Filmjölk (Swedish:[ˈfîːl.ˌmjœlk]), also known asfil, is a traditionalfermented milk product from Sweden, and a common dairy product within most of theNordic countries. It is made byfermenting cow's milk with a variety of bacteria from the speciesLactococcus lactis andLeuconostoc mesenteroides.[1][2] The bacteria metabolizelactose, the sugar naturally found in milk, intolactic acid, which means people who arelactose intolerant can tolerate it better than other dairy products. The acid givesfilmjölk a sour taste and causesproteins in the milk, mainlycasein, tocoagulate, thus thickening the final product. The bacteria also produce a limited amount ofdiacetyl, a compound with a buttery flavor, which givesfilmjölk its characteristic taste.[3]
Filmjölk has a mild and slightly acidic taste. It has a shelf-life of around 10–14 days at refrigeration temperature.
In theNordic countries,filmjölk is often eaten withbreakfast cereal,muesli or crushedcrisp bread on top. Some people addsugar,jam,apple sauce,cinnamon,ginger,fruits, orberries for extra flavor.
In Norwegian it is calledsurmelk (Nynorsk:surmjølk) ('sour milk') orskjør/skyr[4] but the official name iskulturmelk (Nynorsk:kulturmjølk). The drink is also popular inLatvian kitchens, where it is calledrūgušpiens,rūgtpiens ('fermented milk' or 'sour milk') and can be bought ready from stores but is more commonly made at home. It can also be purchased and is popular in the neighboring country,Lithuania, where it is calledrūgpienis orraugintas pienas ('sour/fermented milk'). Due to its popularity, it can be bought in many stores alongsidekefir.
Manufacturedfilmjölk is made frompasteurised,homogenised, andstandardised cow's milk. Although homemadefilmjölk has been around for a long time (written records from the 18th century speak offilmjölk-like products, but it has probably been around since the Viking Age or longer),[5] it was first introduced to the Swedish market as a consumer product in 1931 by the Swedish dairy cooperativeArla.[3][6] The firstfilmjölk was unflavoured and contained 3% milkfat. Since the 1960s, different varieties of unflavouredfilmjölk have been marketed in Swedish grocery stores.Långfil, a more elastic variant offilmjölk was introduced in 1965;lättfil,filmjölk with 0.5% milkfat was introduced in 1967; andmellanfil,filmjölk with 1.5% milkfat, was introduced in 1990.[6][7]
In 1997, Arla introduced its first flavouredfilmjölk: strawberry-flavouredfilmjölk.[8] The flavouredfilmjölk was so popular that different flavours soon followed. By 2001, almost one third of thefilmjölk sold in Sweden was flavouredfilmjölk.[9] Since 2007, variations offilmjölk includefilmjölk with various fat content,filmjölk flavoured with fruit, vanilla, or honey, as well asfilmjölk withprobiotic bacteria that is said to be more healthy, such as Onakafil which containsBifidobacterium lactis (a strain of bacteria popular in Japan)[10] and Verum Hälsofil which containsLactococcus lactis L1A in quantities of at least 10 billion live bacteria per deciliter.[11]
There is no single accepted English term forfil orfilmjölk, but the most common English term isyogurt.Fil and/orfilmjölk has been is sometimes translated to English assour milk,[12]soured milk,[12][13]acidulated milk,[14]fermented milk,[15] andcurdled milk,[16] all of which are nearly synonymous and describefilmjölk but do not differentiatefilmjölk from other types ofsoured/fermented milk.Filmjölk has also been described asviscousfermented milk[17] andviscousmesophilicfermented milk,.[17] Furthermore, articles written in English can be found that use the Swedish termfilmjölk,[18][19] as well as the Anglicised spellingsfilmjolk,[20]fil mjölk,[21][22] andfil mjolk.[23]
In baking, whenfilmjölk is called for, cultured buttermilk can be substituted.[citation needed]
InFinland Swedish, the dialects spoken by theSwedish-speaking population of Finland,fil is the equivalent offilbunke in Sweden.[24] Not all variants offilmjölk are found in Finland, normally onlyfilbunke andlångfil. Swedish-speakers in Finland usually use the wordsurmjölk, which is the older name forfilmjölk (also in Sweden) orpiimä (in Finnish),[24] which is afermented milk product that is thinner thanfilmjölk and resemblescultured buttermilk.[citation needed]
In Sweden, there are five Swedish dairycooperatives that producefilmjölk:Arla Foods,Falköpings Mejeri,Gefleortens Mejeri,Norrmejerier, andSkånemejerier. In addition,Wapnö AB, a Swedish dairy company, andValio, a Finnish dairy company, also sell a limited variety offilmjölk in Sweden. Prior to the industrial manufacture offilmjölk, many families madefilmjölk at home.
