Author Topic: Homemade Yogurt - recommendations?  (Read 8675 times)

Farmer Dan

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Homemade Yogurt - recommendations?
« on: May 02, 2015, 07:37:10 PM »
This is my first post to the forum - I learned about MMM last summer while on a bike tour and am excited to be started down the road to financial independence.

I love to cook and have been looking to find cost savings with each meal, while still making delicious food. I have yet to find yogurt in the grocery store for less than $1.25/lb. I know there are approximately 8 lb in a gallon of milk and I am definitely not buying $10 gallons of milk so this seems like a surefire way to make something potentially more delicious and much less expensive.

Does anyone have recommendations for getting started making yogurt?

Thanks for your help!

Dan

Jakejake

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Re: Homemade Yogurt - recommendations?
« Reply #1 on: May 02, 2015, 08:30:33 PM »
I always make our yogurt - just started a new batch tonight.

I dump whole milk (unmeasured, sorry) into a medium sized pot. Then I add a scoop (maybe a quarter cup?) of dried milk powder. That's not required but it does help thicken it up. I heat to 170-180 degrees. I use a flame tamer/heat diffuser. If you don't one, stir a lot.

Once it reaches temp, turn off the heat and let it cool til the sides of the pot feel warm but not hot. Then stir in the starter. I usually have a cup of plain yogurt from the last batch, and I stir it in with a stick blender, but a small whisk would work too.

I pour it into small mason jars with some space at the top for homemade jam, and set them in a warm place overnight. I have a gas stove with pilot lights, so I just put them on the warm spots there. I've heard of other people using a heating pad or crock pot set on warm.

I can't believe they charge a dollar for 6 ounces of yogurt nowadays. I can get a gallon of milk for two bucks, it gives me 21 jars of yogurt, or about 10 cents each.

MMMaybe

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Re: Homemade Yogurt - recommendations?
« Reply #2 on: May 02, 2015, 09:07:21 PM »
My method is a bit different and very unscientific. I turn my slow cooker on LOW and let it warm for a while and them turn it off.

I take a litre of milk (this makes me enough yogurt for the week) and heat it until there are tiny bubbles on the sides of the pot and some steam rising. Note: I just use regular pasteurised milk, not ultra pasteurised and it always works out.

I let the milk cool until just warm. (When I say warm, if you stuck a finger into it, it should be comfortable and not so warm that it burns you-the yogurt cultures don't like being too hot) That can take a while so I go off and do something else. I pour in some milk powder and just about one or two tablespoons of yogurt (if you are purchasing your starter, make sure it has live cultures) and whisk.

Put it in the slow cooker and wrap the slow cooker in a towel or blanket to keep the heat in. I usually start this at dinner time and then when I wake up in the morning, there is lovely thick, mild tasting yogurt.

NotJen

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Re: Homemade Yogurt - recommendations?
« Reply #3 on: May 02, 2015, 10:37:13 PM »
This thread inspired me to start making my own yogurt: http://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/share-your-badassity/making-my-own-yogurt/

I typically start with a 1/2 gallon of whole milk. Pour it into a pot and heat to ~180 deg (if I let it go higher, my yogurt gets gritty after a day or two).  Remove from heat and cool to 115-120 degrees. Stir in yogurt starter that has been tempered with some of the warm milk (I use ~1/4 cup of store yogurt as starter at first, then some of the current batch for the next batch - can freeze the yogurt starter).  When it's 110-115 deg, wrap pot in a towel and stick in the oven (turned off, but oven light on) for 8 hrs. I like to strain mine when it's done for a thicker yogurt.

Farmer Dan

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Re: Homemade Yogurt - recommendations?
« Reply #4 on: May 03, 2015, 04:13:47 PM »
Thanks everyone for the recommendations! I'm going to get started this week.

Carless

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Re: Homemade Yogurt - recommendations?
« Reply #5 on: May 03, 2015, 06:33:01 PM »
One note: if you're using store yogurt for a starter, pick something that doesn't have a complex culture (ie bacteria) system.  You probably want something plain, such as Bulgarian yogurt for a starter.  Something with probiotics will probably not re-culture as well because some of the bacteria will out compete the others and the system becomes unstable.  For draining, just use an old clean pillowcase and sterilize it in boiling water for 10 mins.

Here's some good information under the FAQ tab; http://www.cheesemaking.com/store/p/301-Yogurt-Sample-Pack.html   

Jakejake

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Re: Homemade Yogurt - recommendations?
« Reply #6 on: May 03, 2015, 07:22:22 PM »
Time for a new starter for me. My last batch came out robust.

By robust, I mean ... uh .. carbonated. Very very carbonated. That's happened to me about 4 times over the last 5 or 6 years of weekly yogurt making. The internet assures me it's safe to eat - that fizzy just means extra fermented, not spoiled, but it's certainly an acquired taste!

NotJen

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Re: Homemade Yogurt - recommendations?
« Reply #7 on: May 03, 2015, 07:42:52 PM »
I used plain greek yogurt (Fage) as my starter, and it worked out fine.

