder is less dense and mixes more easily in water. Although Lecithin is a very healthy food, there hasn’t been enough added to the instant milk to show any differences in the nutritional data tables between the two. Concerning flavor, you shouldn’t be able to tell the difference between them, either.
The last step in the process is to package it and send it to the customer. We send powdered milk in plastic lined 50 lb bags. Then they repackage it for long term storage.
Of the 30 million pounds of powdered milk we make each year, between 1/2 and 2/3rds of it is sold overseas. Many third world countries have neither a strong dairy base or transportation or processing capabilities to meet their population’s needs for liquid milk. In addition to this, many of the homes in these countries have no refrigerators like you and I have. Powdered milk is the perfect alternative for them. Much of our whole, powdered milk with the added fat that doesn’t go to the confectionery business here in the United States, goes to these third world countries. Because of the fat content in whole powdered milk, it’s shelf life is limited. It’s life span is only 6 to 9 months in 75 degree F temperatures. After this the fats start going rancid. This is why USA Emergency Supply, which sells products for long term storage doesn’t pack whole powdered milk. While on the other hand, our non-fat powdered milk will store for two years under the same conditions, packed in plastic lined, paper bags stored in temperatures between 70 and 90 degrees F. A company like USA Emergency Supply that puts non-fat powdered milk in air-tight containers then uses oxygen absorbers to remove the oxygen extends the storage life two or three times. And it will keep even longer if it’s stored in a cool place at 60 degrees F or less.
The Humboldt Creamery has stringent quality and control both internally and externally. We have our own rigid inspection and control programs. Externally, we are also frequently inspected by the USDA, the state of California, FDA and also the Interstate Milk Shippers (IMS) as we are an international sales company with our milk being consumed all over the world. You can rest assured that the products you get from us meet the very highest standards of quality and cleanliness. We are proud of our national and international reputation in the market place. Bringing you the best products obtainable brings us here at Humboldt Creamery a strong feeling of satisfaction and accomplishment.
Much of the regular powdered milk produced for North America is used by the food manufacturing industry. It’s used in commercial baking mixes, pancake and waffle mixes and myriad of foods found in the supermarkets. Look at the ingredient label. If it includes milk, there’s a really good chance the ingredient was actually powdered, regular milk. In your baking at home, substitute 1/8th the amount of regular powdered milk for the liquid milk called for in your recipe. Add the powdered milk to your other dry ingredients. Then increase your water measurement to include the measurement of liquid milk called for and add this water to your recipe when you add your other liquid ingredients. For example, if your recipe calls for 2 cups of liquid milk, (2 cups divided by 8) use 1/4 cup of regular powdered milk and two cups of water.
Regular powdered milk doesn’t mix easily in water. This is the reason instant milk was developed. However, regular milk can be mixed up in water without too much trouble. Mix your regular powdered milk the night before you plan on using it. After a quick mix, there will still be lots of lumps. Just throw it in the refrigerator. By morning the lumps will have all dissipated into the liquid. Before serving, give it another quick stir and serve. We have found that regular milk isn’t that hard to mix up for immediate use. Fill your glass about 1/8 full of the regular powdered milk. While quickly stirring, fill your glass about 1/3 full with cold water. Mix until creamy then fill the glass the rest of the way with water. The mixing process only takes about 15-20 seconds and gets rid of almost all the lumps.
Regular milk does have a couple of advantages over instant milk. It’s less expensive and less bulky. Regular milk is right at 15% less expensive per pound than instant milk and takes up about 10% less space.
The question is often ask if instant or regular milk tastes better. With the new drying process that’s being used, you will be hard pressed to taste any difference between our instant and regular milks. There’s one other advantage with the new, compact drying towers. Your powdered milk during the drying process is subjected to higher heats for only about 1/3 the time of the older spray dryers. This translates into a product with an improved flavor and longer storage life.