Fil culture is a variety of bacterium from the speciesLactococcus lactis andLeuconostoc mesenteroides, e.g., Arla'sfil culture containsLactococcus lactis subsp.lactis,Lactococcus lactis subsp.cremoris,Lactococcus lactis biovar.diacetylactis, andLeuconostoc mesenteroides subsp.cremoris.[1][2][9]
| Name | Literal translation | Milkfat content | Fermentation culture | Produced by | Year introduced | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Filmjölk | 2.5%–3%[25][6][26][27] | fil culture | Arla Foods,Falköpings Mejeri,Gefleortens Mejeri,Milko,Norrmejerier,Skånemejerier, Wapnö AB | 1931 (Arla) | "Regular"filmjölk.Filmjölk made from 3% milkfat. Comes unflavoured and flavoured. Also comes in a variant made from organic milk, a low-lactose variant that has been treated withlactase enzyme, a variant with added fiber (f-fil,fil med fiber), and a variant with higher milkfat content (ArlaVår finaste filmjölk, 3.8–4.5% milkfat). Has been in the Swedish language since 1741.[28] | |
| Mellanfil | middle (lowfat)filmjölk | 1.3%,[27] 1.5%[29] | fil culture | Arla Foods, Falköpings Mejeri, Gefleortens Mejeri, Milko, Norrmejerier, Skånemejerier | 1990 (Arla) | Filmjölk made from 1.5% milkfat. Comes unflavoured only. |
| Lättfil | light (nonfat)filmjölk | 0.4%, 0.5%[27][30] | fil culture | Arla Foods, Falköpings Mejeri, Gefleortens Mejeri, Milko, Norrmejerier, Skånemejerier, Wapnö AB | 1967 (Arla), 1968[31] | Filmjölk made from 0.5% milkfat. Comes unflavoured and flavoured. Also comes in a low-lactose variant that has been treated withlactase enzyme. |
| Långfil fi:pitkäviili | longfil | 3%[7] | fil culture +Lactococcus lactis subsp.lactis var.longi[7] | Arla Foods, Gefleortens Mejeri, Norrmejerier, previously Milko (which was "longer" than Arla's) | 1965 (Arla)[7] | Filmjölk with a characteristic long and almost elastic texture due toLactococcus lactis var.longi, a strain of bacteria that converts the carbohydrates in milk into long chains of polysaccharides. Comes unflavoured only. More common in northern Sweden. Sometimes eaten with ground ginger. Has been in the Swedish language since 1896.[32] |
| Bollnäsfil[33][34] | Bollnäsfil | 3% | fil culture fromBollnäs | Milko | Filmjölk that originated inBollnäs. Comes unflavoured or vanilla flavoured. | |
| Fjällfil[35] | fell fil | 0.8%, 3.8–4.5% | specialfil culture | Norrmejerier | Available as unflavoured, withbirch sap, blueberry, cloudberry or raspberry. | |
| bowl offil | 1%, 1.9%, 2.2%, 2.5%, 3%, 3.5%,[37] 4%[38] | specialfil culture | Milko,Valio | Milk that has fermented, unstirred, in small bowls.[39] Has a pudding-like consistency. Similar to unstirredlångfil. Traditionally made in small bowls from (unpasteurized and unhomogenized)raw milk, which normally contains some cream. The cream forms a yellowish layer of sour cream on top. Comes unflavoured and flavoured. Has been in the Swedish language since 1652.[39] | ||
| Laktosfri fil[40] | lactose-freefil | 3.5% | fil culture | Valio | Filmjölk made from 3.5% milkfat and treated withlactase enzyme. Comes unflavoured only. |
| Name | Literal translation | Milkfat content | Fermentation culture | Produced by | Year introduced | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A-fil | 0.5%, 2.7%, 3%[41] | fil culture +Lactobacillus acidophilus[41] | Arla Foods, Falköpings Mejeri, Gefleortens Mejeri, Milko, Skånemejerier, Wapnö AB | 1984 (Arla)[8] | Filmjölk withLactobacillus acidophilus, a commonly usedprobiotic bacterium.[42][43][44] Comes unflavoured and flavoured. Also comes in a low-lactose variant that has been treated withlactase enzyme. | |
| Culturaaktiv fil[45] | Cultura active fil | 0.1% | fil culture +Lactobacillus casei F19 | Arla Foods | 2004[46] | Filmjölk withLactobacillus casei F19, apatented[47]probiotic[48] bacteria. Comes unflavoured only. |
