Bulgarian yogurt at Wal Mart

[Edgar_in_Indy]

Maybe some of you are already aware of this, but Dannon is now selling Bulgarian yogurt (ie Kiselo Mlyako) here in the United States.

Ever since I got back from my mission in 2000, I've missed the taste of Bulgarian yogurt. Every once in a while when I'm at the store I'll pick up all the different brands of yogurt and check to see what type of bacteria culture is used in the yogurt. American yogurts generally use Lactobacillus acidophilus (L. acidophilus) to turn milk into yogurt, while the Bulgarian Kislo Mlyako uses Lactobacillus bulgaricus (L. bulgaricus) as the primary bacteria.

Up until this week I had never come across a yogurt containing L. bulgaricus, so I was pleasantly surprised when I picked up a container of yogurt and found L. bulgaricus listed as the primary ingredient.

The yogurt is Dannon Activia, and is in a green container. In addition to L. bulgaricus, the yogurt also contains S. thermophilus and Bifidobacterium, so I wasn't sure if it would taste like the Kiselo Mlyako I knew and loved. They had fruit flavors, but I opted for the plain variety. I opened the container as soon as I got home and was delighted to find that it tasted exactly like I remembered (although it has been almost eight years since I last had it).

I did a little research and discovered that Dannon has been marketing their Activia line of yogurts containing L. bulgaricus since 2004 in the U.S. I'm not sure how long Wal Mart has carried it. Dannon's web site for Activia is here:

http://www.activia.us.com/

It's being marketed as a natural way to boost your digestive system and promote general health. On the front of the container and on their website they boast about Activia containing Bifidus Regularis, which is actually Dannon's marketing term for Bifidobacterium, but I think the true star of the yogurt is L. bulgaricus which is, of course, what gives Activia its unique flavor.

So far I've just been enjoying the yogurt by itself, or sometimes with fruit and/or honey, but I'm planning on making tarator when I pick up another container.

I noticed there was another brand of yogurt that also contained L. bulgaricus, but I forget what it was. It may be a new product trying to imitate Activia. I'll probably try it also next time I go to Wal Mart.

Now that I have my hands on some Bulgarian yogurt I figured I might try to make my own using a yogurt maker I bought a few years ago but never used. So far I've had good results, although the Dannon yogurt was tangier. I might not have let it cultivate long enough since I only left it for six or seven hours.

BTW, I noticed there was a thread about somebody finding a source for "sirene". I've never had a problem finding sirene since most grocery stores stock feta cheese. If there's a difference between feta cheese and Bulgarian sirene, I haven't been able to notice it. I just made crepes the other day with chocolate spread (Nutella--also available at Wal Mart) and crumbled feta cheese. That really brought back some memories! Do they still have those crepe stands all over the place? What did they call them? Palachinkas? Man I miss those places--nothing like a giant pancake rolled up with sweets and sirene!

Bon appetite!

Edgar Lucas
Dec '98 - '00
Plovdiv, Sofia, Varna, Pernik

[Richard Davies]

Lucas, I had no idea that you were such a yogurt connoisseur! Thanks for posting this information. Not only did I learn some things about yogurt, but I'll definitely be checking the grocery stores for Dannon Activia. BTW, I found a link on that website to a store locator for their products. It says that I should be able to find Activia at any of the Fred Meyers or Safeway grocery stores in my neighborhood.

Yumm, таратор sounds good right now. What kind of feta cheese do you get as a сирене substitute? I've bought greek feta cheese many times, and yes, it is pretty similar, but I can definitely tell a difference (at least from what I remember сирене tasted like).

Speaking of Bulgarian food, we just made some мусака last week and it sure brought back some good old memories. Lucas, can you believe that it's already been eight years since we were in Bulgaria! Wow that makes me feel old... 

[Edgar_in_Indy]

There may be a slight variation between Greek feta cheese and the Bulgarian sirene, but it's close enough that I can't really tell a difference from the sirene I remember (but again, it's been eight years). I've tried a few different brands, and they all taste pretty much the same to me. Right now I have a package of Athenos feta cheese I bought at Wal Mart. I suspect that the Greek feta cheese and the Bulgarian sirene are produced in pretty much the same manner, and any differences in taste/texture may just be the normal variations you would expect to find between different producers.

Yeah, it's hard to believe it's been eight years already. I remember that when I was on my mission, hearing about missionaries from more than five years ago seemed like ancient history. Time has really flown by, but I can tell it's been eight years now when I pick up something in Bulgarian (other than the BOM) and try to read it. Not nearly as proficient as I used to be!

