Ooh! Yogurt machine for sale! Yogurt making expert here, AMA!

@KDemo Thanks, I'll give it a try! I bet this would go good with the salmon we just bought!

Can you give me some proportions at least for the yogurt to horseradish and lemon juice? I assume the base is yogurt with a little horseradish/lemon juice?

@luvche21 - I start with whatever is left from a quart of nonfat plain yogurt. Haha. 1 or 2 cups of yogurt would make sense. Maybe 1-2 Tbsp horseradish, I like it kind of hot though, so try 1, mix it up and taste.
Lemon juice and dill weed to taste.
Hope that's at least a little helpful. I have eaten this as a snack. I'm weird.

@KDemo this is close to the generic "white sauce" people get from food carts - dill and lemon and yogurt (and usually mayo too because America)

@KDemo I'll give it a shot sometime! I don't think I have ever bought horseradish before, so this will be an adventure! (...it's just not a part of my normal diet, I do like it!)

@Stallion I bought it because it looks like it makes the straining process for Greek yogurt easy.

@Stallion @katylava For me, using a yogurt maker was a good way to get into making yogurt. I don't think I would have otherwise. After a year or two of using the machine, I tried it without the machine (instead used a tupperware container and wrapped it in a towel and put it in the oven (without turning it on)) and found that it was much less of a hassle for me. Plus, I could make more yogurt at once. I make a half gallon about once a week.

@katylava, the straining might be easier with this, but I never thought it was hard in the first place.

@koalamoo you can store starters in the freezer for a few months. Finished product usually lasts about a week (I've gotten up to 2 with well sealed containers)

@koalamoo @Thumperchick When I don't make yogurt as often, it lasts 2 weeks as @Thumperchick said in a well sealed container (tupperware is fine).

@koalamoo, if you're buying yogurt often anyway and think that you'll only make yogurt every now and then, you can use any plain yogurt as a start. Or try freezing it in an ice cube tray or something to make a start last longer.

@Thumperchick Thank you! I was hoping someone would say if I could feeze it or not.

@luvche21 Thank you! I've read your blog as well, and you have been more than helpful with this. I totally think you should have a yogurt badge. :)

@koalamoo just be sure to thaw your starter out the night before adding it to your yogurt!

@koalamoo I'll wait on that badge. I don't know of any sign 10 pixels wide that would actually look like yogurt though.

Some places say that you shouldn't freeze yogurt. I'm guessing that it makes the culture a little weak, although I haven't tried it yet.

@MEHcus Can I get a yogurt badge for this? :)

@MEHcus Also, I'd be up for starting another thread once these ship to help out people in their first yogurting ventures. Can I get some kind of notification once they ship?

@luvche21

@luvche21 They should ship tomorrow or Monday at the latest

@MEHcus If yogurt is a big enough deal then I expect you all to make a separate forum on http://yogurt.horse/ soon.

@lljk I approve of this message

@lljk @MEHcus Pretty please make this happen?

@Lotsofgoats Don't know anything about skyr, but it looks very similar to a super strained yogurt.

I've strained yogurt to make it thicker than cream cheese!

@Thumperchick Try that recipe ASAP! You won't regret it for a second!

And if you like that, try out my orange drinkable yogurt recipe.

And if you like those, go to your grocery store and buy some Jumex mango nectar or peach nectar (they used to have it at Dollar Tree for a liter carton) and do the same but with less sugar. You will be amazed!

@sammydog01 see here

@sammydog01 I make yogurt about every week, but it lasts 2 weeks if it's well sealed (try tupperware or something).

I'm glad I made you buy one, should I be getting a commission for this? :)

@carl669 Did you mean this post instead?

@luvche21 @Thumperchick answered the question a couple posts above. but that post is also quite useful. now, if i only ate yogurt on a consistent basis, i'd buy one of these. and, i'd make sure you got a commission.

@newspapercrane cc. @jaremelz

@newspapercrane I need to know this ASAP as well TIA

@newspapercrane Well, if they are they can most likely eat yogurt, since the bacteria in yogurt breaks down the lactose in milk.

@JerseyFrank A few reasons for me:

• A quart of Faye costs ~$5? A gallon of milk costs me less than half of that and makes a gallon of yogurt (I usually make a half gallon at a time). That's 4 quarts of yogurt for $2.50 (but then it turns out to be less if you strain it. Maybe 2-3 quarts depending on how much you strain it)
• If you're looking at it purely economically, the machine will pay for itself (which, by the way, isn't required for making yogurt) in 3-4 batches (if you make a half gallon at a time).
• It's really easy to make, and only takes ~10 minutes of actual work per batch + some waiting time while the milk boils and cools down.
• I find homemade yogurt, even if you make it from the live cultures in Faye, tastes much better than any store bought brand I've found.
• I'm not a health nut, and not someone to be very particular about what I eat. But, I know exactly what goes into my homemade yogurt: milk + a spoonful of yogurt start.

@medz don't do it!

@medz Great. Now all I can think of is that old Rod Stewart joke.

@dashcloud High protein content for the amount. You can find no/low/full fat versions in any style/flavor you want, so it fits most diets and is filling. Also, it's trendy right now. Greek yogurt and kale. SUPAFOOD

@dashcloud @Thumperchick It's mainly due to a lot of marketing. I don't think there's anything that fancy about it, since it really is just strained yogurt (although most Greek yogurt companies may or may not actually strain their yogurt, but rather add thickeners to normal yogurt).

I would be interested in learning why or if it actually is better than plain yogurt, since all you're straining out is whey.

@Trillian This is a great question, and would warrant a future blog post. This is the only thing that has gone terribly, terribly wrong for us:

• Don't scorch your milk. This makes SUPER nasty tasting yogurt. That's why we boil it in the microwave instead of on the stove. It is very easy to scorch when boiling milk in a pot.

Sometimes your yogurt won't set up very well, even after waiting 8-10 hours and thinking that you've done everything correctly. Lots of possibilities for this:

• Your milk didn't boil -- boiling the milk kills the bacteria
• You cooled your milk too much after boiling -- which doesn't let the good bacteria grow)
• You didn't cool your milk enough after boiling -- this kills the yogurt bacteria if it's too hot
• Your milk wasn't fresh enough -- it's best to use the freshest milk you can
• Your start wasn't fresh enough -- it's recommended to make yogurt every week if possible. We tend to make it every 1-2 weeks, and we had a start stay alive for 3 years
• Other bacteria got in somehow that killed the yogurt bacteria -- this is a very unknown variable. Many people recommend not using metal in the process to help avoid this (use a plastic or wooden fork/whisk for stirring in the yogurt start. Use a plastic jelly strainer to strain milk instead of a metal one)

I'll add more later if I can think of any.

@xqcitizen You'll know REAL quick if your yogurt turns bad. It'll have a weird yellowy watery layer, smell bad, and start to mold. (A small amount of watery layer is fairly normal - you will know if it turns on you.)

@xqcitizen The Bulgarians invented yogurt, and their word for it is кисело мляко, literally meaning "sour milk".

As @Thumperchick said, the watery layer is very normal, especially if you store your yogurt in a larger container. You will get used to seeing this whey all the time. But it will turn yellow, and just like milk that has gone bad, you'll know quick.

We tend to eat our yogurt quick enough that we never see it go bad.