Fizzy sounds interesting ... my last batch wasn't as strong as usual, so I'm going to start over with the starter and be more meticulous about labeling how many iterations it's been through.

Arktinkerer

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Re: Homemade Yogurt - recommendations?
« Reply #8 on: May 04, 2015, 06:55:25 AM »
Only thing I would add to the other posts here is we wrap our warm gallon jar of starter in a blanket and put it in a room temp ice box.  That holds it at a perfect temp overnight and makes a nice thick yogurt.

We have been using 2% or whole milk to get thicker yogurt.  Has anyone compared this to adding the powdered milk like some here suggest?


KCM5

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Re: Homemade Yogurt - recommendations?
« Reply #9 on: May 04, 2015, 07:29:04 AM »
I used to use my oven with a pilot light as a spot to keep the yogurt warm but I was without an oven for a while so I bought a yogurt maker (totally unnecessary, but convenient). The one allows me to use a large glass bowl or multiple canning jars to make my yogurt in: http://www.target.com/p/euro-cuisine-yogurt-maker-ym80/-/A-10270629?ref=tgt_adv_XSG10001&AFID=google_pla_df&LNM=10270629&CPNG=Appliances&kpid=10270629&LID=3pgs&ci_src=17588969&ci_sku=10270629&kpid=10270629&gclid=CjwKEAjwsZyqBRCT1aq6qcD53DQSJACcen4C7iFLYaYN3adMdiLqSoQJKYtG27TdpWGYVXBlm5eL0BoCVjTw_wcB

To get it thicker I never add powdered milk like suggested, just poor off some of the whey. Also, I think it tastes best if you don't stir!
 
One more thing - I think this depends on the starter you use, but I find if I don't heat the milk to about 180 denature the proteins (and I use vat pasturized milk aready) it gets kind of slimy. I don't like that texture.

jacksonvasey

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Re: Homemade Yogurt - recommendations?
« Reply #10 on: May 04, 2015, 09:24:57 PM »
I heat whole milk to 180 F, let it cool, then let it cool to 110 F and put it in a sterilized jar with a bit of Noosa (Australian) yogurt when I need a new starter.  I then put the jar(s) in a water bath in my slow cooker, with the slow cooker hooked up to a Dork Sous Vide temperature control, which keeps the water bath exactly 110 F, and after about 12 hours the yogurt is insanely thick. 

Sometimes the yogurt just tastes like cooked milk, so I don't know if I'm overheating the milk or what I'm doing wrong.  Sometimes it tastes perfect, like a half gallon of Noosa for $5 instead of ~$24.  I've heard you can use shelf-stable milk like Parmalat and skip the heating phase, so maybe I'll try that.

But I've definitely found that measuring and controlling the culturing temperature, and sterilizing the jars, to consistently product super-thick yogurt without the need to strain it.

La Bibliotecaria Feroz

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Re: Homemade Yogurt - recommendations?
« Reply #11 on: May 05, 2015, 06:48:06 AM »
I often heat the milk in the microwave in the same glass jar I'm going to culture it in and just remove and stir every minute or so. Waiting for it to cool off is the most time-consuming part.

If you are using ultrapasteurized milk, you can heat to just 110 and proceed immediately to putting in the starter, but I have found the result to be a little thinner that way.

Regardless, I don't add nonfat milk powder, but I tolerate fairly thin yogurt for the kids. For me, I strain it (colander lined with tea towel).

Thegoblinchief

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Re: Homemade Yogurt - recommendations?
« Reply #12 on: May 05, 2015, 04:30:05 PM »
I heat just to 110. I haven't noticed an appreciable difference between doing that and doing the "normal" 180 method. And this is with standard milk, not ultra pasteurized.

If you are heating to 180, cool it off faster by putting the pot into a sink filled with a couple inches of cold tap water.

Bobberth

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Re: Homemade Yogurt - recommendations?
« Reply #13 on: May 07, 2015, 01:16:58 PM »
We just started making yogurt with the steps from this site http://www.makeyourownyogurt.com/

It's really easy and takes 20 minutes or so of actual 'work'.  The kids have been loving it and it's so easy that I'm introducing them to how to make it so that they can do it all on their own.

cschx

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Re: Homemade Yogurt - recommendations?
« Reply #14 on: May 07, 2015, 01:32:40 PM »
I've been making yogurt every week for five years, transferring the same culture. Here's a tip for making it thick without adding anything or draining it with a cheesecloth:

Incubate the yogurt in a tall/skinny container - the traditional funnel-shaped blender jar is ideal. When it's done incubating, refrigerate. When cool, scoop it out from one side leaving a small, deep divot, with the rest of the yogurt intact. Put the jar back in the fridge.

Next time you go to get some yogurt the divot will be filled with whey that has weeped out from the curd (this is called syneresis). Pour off the whey - you can save it and use it like you would stock. Now scoop the divot a little bit deeper without making it much wider. Do this two or three times and you'll have a super rich, Greek-style yogurt.

Sanitizing your equipment is also really important if you want to keep using the same culture. I use a 1-2 spray of vinegar, then peroxide. Bleach solution works too but is too nasty to use in the kitchen IMO.