Instant powdered milk has one major advantage over regular powdered milk – it mixes up much more easily. Using the photo below, the regular powdered milk is on the left and the instant milk is on the right. The first picture was taken just after the two milk powders were placed on top of the water in the glasses. The bottom picture was taken 35 seconds later. Notice the instant milk has sunk down into the water whereas the regular milk is still just sitting there.
Instant powdered milk is made from regular non-fat milk. The instant milk USA Emergency Supply supplies is made at the same time the regular milk is made. However, there’s another way of making instant milk using older processing equipment. Regular milk powder is fed into a spray of steam in the top of a drying chamber. The steam slightly dampens the milk particles which stick together enclosing numerous air pockets as it dries on it’s way to the bottom of the drying chamber.
Dissolvability Test
a teaspoon of regular milk on the left and a teaspoon of instant milk on the right…
Once in a while we get ask the question if the nutritional quality of instant powdered milk isn’t as high as that of regular powdered milk because it has been further processed. With the new processing being used to make our instant milk, there is no measurable difference in the nutrition between the two milks. We also often get ask the question, ‘which of the two milks taste better?’
There wasn’t much difference in the taste before but now with the new processing machinery, there’s extremely little to no distinguishable flavor changes between them. So in light of this, the real questions are if you want the slightly less expensive and more compact regular non-fat dry milk or does the instant non-fat dry milk’s improved mixing quality make it worth it’s slightly higher cost and bulk. The question is yours to answer.
The powdered milk we sell is non-fat milk, or skim milk and only offer this type because of it’s long storing qualities. If your family pretty much refuses to drink skim milk, there is a relatively easy way to add some fat back into your milk giving it a much closer taste to whole milk. Or, if you like, you can make 1% or 2% milk. Here is how you do it.
The Concept: Emulsify some vegetable oil then add it to your reconstituted milk. The word ’emulsify’ means ‘to suspend small globules of one liquid into a second liquid with which the first will not mix.’ Two examples of this are the fat in regular milk and using soap to dissolve grease. In both cases, fat is broken up into millions of microscopic particles which are prevented from coming back together again by the emulsifying agent. Eggs are one of the best known food-safe emulsifying agents. In fact, mayonnaise is nothing more than a lot of oil and a very little bit of egg and vinegar that have been emulsified together. We are going to do the same thing. Caution should be taken not to use fresh, raw eggs because of the fear of Salmonella. Use powdered eggs instead. The manufacturers claim powdered eggs are Salmonella-free.
The Recipe:
| Milk Desired | Amount Milk Desired | Egg Powder | Reconstituted Powdered Milk | Vegetable Oil | |||||
| 1% | Cup Quart Gallon | 1/8t 1/4t 1t | 1/4 C 1/4 C 1/4 C | 1/2 t 2 t 2 T,+1-1/2t | |||||
| 2% | Cup Quart Gallon | 1/4t 1/2t 2t | 1/4 C 1/4 C 1/2 C | 1t 1T,+1t 1/4C,+1T | |||||
| Whole (3.4%) | Cup Quart Gallon | 1/2t 1t 1T,+1t | 1/4 C 1/4 C 1 C | 1-1/2 t 2T,+1/2t 1/2C,+2t | |||||
In a gravy shaker add milk then egg powder. Shake until well dissolved. Add vegetable oil and shake vigorously for 1 to 2 minutes. Your oil should now be in a fine emulsification. Add this to your ‘Amount Milk Desired’ and shake briefly.
Your oil will stay in suspension for a long time. However, much like cream in raw, unhomegenized milk, over time the fats in the milk will float to the top. The oil will be cream colored, though, and still emulsified with the egg. A quick shake of your milk jug will mix them back up for several hours.
I chose a gravy shaker in these instructions making this possible without electricity. However, under normal conditions, a blender will create a much finer emulsion. Mixed in a gravy shaker, it took about 2 hours for the emulsified fat to raise to the top of the container. It took 6-8 hours for the much more finely emulsified fat to rise in the container that had been processed in a blender. You will have better luck mixing the larger batches than smaller batches. This is because the egg powder and oil won’t be so diluted in the milk, permitting the emulsion process to work better.
