I put my nose against the small offering bowl a shop owner had presented to me. The contents comprised a white liquid. I sniffed. I didn’t recognise the smell but it didn’t smell good.
I was inquisitive. I sniffed again. It was at this stage I took my first sip of the cold liquid. It was definitely horse. How did I know that? I had never, knowingly, tasted anything horsey. I sipped again. This time I had a lemon fizz sensation. I sipped a few more times. The liquid was like a very light milk, with little fat and this was exactly what it was… only this was mare’s milk!
I had never given it a moment’s thought that horses could be milked, let alone have a desire to drink the produce. This was my first experience of drinking mare’s milk and surprisingly I willingly continued until the whole cup was consumed, which was much to the amazement of my travelling companions. That lemon fizz sensation turned out to be a small alcohol content caused by the fermentation process.
A visit to most nomad gers will show fermented mare’s milk in the making. At some sites, if the time is right (June-September), a visitor may be able to see the milking process being carried out. This we saw at Arkhangai, near the centre of Mongolia and on the northern slopes of the Khangai mountains, where we were lunchtime guests of a family.
It was a privilege to be invited to see the mare milking. Our guide had dropped in to a small collection of gers along our route. Travelling groups, presumably of a small size such as our own, had arrangements to call in to families if in the locality to see if they could provide lunch. That gives income to the families and helps the tour companies, as cafes are sparsely located outside the capital. It can also add so much to the enjoyment and education of the tourist.
In addition to a wholesome lunch of homemade noodles combined with meat and vegetables within a soup, we got an insight into the milking and fermentation process. Our hostess, Naraa, was clearly a busy lady. While her husband was away herding, in addition to the usual ‘housewifely’ duties, she was, at this time of year, milking the mares and processing the milk. Naraa was happy for us to look on, and was aided by our driver Tugsuu who had spent a lifetime working with horses as part of his growing up.
Not wishing to miss this experience, we rushed outside the ger to the waiting horses. Each foal is tethered along a rope, and then brought to their mothers one by one. The foal suckles and is then removed to its mother’s side. This starts the milk flowing and the hand milking follows. This is carried out every couple of hours for one to two days when the mother and foal return to pasture for a few more days, and the process begins again. The quantity of mare’s milk production is less than that of a cow.
The milk can be consumed ‘raw’, but fermenting extends its life. Fermented mare’s milk, known as airag, is produced on a small scale by pouring it into a cowhide sack, called an arhad, and adding yogurt as a starter culture. Over the following days the contents are churned thousands of times to aid an even fermentation process.
The mare’s milk is also used to produce butter (often combined with raisins), or a sweet, hard, curd eaten in a similar way to confectionery. Excess milk may be frozen or sold to local stores.
Mare’s milk curd. It can also be served in blocks. The longer it is cooked the darker and more intense the flavour – almost like very hard toffee
Research has shown that mare’s milk has many benefits, including low fat, and is a good source of nutrients. The biggest thing westerners need to overcome is the acquired taste.
Another acquired taste is the high level of mutton served in dishes for breakfast, lunch and dinner. At breakfast this could be a simple clear soup with lamb pieces and a few vegetables. At other meals it could be the main ingredient of dumplings. At one homestay we had the pleasure of a lesson making dumplings. Our hostess, Uka, having rolled circles of a flour and water mix, showed us how to simply place minced lamb in the centre and quickly pinch the pastry circle to contain the mix.
For the lunar new year (a day of celebration) female members of the family may make 5,000 dumplings. I think we might have got the hang of it by then, but forever willing we put our skills to the test. It has to be said our efforts were nothing less than outstanding – for all the wrong reasons! If they still contained the meat and vegetable contents after steaming it would be a miracle. Needless to say, they did not.
There were several other things throughout our trip that were new to us. A gift held in high esteem would be the cooked whole carcass of a sheep, together with head neatly placed on top. This would be provided when there was cause for celebration. It would come from the family or friend’s herd.
I shall spare you the photo, and I shall also spare you the details of something else we came across by chance. That was the gutting of a sheep immediately after slaughter. Father did the slaughtering, while mother separated the intestines into bowls according to use. It was interesting that the children looked on, or more precisely, played on, unperturbed. This was an activity of daily life. The herd was slaughtered as and when the family needed to eat. But as I looked on, I soon realised that the next unfortunate sheep had arrived for the same fate. I just had to walk away.
Another food we were served and unfamiliar with was horse meat. It was presented sliced (looking similar to roast beef) with gherkins and was some of the best meat we have tasted, and so delicately cooked. Serving horse would be a rarity and in this case was part of a celebration (more about that later). The horse too would be an important and valuable part of the herd.
On a different scale, a mainstay of cafe menus would be stir fried beef or lamb with rice or noodles. Unfortunately the meat would often be tough. Fat would be left on the meat, as this is still an important part of the nomadic diet needed to provide warmth and energy. I also soon learned that sheep tail is all fat and highly sought after. That formed part of the meals we ate as well.
Something our cultures had in common was the serving of tea when visiting a family. This was poured from big teapots, but with the milk already combined. I did not find out whether that was mare’s or cow’s milk. Salt was added to the tea when making, and butter could be added at the same time, or served separately.
Trying all these foods and seeing how they form part of the Mongolian and nomadic diet and way of life was a delight. Some elements might not be to everybody’s taste but trying the food of a nation and the ways in which it is prepared helps to get to the core of a culture, and it was a privilege to do so.
Copyright: Words and photos Sue Barnard 2022