Cow, Goat, Camel
Innovation also involves exploring new forms of dairy and while cow produce demand continues to grow in line with overall dairy sector growth, goat and camel options are also gaining interest.
Menon explains that so far there is no organised dairy production in the GCC for goat milk and other products, but “camel milk products have seen astonishingly fast growth in the last 18 months”.
“Cultural and historic consumption has driven the demand for camel milk in large part raising curiosity and interest in people wanting to try it,” he continues.
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“The media are fascinated with what Al Ain Dairy is accomplishing in this area. However, people have generally become aware of the supreme nutritional value associated with camel milk.”
Clair is already planning on a “new creation” using camel milk as “it is healthy and full of good things”.
But Scicluna has found that while customers are willing to try camel milk they mainly end up returning to cow.
It remains to be seen how camel dairy products make their mark in the market and whether it will move beyond the ‘try it once’ crowd to become a staple. But with dairy being such a core for the pastry and dessert chefs, there is always room for innovation.
Maree explains that dairy products are among the highest priced items for any pastry outlet or business: “But good fresh product whether, milk, cream, eggs,laban or butter are all worthwhile when the customer is absolutely thrilled with the flavour and taste of the desserts and cakes. That’s what it is all about - turning perfect ingredients into sensational delicacies,” he says.
Clair says when he was executive pastry chef at Atlantis, the Palm, prior to opening his standalone cafe in Dubai, he used “a good 15 tonnes in mix dairy product” just for the pastry component of desserts and revealed that 40% of total food spend was on dairy.
The importance of dairy innovation is clear and assistant pastry chef of Park Hyatt Dubai, Amit Nakra is in no doubt that “dairy is an integral part of a dessert menu”.
“Around 90%of the desserts we create are dairy-based, and to have a consistent and good quality dairy product supply is very essential,” he explains.
It is understandable then that when asked what the most important things are in a dairy supplier Nakra says “quality, consistency, cost and shelf life”.
Middle East Favourites
The Middle East market is renowned for its sweeter palate compared to other regions and here are some of the favourites according to
our experts.
1. Cheese cakes
2. Crème brulee
3. Ice cream/gelato
4. Flavoured fruit yoghurts
5. Umm Ali
Supplier: Camelicious
Camelicious has launched three cheeses made from camel milk.
Nabu NABULSI: a brined cheese studded with nigella seeds which gives it a peppery taste. It is suitable for use in sandwiches, salads and cooking.
AKKAWI: A white brine, un-ripened cheese. It has a smooth texture and a mild salty taste and can be consumed directly in a salad or fried in oil and spices to eat in bread.
CULTURED: A salted curd cheese made from fresh camel milk. It is processed in many degrees of firmness, ranging from soft and crumbly to hard. Its flavour varies from mild to sharp. It can be used as small cubes or crumbled into a vegetable salad.
Favourite dairy recipe
Chef Amit’s Pistachio crème brûlée
INGREDIENTS:
• Milk: 200ml
• Cream: 400ml
• Eggs yolk: 160g
• Sugar: 80g
• Pistachio paste: 75g
INSTRUCTIONS: Boil the milk and cream.
Mix the yolk and sugar and the pistachio paste.
Pour 130 ml in the plate and bake in bain-marie until set (100 degrees).
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