PSA - Yogurt making!
Recently I made delicious yogurt. This was a surprisingly simple process, and so I share it with all of you, in case you enjoy yogurt and wish to save monies by making your own.
The basics are: heat milk, add some yogurt, culture for 8-12 hours at a warm temperature. If you don't have a ready means of keeping the culture warm, you can buy yogurt cultures at Cultures for Health that reproduce at room temperature. Convenient!
I have a slow cooker, so I used that. You'll want 1/2 gallon of milk (NOT ultra-pasteurized, it doesn't culture well - I warn because this does rule out most of the organic milk I've seen in stores) and about 1/2 cup of plain yogurt with live, active cultures. I used whole milk and Stonyfield Organic Plain Cream Top because that's what I usually eat, and what I had left in the frige. You will also need an old towel or blanket - something to insulate the crock and keep it warm.
Add the milk to your crock, turn on low for 2 1/2 - 3 hours. If you have a thermometer, use that - we want a temp of just over 180F, to kill off any undesirable bugs lingering in the crock or milk. Then turn the crock off and let the milk sit for 3 hours, or until the temp is below 130F. Next add your yogurt starter, stirring it in thoroughly. (If the temp is too high, the live cultures in your starter will die, and you will not get yogurt).
Now, wrap the crock up in that towel or blanket - we want it to stay warm! The ideal temperature is around 110-115F, from what I've read. I left mine wrapped up overnight, and it worked fine. 12 hours later - yogurt! I put the crock straight into the refrigerator, to help it to thicken; once it was chilled I strained it through an old bed-sheet (aka cheesecloth) to make Greek-style yogurt, and saved the liquid whey for future culinary experiments.
Yogurt success! Add honey, frozen fruit, or granola, and enjoy the fruits of your hippie-labors!
Total time: 18 hours
As long as you make a new batch every week or so, you shouldn't need to buy another starter. The recipe can be scaled up or down easily, just know that your heating/cooling times may change depending on the quantity of milk.
Notes on texture: commercial yogurts often have gelatin or other thickeners added, so homemade yogurt is likely to be thinner than what you're used to. Whole milk will yield a thicker yogurt than skim; you can add gelatin yourself if you really want to; or you can strain your yogurt, saving or discarding the whey.
The basics are: heat milk, add some yogurt, culture for 8-12 hours at a warm temperature. If you don't have a ready means of keeping the culture warm, you can buy yogurt cultures at Cultures for Health that reproduce at room temperature. Convenient!
I have a slow cooker, so I used that. You'll want 1/2 gallon of milk (NOT ultra-pasteurized, it doesn't culture well - I warn because this does rule out most of the organic milk I've seen in stores) and about 1/2 cup of plain yogurt with live, active cultures. I used whole milk and Stonyfield Organic Plain Cream Top because that's what I usually eat, and what I had left in the frige. You will also need an old towel or blanket - something to insulate the crock and keep it warm.
Add the milk to your crock, turn on low for 2 1/2 - 3 hours. If you have a thermometer, use that - we want a temp of just over 180F, to kill off any undesirable bugs lingering in the crock or milk. Then turn the crock off and let the milk sit for 3 hours, or until the temp is below 130F. Next add your yogurt starter, stirring it in thoroughly. (If the temp is too high, the live cultures in your starter will die, and you will not get yogurt).
Now, wrap the crock up in that towel or blanket - we want it to stay warm! The ideal temperature is around 110-115F, from what I've read. I left mine wrapped up overnight, and it worked fine. 12 hours later - yogurt! I put the crock straight into the refrigerator, to help it to thicken; once it was chilled I strained it through an old bed-sheet (aka cheesecloth) to make Greek-style yogurt, and saved the liquid whey for future culinary experiments.
Yogurt success! Add honey, frozen fruit, or granola, and enjoy the fruits of your hippie-labors!
Total time: 18 hours
As long as you make a new batch every week or so, you shouldn't need to buy another starter. The recipe can be scaled up or down easily, just know that your heating/cooling times may change depending on the quantity of milk.
Notes on texture: commercial yogurts often have gelatin or other thickeners added, so homemade yogurt is likely to be thinner than what you're used to. Whole milk will yield a thicker yogurt than skim; you can add gelatin yourself if you really want to; or you can strain your yogurt, saving or discarding the whey.