So you want to learn how to make yogurt... it's easy!
16Last month I had a discussion with a few people (including @katylava @metageist and @jaremelz) over on an ice cream thread about making yogurt. I promised a follow up post with more details and better instructions.
It's super easy, inexpensive, tasty, and actually healthy!
I recently resurrected my old yogurt blog (yogurtyogurtyogurt.blogspot.com) (yogurt once was already taken, so why not 3 times??) and revamped our instructions and layout to spread the good word of yogurt easier. I've pulled this from our instructions page and formatted it to fit here.
Making yogurt is super easy. There are 4 basic steps:
- Boil milk
- Cool milk
- Add yogurt
- Incubate (keep warm)
That's it! Nothing hard. Nothing complicated. Not time consuming. No special equipment required.
We'll discuss these steps as succinctly as possible in addition to providing links to more in depth discussions and tips that we've learned over the years if you want to read more.
Things you need:
- Milk
- Yogurt start
- Thermometer
- Blanket & large container OR yogurt machine
1 -- Boil milk
This kills any bacteria already in the milk so that the healthy yogurt bacteria will thrive. All you need to do is bring the milk to a boil before letting it cool.
We use 8 cups of 2% milk. Make as much or as little as you want. Other fat contents work as well--the fattier the milk, the creamier the yogurt.
If you boil your milk on the stove, careful to not scald it. If you do, your yogurt will be gross. Microwaving works great, and does not scald the milk. I our microwave, 13 minutes uncovered will bring the cold milk to a boil.
2 -- Cool milk to 125° F
This is important since it's the best temperature for the yogurt bacteria to thrive. Get as close to 125° F as possible. Anywhere from 120° to 125° is fine.
You will need to strain the cooled milk to get rid of the film that appeared from boiling.
3 -- Add yogurt culture
Any plain yogurt with live bacteria will work. All store bought yogurt containers specify if they contain live cultures, and most tell you which cultures they contain.
If you want a recommendation for a good start, we really like Dannon Oikos plain Greek yogurt. It costs a little more than $1 for a small cup.
For 8 cups of milk, we use somewhere around 1 1/2 tablespoons of yogurt start and guess on it every time. It's not a science--use a spoonful or two and you'll be fine. Mix it into your cooled milk.
4 -- Incubate (keep warm) for ~8 1/2 hours
You have two options here: use a yogurt machine or wrap your yogurt-to-be container in a blanket and place it in a sealed cooler or a cool oven (do not heat it).
Both methods work very well. All the yogurt machine does is keep it at a constant temperature. The blanket/oven/cooler method keeps the yogurt warm as well.
The longer you leave it in, the thicker and tangier the yogurt gets. After 8 1/2 hours or so, refrigerate your yogurt until cool, then enjoy!
That's really all I need to do?
Yes!! Simple, right? As we update this blog, we will include plenty of other tips and tricks that we use each week when we make yogurt, but none of them are mandatory. For right now, take a look at our very first blog post to get a few extra tips until we incorporate more here.
But what now?
So what do I do with plain yogurt? This, my friend, is the main question that we will try and answer in as many ways as possible through this blog. Our first recommendation is to toss in some fresh fruit, a little sugar, and a little vanilla. A spoonful of jam and a little vanilla also make a very easy sweet yogurt.
Before you eat all of it...
Make sure to save a spoonful of this yogurt for your next batch. The culture lasts a long time--we had ours going for nearly 3 years before we moved across country and had to give it up.
Note sure what to do with plain yogurt?
Check out my yogurt blog for some ideas, and especially the basic flavorings page to get lots of good ideas.
Some favorite recipes
- Orange drinkable yogurt
- Yogurty orange julius
- Berry pancakes with yogurt (no oil/butter needed)
- Blueberry banana bread
All of these are made with yogurt:
pancakes:
yogurt drinks:
blueberry cookies:
Nutella cake:
blueberry buckle (I think I got the non-yogurtized recipe from someone over on Woot back in the day):
I'm happy to answer any questions about yogurt making!
- 16 comments, 68 replies
- Comment
Awesome! I'll be following your blog. I don't follow any blogs anymore, so not sure how to make sure I keep up... but I'll figure it out.
Will a towel work as well as blanket? What do you measure the temperature of the milk with?