If you’d like to re-fat your powdered milk with real butterfat, you could also add a small amount of sweet cream to your reconstituted milk and shake it vigorously or quickly blend it. Over time, you can decrease the amount of fat you put in your milk and gradually wean them off the richer milk.
Our powdered cheese blend is much like the contents of the little cheese packet that comes in boxes of macaroni and cheese. Cheese blend costs only about half as much as our 100% dehydrated cheddar cheese. Actually, the first ingredient in our cheese blend is whey powder. Whey is the byproduct that’s left after milk goes though it’s first stage of being made into cheese. Having a cheesy kind of taste, whey powder is an ideal ingredient for this. Dehydrated cheddar cheese is actually the third ingredient. Don’t let this throw you too badly. I was looking at the ingredients labels of couple of mac. and cheese boxes at the grocery stores. On both of their ingredient labels, there was more salt in them than cheddar cheese, meaning there was practically no actual cheese!!! In discussing this with the manufacturer of our powdered cheese products, he said that the majority of companies selling macaroni and cheese mixes to the grocery stores are unconcerned about cutting costs by reducing the cheese content of their mixes down to practically nothing. “Only kids eat it, anyway,” he says, “and they don’t care what it tastes like.” Amazingly enough, companies can call it cheese powder even if there is absolutely no cheese in it. Cheese blends on the open market usually contain 4% to 5% actual cheese, he said. Our cheese blend beats this hands down containing 8% cheddar cheese. Containing no artificial flavorings, all the cheesy flavor comes from the dairy products in the mix in our superior blended cheese product.
As already mentioned, our cheese blend goes wonderfully with macaroni in making your own macaroni and cheese at just pennies compared to what it costs in the little cardboard boxes from the grocery stores. The first time I tasted our cheese blend, Mr. Portela, the manager had made it into a cheese sauce filled with our rehydrated, dry broccoli. It was simply scrumptious. I’ve had a couple of customers say they felt it was a bit salty when eaten by itself. So, instead of eating it straight, you may want to dilute it down a bit more with other foods and let the cheese blend do the seasoning.
Powdered cheese is made by spray drying a cheese slurry, using much the same process as when making powdered milk only it’s sprayed into a huge box. Please see our ‘making powdered milk’ page for more information on this.
Our powdered cheddar cheese contains only 100% cheddar cheese with emulsifiers so it will blend well with water and make a nice, smooth sauce. If you are looking for the ultimate in cheesy flavor, it doesn’t get better than this. Virtually, all powered cheese products on the market today actually contain very little cheese. Check the label. Usually, whey powder is the first ingredient. Sometimes cheese is so far down the list that it makes one wonder if there’s even enough in it that it can be tasted. If you want the ultimate in flavor when making your cheese sauces, this undiluted cheese product, usually costing much less than their inferior counterparts in the grocery store, will certainly deliver. You just don’t know how much better, real 100% cheddar cheese powder tastes than the competition until you’ve tried it. And after you’ve tried it, you won’t want to go back. And considering our rock-bottom pricing on this product you won’t have to. You can enjoy the very best for less instead of paying what the competition wants for their inferior products. …yup, if you want only the best cheese powder, then this product is for you.
As already mentioned, our cheese blend goes wonderfully with macaroni in making your own macaroni and cheese at just pennies compared to what it costs in the little cardboard boxes from the grocery stores. The first time I tasted our cheese blend, Mr. Portela, the manager had made it into a cheese sauce filled with our rehydrated, dry broccoli. It was simply scrumptious. I’ve had a couple of customers say they felt it was a bit salty when eaten by itself. So, instead of eating it straight, you may want to dilute it down a bit more with other foods and let the cheese blend do the seasoning.
Powdered eggs, or dehydrated eggs, are very versatile. They can be added with the dry ingredients when baking and act exactly like the “real thing” would act in the recipe – this is because they are the “real thing.” Following is information on the different types of powdered eggs that we carry, along with some suggestions on how to use them.