[Blindspot]

Ooo...don't tell a Bulgarian that feta and сирене are the same or you'll get a good tongue lashing.

Excellent news about the кисело, though.  My wife has been a little worried about that and it will make her feel more at ease to have a taste of home.  We'll be moving back to Provo (ugh!) for a couple years while I get my MBA.  The funny thing is that they sell that stuff here (Sofia) as well.  Never would have thought to look at the bacteria.  Good on ya!

Coincidentally, many years ago I did find Bulgaria Goat Cheese in a can.  I wanted to save it for a special occasion which never materialized and so it sat in the back of my fridge.  A few years later I finally took it out with the idea that I would make a Шопска салата and found it bulging.  Never did open it...to afraid.  It probably exploded in a landfill.  But the moral of the story is...Bulgarian Cheese should be eaten ASAP.  Even if it is "preserved for freshness".

[Richard Davies]

Blindspot,

Sorry to hear that you'll be moving back to the U.S. for a while. I've sure enjoyed your "local expertise" in the forums. That's too bad about the wasted сирене... but I just wanted to let you know that you can also get it in Provo (at least you could when I was there about four years ago) at this little foreign food store... sorry, I can't remember the actual name of it right now. But maybe you already knew that...

[Blindspot]

Yeah...I've been there...Many Lands or some such.  Good place to get obscure ingredients.

It's a bittersweet thing moving to Provo.  But the plan is to move back when I'm done with school.

[Richard Davies]

Ah yes! Many Lands is it.

[Brinton]

I agree with Blindspot, feta and cirene are not the same.  To me feta has a much more pungent smell and stronger taste.  I'm not a huge fan of sheep's milk cirene, I prefer the krave, but since sheep's milk is what is sold here, I take it.

You can get istinsko cirene thru malincho.com or bbsproduce.com. 

[Edgar_in_Indy]

To me feta has a much more pungent smell and stronger taste.

When you describe Greek feta as stronger and more pungent, I would say that's probably accurate. I think the stronger taste is most noticeable when you eat it straight, but when used as an ingredient or topping, such as crumbled on top of shopska salata, I think the differences are less pronounced and it's acceptable as an easily obtained substitute.

BTW, the tarator turned out great! Too bad my wife didn't like it, but she's never been too adventurous with food. I gave my parents a sample of the yogurt, but they had to load it up with honey before they could enjoy it. It reminded me of when I was a greenie.

[Brinton]

Didn't we all have to use tons of sugar or honey in the beginning?  I remember my first morning in my first area, my comps took me out to get real kicelo and banitza, I just about gagged it was so sour.  We bought the kicelo from an old baba selling it out of a basement window in glass jars.  This was before Dannon had really taken off in BG, and you had to add your own fruit to your kicelo.  Fast forward 18 months and my family thought I was a freak show eating yogurt plain. 

Good times, good times.

[Blindspot]

Uh...I still can't eat it plain.  I have to add sugar and fruit to make it go down.  Once you get out of the trappings of missionaryhood, you start to be a little more discretionary in your food habits.

I do like айран, though.  I love it in the summer time.  For some reason, a small glass of that always quenches my thirst.

[abbienelson]

Getting the organic yogurt will take you back. The Brown Cow brand uses Bulgaricus yadda yadda...it's super yummy. You can get it at Smiths. I make snezhanka and tarator with it...it's delicious. (remember to make tarator the night before, and use fresh dill and garlic, for optimum taste)  I also feed the flavored Brown Cow yogurt to my kids because it actually has the most fat, and live cultures. Great for when kids are on antibiotics, plus my kids like it better. I haven't gotten the kids to eat the tarator yet, but my husband loves it...man I married the right guy!
The Bulgarian sirene is SO much better than any others...I have bought the greek feta and regular feta...it's just not the same. We buy it whenever we're in Utah. What can I say...I'm a purist.
My husband likes cirene too, and lyutenitza...which incidently they carry at Trader Joes!! It's called pepper spread, but if you look on the label, it says "made in Bulgaria".

[bg-usa]

www.mountainhighyoghurt.com is similar to bulgarian yoghurt.

[kkruchek]

Sirene is most definitely different from feta. I miss my sirene!

*Side note:Lyutenitsa is not that hard to make, actually. My husband pulled a recipe off the internet and we've tweaked it a little. You can buy roasted red peppers in the store, and all the ingredients are pretty basic. I think he just makes it in the blender.

[Brinton]

Can you post the recipe or the link?

I miss and love lytenitza..and cirene too....