@katylava That Follow by Email section works well -- it's managed by Blogger, so I don't ever see your email, and it shoots you an email every time I make a new post.
I'm sure a towel or two would work just as well. The better incubated the better, you want to keep the temperature up as much as possible.
@katylava The email section is at the top right if you're on a desktop.
@katylava I use this thermometer: http://www.amazon.com/Everyday-Cooking-Essentials-Instant-Thermometer/dp/B00PQY7PUS/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1439411899&sr=8-3&keywords=cooking+thermometer
It was only a couple bucks on Meritline a few years ago, and it's been working for about 4 years now.
Yay, thank you! As soon as things mellow out in my house, I'll be getting started.
@jaremelz Let me know how it goes!
I remember as a kid my mom made our yogurt. She used this rig my dad made for her that was a piece of wood with a lightbulb mounted in the middle and a plastic tub that sat on top. Put the yogurt in jars all around the bulb, drop the plastic tub over the top and I guess that was a good incubator.
@Bingo Whoa, that sounds pretty ingenious but lots of work!
@Bingo Mother Earth News, back in its print days, had designs very much like that. Now it's even simpler. http://www.motherearthnews.com/real-food/how-to-make-your-own-yogurt-kefir-chevre.aspx
How much does 8 cups of milk yield in yogurt when you're done? Does it taste different/that much better than store bought yogurt?
@JonT 8 cups milk = 8 cups yogurt.
It tends to taste close the same, but that depends on the yogurt start that you use. For example, I don't like the flavor of Danon Oikos "Greek" yogurt, but when I use that as a start for my homemade yogurt, I like the taste a lot better. I generally like homemade better.
@JonT Plus, the only ingredient in my homemade yogurt is milk, so I know exactly what goes into it.
What about Kefir? It's even easier to make - Set it on the counter at room temp and it's done it 18-24 hours. When it's done, you strain it and put it in a glass container. If you seal it and let it sit, it carbonates a little due to natural fermentation - makes it fizzy delicious.
Homemade kefir is a perfect stand-in for buttermilk. The carbonation makes your pancakes and waffles extra fluffy!
If you are interested in making it, find somebody who has the "grains." That $30 packet at your fancy stores isn't the real deal. Anybody who is making it at home can split off some grains to start another batch. I've had my grains alive for 6 or 7 years now.
Kefir ferments out the lactose for those who might be intolerant. It also has a greater amount of beneficial bacterias and yeasts than yogurt.
@bluebeatpete I've thought about Kefir a bit too, but haven't tried it yet. How often do I need to make it to keep it going?
Is the only way to get a start either from someone or one of those fancy packets? I can't use a Kefir drink from the store, right?
Yogurt also breaks down the lactose in milk, which works for most people who are lactose intolerant.
@luvche21 I usually make 3-5 days in a row (keeping it at a 16 oz batch) and then 1 week off. I have let mine rest in the fridge for 2 weeks and it was still alive...stressed, but alive.
I'm pretty sure the fancy packets are just dried culture and not dried active grains. The packet says you can only make a couple of batches. Seems bogus to me. None of the Lifeways or other commercial kefirs will have grains, it's always strained out to reuse.
It looks like there's plenty of grains for sale on Etsy. I bought mine off craigslist. They were mailed and came alive just fine. Just find somebody close so it gets to you quickly.
Check this guy's kefir site out, he's beyond fanatical.
kefir
@bluebeatpete ever do kefir soda? I'm in the kombucha game right now and that seems to be another pretty cool fizzy health drink thing
@bluebeatpete Cool, good info. I'll have to look around sometime for some grains. I was worried that I wouldn't be able to use it often enough to keep it alive.
p.s. I don't think that the link came through for that guy's kefir site.
@luvche21 it's the right link - the forum asked me to title it...
@Lotsofgoats No, I just drink it plain or use it for smoothies & cooking.
I made kombucha too, couldn't handle it... not my cuppa... I want to try the "water grain" kefir - it also starts with tea or some other sugared beverage. Might be interesting.
@bluebeatpete Ah missed it the first time around, thanks!
I need to do this. Thank you @luvche .
@Teripie You're welcome! Let me know how it goes!