Advantages of Using Powdered Eggs vs. Fresh Eggs
There are many real advantages to using powdered eggs over fresh eggs. The fact that powdered eggs are a non-perishable food when stored in an airtight container is their greatest advantage. Stored in the absence of oxygen and placed in a cool storage environment, powdered eggs have a storage life of 5 to 10 years. This means that they can be included in stored dried mixes – alleviating the need for having fresh eggs on hand.
There are several other advantages. You never have to worry about dropping and breaking a dehydrated egg – and dehydrated eggs store in a much smaller space. A dozen fresh eggs take up about 122 cubic inches in their carton. When the eggs are powdered, this is reduced to less than 22 cubic inches per dozen powdered eggs. Not only will this free up room in your refrigerator, a can of powdered eggs requires no refrigeration and stores for months in your pantry.
How Are Powdered Eggs Made?
Powdered eggs are made in a spray dryer much in the same way that powdered milk is made. The finished product is a free flowing powder that reconstitutes into a product similar to fresh whipped eggs.
What Are The Different Types of Powdered Eggs?
Whole Powdered Eggs
Whole powdered eggs contain the whole egg (whites and yolk) and are very versatile in baking. They can be added with the dry ingredients when baking and act exactly like the “real thing” would act in the recipe – this is because they are the “real thing.” Whole egg powder can be used successfully to make mayonnaise. It thickens pudding just like fresh eggs, and can be used to make omelets and scrambled eggs. They can even be used to make Eggnog.
Powdered Egg Whites
Powdered egg whites contain just the white of the egg and work just as well in recipes as egg whites that have been hand-separated. A huge advantage of using powdered egg whites is that it does not require going through the tedious process of separating the yoke from the white yourself nor do you have to find an alternate use for those yokes that are left over. Egg white powder is a lot less messy than separating fresh eggs which also make them a great time saver. They are perfect for whipping into a meringue. In fact, another name for them is meringue powder.
Powdered Egg Mix
Powdered egg mix is mostly whole egg powder with a bit of powdered milk and vegetable oil blended into the powder. The powdered egg mix has been formulated to make scrambled eggs, omelets or French toast. It is especially well suited for camping trips and other outings.
Once Opened, How Long Will Powdered Eggs Last?
Stored in the absence of oxygen and placed in a cool storage environment, powdered eggs have a storage life of 5 to 10 years. Once a container of powdered eggs has been opened, it is comparable to any other dehydrated dairy product and shelf-life would be measured in weeks or a month. Many people opt to refrigerate the remaining portion or only open as small a container as possible. If the goal is to keep the remaining powdered eggs long-term, we recommend that you re-pack the remaining portion in a smaller container with an oxygen absorber. Keep in mind that the eggs will only store as well as the condition of the original product – and therefore, should be free of moisture and oxygen.
Butter powder was originally developed for the processed foods industry. When used in baking, butter powder really shines. As it is mostly butter, the flavor really comes through in your baked goods. Butter powder is extremely handy in mixes. Being in a powdered form, it blends easily with the other dry ingredients in a mix. Then, weeks or months later when it’s reconstituted, the batter acts just as if you’d added butter. And of course, the end result is a dish or baked good that has a great flavor. You can use butter powder in many of the same dishes where you’d use regular butter. Add butter powder to your cooked vegetables, macaroni and cheese, instant rice or in any cooked dish calling for butter.
Our butter powder is a fine, free flowing powder. By looking at it you’d never guess it’s #1 ingredient is butter. Many people say, “I didn’t think you could dehydrate fat.” And they’re right. You can’t dehydrate fat as dehydrate literally means to ‘remove the water’ and fat has none. The small amount of water in butter is removed, however. Then, the powder is made by cleverly processing milk solids with the butter. Reconstituted butter powder looks much like whipped butter and tastes like butter with an added milky flavor to it. Because it does have a milky taste, some people find it takes just a bit of getting used to as a spread on bread. However, the mouth ‘feel’ is the same as butter and it looks and spreads much like butter after it has been reconstituted. It will even melt into hot toast and pancakes almost as fast as regular butter.