| Kefir[9] | 3% | Lactococcus lactis subsp.lactis,Lactococcus lactis subsp.cremoris,Lactobacillus brevis,Leuconostoc mesenteroides subsp.cremoris,Candida kefyr | Arla Foods | 1977 | Filmjölk variant based onkefir, aprobiotic food;[49] only contains a small subset of microorganisms found in kefir grains. Originated inCaucasus. Comes unflavoured. | |
| Onaka[10] | stomach (Japanese) | 1.5% | fil culture +Bifidobacterium lactis | Arla Foods | 1990 | Filmjölk withBifidobacterium lactis, aprobiotic bacteria[44] popular in Japan[citation needed]. Comes unflavoured and flavoured. |
| Philura[50][51] | 1.5%, 2.6% | Lactobacillus acidophilus,Bifidobacterium lactis,Lactobacillus casei | Milko | 2003[52] | Tastes somewhere between regularfilmjölk and yogurt. Containsprobiotic bacteria[42][44] that is normally found in the digestive system. Comes unflavoured and flavoured. | |
| Verumhälsofil[11] | Verum healthfil | 0.5%, 4% | Lactococcus lactis L1A | Norrmejerier | 1990[53] | Filmjölk that contains at least 108Lactococcus lactis L1A bacteria per milliliter. Comes unflavoured and flavoured.Lactococcus lactis L1A is a patented strain ofprobiotic bacteria that originated from a culture of långfil from a farm inVästerbotten.[53] In 1998 Verum hälsofil was approved as a natural medical product (naturläkemedel) by the Swedish national regulatory agencyMedical Products Agency (Läkemedelsverket).[54] It has been shown to have a positive effect on the immune and digestive system. |
| Öresundsfil[55][56][57] | Öresundfil | 0.9%, 1% | fil culture +Lactobacillus acidophilus andBifidobacterium | Skånemejerier | 2000[58] | Filmjölk withLactobacillus acidophilus andBifidobacterium,probiotic bacteria.[42][44] Comes unflavoured and flavoured. |
| ProViva NaturellFilmjölk[59] | ProViva unflavouredfilmjölk | 1% | fil culture +Lactobacillus plantarum 299v | Skånemejerier | 1994[60] | Filmjölk that contains at least 5.0 x 107 Lp 299v per milliliter. Comes unflavoured. Lp 299v, a patentedprobiotic bacteria,[61] has been shown to decrease the symptoms of colon irritation and stressed digestive system in people who consumed ProViva.[62][63] |
To makefilmjölk, a small amount of bacteria from an active batch offilmjölk is normally transferred topasteurised milk and then left one to two days to ferment at room temperature or in a cool cellar. Thefil culture is needed when using pasteurised milk because the bacteria occurring naturally in milk are killed during the pasteurisation process.[citation needed]
A variant offilmjölk calledtätmjölk,filtäte,täte orlångmjölk is made by rubbing the inside of a container with leaves of certain plants: sundew (Drosera,Swedish:sileshår)[64] or butterwort (Pinguicula,Swedish:tätört).[65][66][67] Lukewarm milk is added to the container and left to ferment for one to two days. Moretätmjölk can then be made by adding completedtätmjölk to milk. InFlora Lapponica (1737),Carl von Linné described a recipe fortätmjölk and wrote that any species of butterwort could be used to make it.[65]
Sundew andbutterwort arecarnivorous plants that haveenzymes that degrade proteins,[68] which make the milk thick. How butterwort influences the production oftätmjölk is not completely understood – lactic acid bacteria have not been isolated during analyses of butterwort.[clarification needed][65]
Vår härliga fil motsvaras i Sverige av filbunke som filvännerna får laga hemma eftersom den inte saluförs av de svenska mejerierna. Surmjölk kan svensken missförstå som mjölk som förfarits eller förskämts (inte farit illa), så säg hellre filmjölk i Sverige även om det inte är riktigt samma sak.
sedan 1968
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