Boza

 This is a popular fermented beverage in Bulgaria as well as other Balkan countries. The boza has a thick, sweetish-sour taste and contains up to 4% alcohol.

The Boza is made of various kinds of flour (barley, oats, corn, wheat, millet). You can make boza at home. The following recipe is meant for 4-5 litres.

Ingredients:

5l water

1 ½ cups of whole wheat flour

½ cup millet flour

3 cups sugar

1 cup boza or homemade ferment*

20 clove buds

1 teaspoon cinnamon

Method:

Preheat the water.

Roast slightly the flour (to become rosy in color). Stir. Do not burn.

Mix it with a bit of lukewarm water. Pour the mixture into the pot filled with the rest of the water and put it back on the stove.

Add the sugar, cloves and cinnamon. Bring it to boil and stir occasionally.

Keep boiling about 5-6 minutes.

Remove the pot from the fire and let it cool.

Add 1 cup of boza or homemade ferment. Leave the mixture in a warm place for 1-2 days to cause fermentation. When the boza is ready, pour it in bottles and refrigerate.

*Homemade boza Ferment

Ingredients:

2 tbsp of slightly roasted wheat flour

2 tbsp lukewarm water

1 tbsp sugar

How to make the boza ferment:

Mix the roasted flour with water and stir well. Add the sugar. Leave the mess in a warm place for 2-3 days to ferment, stirring it from time to time.