Butter powder’s big advantage over regular butter is it’s non-perishable qualities. Butter powder also has an antioxidant added to help keep it fresh. The antioxidants coupled with USA Emergency Supplies’ packaging technology gives you a product that remains fresh and wholesome for years after purchasing it.
Margarine powder is made from most of the same ingredients that regular margarine is made from but there’s a bit of added processing with milk solids to turn it into a powder. Even though it’s in a powdered form, margarine powder’s first ingredient is the same kind of fats and oils found in regular margarine. Because of the milk solids, margarine powder does have an added ‘milky taste’ to the natural margarine flavoring. Reconstituted margarine powder looks much like whipped butter or margarine. In addition to using butter powder in your baking, reconstituted margarine powder works just fine as a spread for bread or pancakes. On hot toast or pancakes, reconstituted margarine powder melts into the surface almost as well as grocery store bought margarine. Be aware that it has that slight, milky flavor we mentioned earlier. However, once your taste buds have made the transition, you won’t notice any differences.
Margarine powder goes well in all baked goods, on cooked vegetables, with pasta, rice, potato dishes, and virtually anywhere you’d use margarine. Because it’s in a solid form you can’t fry with it like you can with regular margarine, however. But this is about it’s only limitation. There are also many advantages. For example, when you are making mixes for later use, you can’t add regular margarine to the mix without ruining it. But you can add margarine powder which mixes right in with the rest of the dry ingredients. Margarine powder is also the perfect solution for your camping needs. As it needs no refrigeration, you never have to concern yourself with any waste. Simply mix the small amount needed for the meal your preparing.
Margarine powder is a great food to keep around to make your day-to-day cooking more flavorful and robust. But, with it’s long storing characteristics, margarine powder will also make your food storage much more enjoyable should you have to live from it for a long period of time.
Our butter powder is a fine, free flowing powder. By looking at it you’d never guess it’s #1 ingredient is butter. Many people say, “I didn’t think you could dehydrate fat.” And they’re right. You can’t dehydrate fat as dehydrate literally means to ‘remove the water’ and fat has none. The small amount of water in butter is removed, however. Then, the powder is made by cleverly processing milk solids with the butter. Reconstituted butter powder looks much like whipped butter and tastes like butter with an added milky flavor to it. Because it does have a milky taste, some people find it takes just a bit of getting used to as a spread on bread. However, the mouth ‘feel’ is the same as butter and it looks and spreads much like butter after it has been reconstituted. It will even melt into hot toast and pancakes almost as fast as regular butter.
Butter powder’s big advantage over regular butter is it’s non-perishable qualities. Butter powder also has an antioxidant added to help keep it fresh. The antioxidants coupled with USA Emergency Supplies’ packaging technology gives you a product that remains fresh and wholesome for years after purchasing it.
Buttermilk is what’s left over after the butter has been scooped off the top in the butter making process. Usually with a fleck or two of butter floating on the top that failed to get removed, buttermilk is then further processed by culturing it at around 69 degrees F for 12 to 14 hours which gives it it’s distinctive, tangy taste. Slightly thicker than milk, cultured buttermilk has a unique flavor all it’s own that many people like to drink after it’s been well chilled. People with ulcers or other stomach problems have been drinking small quantities of buttermilk for years. It coats the stomach and brings instant relief.
Our buttermilk powder is a regular type milk powder rather than an instant type powder. Containing only 100% dried buttermilk, our buttermilk powder has the same flavor as fresh, cultured buttermilk. Prepared for the food manufacturing industry, buttermilk powder can also add real flair to your dishes at home. Use buttermilk powder instead of powdered milk or fresh milk to make great tasting buttermilk pancakes, muffins, cakes, bread, soup and even fried chicken. See a host of Peggy Trowbridge’s buttermilk recipes here.
