Kurt (dried curd)

For kurt, yoghurt or ayran is boiled, strained and salted, then shaped by hand into balls or discs and dried in the sun and wind. Hard kurt keeps for months, even years.

For nomads it was indispensable food on the road, in winter and on the pastures, dissolved in water to make drinks and soups. Azerbaijani qurut comes from the same tradition.

White, yellow, spicy and smoked kurt are sold in Kazakh markets and are a favourite snack of children.