A drink or beverage is a liquid intended for human consumption. In addition to their basic function of satisfying thirst, drinks play important roles in human culture. Common types of drinks include plain drinking water, milk, juice, smoothies and soft drinks. Traditionally warm beverages include coffee, tea, and hot chocolate. Caffeinated drinks that contain the stimulant caffeine have a long history.
Yogurt is a food produced by bacterial fermentation of milk. Fermentation of sugars in the milk by these bacteria produces lactic acid, which acts on milk protein to give yogurt its texture and characteristic tart flavor. Cow's milk is most commonly used to make yogurt. Milk from water buffalo, goats, ewes, mares, camels, and yaks is also used to produce yogurt. The milk used may be homogenized or not. It may be pasteurized or raw. Each type of milk produces substantially different results.
Kumis, alternatively spelled coumis or kumyz, also known as airag, is a fermented dairy product traditionally made from mare milk or donkey milk. The drink is important to the peoples of the Central Asian steppes, of Turkic and Mongol origin: Kazakhs, Bashkirs, Kalmyks, Kyrgyz, Mongols, and Yakuts. Kumis was historically consumed by the Khitans, Jurchens, Hungarians, and Han Chinese of North China as well.
Calpis, sold in North America as Calpico, is a Japanese non-carbonated soft drink manufactured by Calpis Co., Ltd., a subsidiary of Asahi Breweries headquartered in Shibuya, Tokyo. The beverage has a light, somewhat milky, and slightly acidic flavour, similar to plain or vanilla-flavoured yogurt or Yakult. Its ingredients include water, dry milk, and lactic acid, and it is produced by lactic acid fermentation.
Makgeolli, sometimes anglicized to makkoli, is a Korean alcoholic drink. It is a milky, off-white, and lightly sparkling rice wine that has a slight viscosity, and tastes slightly sweet, tangy, bitter, and astringent. Chalky sediment gives it a cloudy appearance. As a low proof drink of six to nine percent alcohol by volume, it is often considered a "communal beverage" rather than hard liquor.
Arrack is a distilled alcoholic drink typically produced in Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia, made from the fermented sap of coconut flowers or sugarcane, and also with grain or fruit depending upon the country of origin. It is sometimes spelled arak, or simply referred to as 'rack or 'rak. It is not to be confused with the anise-flavored distilled spirit called arak or araq. In many parts of India arrack is colloquially known as "desi daru".
Ayran is a cold savory yogurt-based beverage popular across Central Asia, West Asia, South Asia, North Asia, and the Balkans. The principal ingredients are yogurt, water and salt. Herbs such as mint may be optionally added. Some varieties are carbonated.
Kashk, qurut, chortan, or aaruul and khuruud is a range of dairy products popular in Iranian cuisine, Caucasian cuisine, and Central Asian cuisine. Kashk is made from strained yogurt, drained buttermilk or drained sour milk by shaping it and letting it dry. It can be made in a variety of forms, like rolled into balls, sliced into strips, and formed into chunks.
In food processing, fermentation is the conversion of carbohydrates to alcohol or organic acids using microorganisms—yeasts or bacteria—under anaerobic (oxygen-free) conditions. Fermentation usually implies that the action of microorganisms is desired. The science of fermentation is known as zymology or zymurgy.
A smoothie is a beverage made by puréeing ingredients in a blender. A smoothie commonly has a liquid base, such as fruit juice or milk, yogurt or ice cream. Other ingredients may be added, including fruits, vegetables, non-dairy milk, crushed ice, whey powder or nutritional supplements.
Afghan cuisine is influenced by Persian, Central Asian, and South Asian cuisines due to Afghanistan's close proximity and cultural ties. The cuisine is halal and mainly based on mutton, beef, poultry and fish with rice and Afghan bread. Accompanying these are common vegetables and dairy products, such as milk, yogurt, whey, and fresh and dried fruits such as apples, apricots, grapes, bananas, oranges, plums, pomegranates, sweet melons, and raisins. The diet of most Afghans revolves around rice-based dishes, while various forms of naan are consumed with most meals. Tea is generally consumed daily in large quantities, and is a major part of hospitality. The culinary specialties reflect the nation's ethnic and geographic diversity. The national dish of Afghanistan is Kabuli palaw, a rice dish cooked with raisins, carrots, nuts, and lamb or beef.
Sizdah Bedar, also known as Nature's Day, is an Iranian festival held annually on the thirteenth day of Farvardin, the first month of the Iranian calendar (and the first month of spring, during which people spend time picnicking outdoors. It marks the end of the Nowruz holidays in Iran.
Mageu, Mahewu, Mahleu, Magau (xau-Namibia), Madleke, Mabundu, maHewu, amaRhewu or amaHewu is a traditional Southern African non-alcoholic drink among many of the Chewa/Nyanja, Shona, Ndebele, Nama Khoikhoi and Damara people, Sotho people, Tswana people and Nguni people made from fermented mealie pap. Home production is still widely practised, but the drink is also available at many supermarkets, being produced at factories. Its taste is derived predominantly from the lactic acid that is produced during fermentation, but commercial mageu is often flavoured and sweetened, much in the way commercially-available yogurt is. Similar beverages are also made in other parts of Africa.
Kefir is a fermented milk drink similar to a thin yogurt or ayran that is made from kefir grains, a specific type of mesophilic symbiotic culture. It is prepared by inoculating the milk of cows, goats, or sheep with kefir grains.
The term Leben, variously laban, liben, lben in the Middle East and North Africa, refers to a food or beverage of fermented milk. Generally, there are two main products known as leben: The yogurt variant for the Levant region and the buttermilk variant for parts of Arabia and North Africa (Maghreb). Leben can be served at breakfast, lunch, or dinner.
Sharbat is a drink prepared from fruit or flower petals. It is a sweet cordial, and usually served chilled. It can be served in concentrated form and eaten with a spoon or diluted with water to create the drink.
Middle Eastern cuisine or West Asian cuisine includes a number of cuisines from the Middle East. Common ingredients include olives and olive oil, pitas, honey, sesame seeds, dates, sumac, chickpeas, mint, rice and parsley, and popular dishes include kebabs, dolmas, falafel, baklava, yogurt, doner kebab, shawarma and mulukhiyah.
Dahi or curd, also mosaru, dahi, thayir and perugu, is a traditional yogurt or fermented milk product originating from and popular throughout the Indian subcontinent. It is usually prepared from cows' milk, and sometimes buffalo milk or goat milk. The word curd is used in Indian English to refer to homemade yogurt, while the term yogurt refers to the pasteurized commercial variety known as "heat-treated fermented milk".
