Buttermilk Channel takes its name from the mile-long tidal strait between Brooklyn and Governors Island. In New York’s early days, when Brooklyn was still farmland, dairy farmers would cross Buttermilk Channel by boat to sell their milk in Manhattan markets.
Tidal currents in the channel are notoriously strong--strong enough, some said, to churn the milk into butter.
Buttermilk is also an essential ingredient in our American comfort food. Its what makes our pancakes light and fluffy and our fried chicken tender and moist on the inside and crispy on the outside.
