What causes curdling and how can you prevent it?

What causes curdling and how can you prevent it? - Set of gratitude message for doctors with stethoscope and hearts

Some sauces are more at risk to curdle than others. What exactly (ingredients, techniques, temperature...) causes this curdling? What can you do to have the curdling risk at minimum?

I'm not asking for ways to fix this, that's already asked here.



Best Answer

In most cases, curdling occurs because proteins in the sauce are denatured and bind up with each other forming clumps.

In cooking, proteins are denatured by excessive heat, acid, salt, or enzymes.

Heat and acid are the usual culprits for me. For example, when making a hollandaise sauce- the egg yolks are slowly cooked to allow them to set. In most recipes the lemon juice is added later. If the sauce is heated too abruptly or too high then the egg proteins will curdle.

To prevent curdling you have a few options-

  • Don't expose the sauce to as much heat.
    Be careful to not overcook egg rich sauces. If possible add the protein rich ingredient later in the process- for example adding yogurt to a sauce just before serving.
  • Heat the sauce gently.
    Heating too fast will also make proteins denature. Many sauces are cooked in a double boiler- not to keep the sauce from overheating but to ensure that it heats gently.
  • Don't expose the proteins to too much salt or acid.
    Dropping a couple tablespoons of lemon juice into warm milk is a recipe for paneer not sauce.
  • Take out some insurance.
    Proteins bind with each other after denaturing when there are a large quantity of similar molecules all together. One solution then is to introduce a lot of dissimilar molecules that will interfere with the protein's ability to bind to itself. Common candidates for this are starch or fat.

It is difficult (but not impossible) to curdle the milk protein in cream based sauces with just heat because the high concentration of milk fat gets in the way. This is why reduction sauces can add cream to a very hot liquid and let it reduce. However, adding acid and heat can still be enough to curdle so be careful if your reduction sauce is very acidic.

Many otherwise fragile sauce recipes will call for a little bit of corn starch as an insurance policy. In the related question that you posted- yogurt sauces are particularly susceptible to this because low-fat yogurt is very high in protein and low in fat, and starch.




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Quick Answer about "What causes curdling and how can you prevent it?"

Starches like flour or cornstarch help stabilize the milk emulsion. This will prevent it from separating. A common technique is to thicken your sauce or soup with roux before adding the milk. This changes the makeup of the liquid and prevents curdling.

What does curdled mean and what causes it?

1 : to form curds also : to congeal as if by forming curds a scream curdled in her throat. 2 : to go bad or wrong : spoil. transitive verb. 1 : to cause curds to form in curdled milk. 2 : spoil, sour.

What are factors of curdling?

The primary factors are acids, such as those found in juices and vegetables; tannins, such as those found in potatoes, coffee, or tea; and bacteria, which are sometimes deliberately added (if you are making cheese or yogurt), but may also develop if the milk is no longer fresh and starts to sour.

What is curdling process?

Curdling is the breaking of an emulsion or colloid into large parts of different composition through the physio-chemical processes of flocculation, creaming, and coalescence.

How do I get rid of curdling?

To fix an already curdled soup
  • Add an ice cube and lower the heat, whisking constantly; the shock can help bring it back together.
  • Add a few additional tablespoons of cream warmed ahead of time to the soup mixture, whisking constantly.
  • Make a simple roux; and whisk into soup on low heat until blended and smooth.




  • Tip To Stop Curdling Of Milk At Home || How To Avoid MilkCurdling || LaxmiYouTube




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