Margarine powder goes well in all baked goods, on cooked vegetables, with pasta, rice, potato dishes, and virtually anywhere you’d use margarine. Because it’s in a solid form you can’t fry with it like you can with regular margarine, however. But this is about it’s only limitation. There are also many advantages. For example, when you are making mixes for later use, you can’t add regular margarine to the mix without ruining it. But you can add margarine powder which mixes right in with the rest of the dry ingredients. Margarine powder is also the perfect solution for your camping needs. As it needs no refrigeration, you never have to concern yourself with any waste. Simply mix the small amount needed for the meal your preparing.
Margarine powder is a great food to keep around to make your day-to-day cooking more flavorful and robust. But, with it’s long storing characteristics, margarine powder will also make your food storage much more enjoyable should you have to live from it for a long period of time.
Our butter powder is a fine, free flowing powder. By looking at it you’d never guess it’s #1 ingredient is butter. Many people say, “I didn’t think you could dehydrate fat.” And they’re right. You can’t dehydrate fat as dehydrate literally means to ‘remove the water’ and fat has none. The small amount of water in butter is removed, however. Then, the powder is made by cleverly processing milk solids with the butter. Reconstituted butter powder looks much like whipped butter and tastes like butter with an added milky flavor to it. Because it does have a milky taste, some people find it takes just a bit of getting used to as a spread on bread. However, the mouth ‘feel’ is the same as butter and it looks and spreads much like butter after it has been reconstituted. It will even melt into hot toast and pancakes almost as fast as regular butter.
Butter powder’s big advantage over regular butter is it’s non-perishable qualities. Butter powder also has an antioxidant added to help keep it fresh. The antioxidants coupled with USA Emergency Supplies’ packaging technology gives you a product that remains fresh and wholesome for years after purchasing it.
Our cocoa powder has everything in it but the water and makes up into a truly flavorful and creamy treat. Perfect for camping trips, refreshments at various gatherings or as a quick treat at home, deluxe cocoa mixes easily into hot or cold water. If you like, people can mix their own in a paper or Styrofoam cup. All you supply is the hot water. Or, you can make it in volume in seconds using a large or small pot determined by the size of your crowd. Our deluxe cocoa mix is a snack that can be made in seconds.
Our sour cream powder is made from cultured cream. This means that a special type of bacteria have been added to sweet cream. Then it’s permitted to grow which sours the cream. The liquid sour cream is then spray-dried into a powder. Sour cream powder has a sweet, buttery milk smell coupled with a slight sour odor. Some people find the sour smell rather strong. But then, it is ‘sour’ cream.
In the powdered milk sections of this grouping of dairy pages, we’ve talked much about our powdered milks being non-fat which lengthens their storage life as compared to milk powder with the butterfat still in it. Our sour cream powder has not been de-fatted. After it has been reconstituted into a paste, it contains about 25% butterfat. This product gives you a rich, full bodied product, much like the regular sour cream from the grocery store. As it does contain a lot of butterfat, it’s not as good a storing commodity as our non-fat powdered milk. However, we carefully package it into oxygen-free containers which prevents the fats from oxidizing. When you receive it, if you plan on keeping it for years and don’t have a cool basement to store it in, you may wish to keep it the refrigerator. If you decide to get the sour cream powder in bags and don’t plan on using it within two or three months, you should immediately repackage it into airtight containers and use oxygen absorbers to remove the oxygen. As sour cream powder is a non-perishable food, you should be able to store it for 3-5 years without any problems if you keep it nice and cool in an oxygen-free environment.
Checking out our favorite recipe book, we noticed that sour cream can be used in just about everything from vegetables, biscuits, breads, cakes, frostings and cookies to several different salad dressings, fish and meat dishes, squash, soups and candy. Our stroganoff mix with a little sour cream powder added for extra ‘zing’ is simply scrumptious. Use sour cream powder in your everyday cooking or store it away for that rainy day when you need your food storage and want to give it a spike of flavor.