Hey that's my blueberry buckle recipe from woot : )
Be interested to see your tweaked version.
Q: Does this yogurt have a reg. yogurt texture ? Can you make it to be like greek yogurt ?
Thank you.
@ceagee I'd also be interested in the process for greek yogurt (extra straining?) Thanks @luvche21 for a great writeup!
@ceagee Sorry that I forgot it came from you! It turned out pretty well after a couple tries to get the cake texture just right. Here's the direct link to the recipe: http://yogurtyogurtyogurt.blogspot.com/2013/08/blueberry-buckle-with-yogurt-of-course.html
@ceagee @metageist Yes, you get regular yogurt texture, but you get to play with it a little since you can get thicker/creamier yogurt with a 2% or whole milk (or by adding powdered milk before incubation) and by changing the time of incubation -- the longer you incubate, the thicker it gets, but also the tangier it gets.
"Greek" yogurt is only strained normal yogurt to make it thicker, that's it. It's easy to strain this yogurt after you make it. I'd recommend cooling it for a few hours before straining, then use either a very tightly knit strainer (like a jelly strainer) or a cheese cloth to suspend the yogurt and let the whey drip out. It takes a couple hours to get as thick as Greek yogurt, but you can speed it up by adding a weight to the top of the yogurt while straining (a can of soup or something works great).
You can get it as thick as you want too -- I've made it thicker than cream cheese before, and used it to make a SUPER tasty cheese ball. I'll be posting that recipe soon on the blog.
the startup process here is basically the same for kombucha -- you take a bottle of the stuff with live cultures, then give it more food. pretty sweet deal, because companies spend a bunch of money and a long ass time developing the perfect culture and you get to skip straight to growing more of it.
^5 screw the system mannnnnn
I want to start doing something like this but not quite this because I like yogurt but not all that much. I want a long-term food hobby that I can work on in a kitchen with limited space and end up with something delicious.
Maybe canning or pickling? Anyone into those things or have other ideas for me?
@JonT Canning is fun and not as hard as they make it out to be, but you do need some room for it. What about sourdough for bread and pancakes and waffles? Or Amish friendship bread (also a starter)?
@koalamoo hmmm sourdough sounds like a fun idea! Can you give me a crash course or a place to start?
@JonT pickling is super easy and you don't really need to can pickles because they're pickles so 1) they self-defend and 2) you'll probably finish them in a week anyway
I definitely recommend looking up the Good Eats episode on pickling, just note that Alton Brown loves pickles that are waaaaaaaaaaaaay too sweet so just tone down or remove the sugar from his recipes and you're good to go
@JonT Did y'all try my pickled peppers? Or did @hollboll hide them?
@bluebeatpete we got 'em but haven't had a chance to try them just yet. They look great!
@JonT Go to King Arthur Flour. They are the end-all and be-all when it comes to bread knowledge.
@koalamoo @JonT The Amish bread is very good...just remember 1 loaf is enough (even if not enough at the time you eat it) because any more and you are over run with it!
@JonT making hard cider. you need.
-apple juice(buy it by the gallon in a glass jar)
-bread yeast
-sugar [honey, white sugar, agave, etc] (optional as it yields higher alcohol)
yay hard-cider!
you can just buy this: http://brooklynbrewshop.com/hard-cider/hard-cider-kit
but for less than half the cost you can do it yourself. the silliest part is that the gallon they include is the same as how the cider is sold n-store. sooo, ya, unnecessary unless you wanted to juice your own apples.
@JonT
@connorbush @JonT
ftfy
There is one additional option for "incubating" - you can get one of these. I have one of these because of ANOTHER very informative thread here on Meh....
Going to try some yogurt this weekend! Saw this thread a couple weeks ago and figgered, hell, I got the hot box, and like yogurt - so why not!
Thanks for all the info.
@Pufferfishy You're welcome! I have no idea what "folding bread proofer" even means, but I'm sure it will work well since it says it's for yogurt as well.
Best of luck!
@luvche21 Oh - it works GREAT! And thank you.
A folding bread proofer is a way to give another handful of money to Amazon :) I have been chasing the ever-elusive "perfect load of sourdough" for some time.... it's one of my WMDs for that purpose. But it makes superior yogurt as well.
@Pufferfishy Sadly my wife doesn't like sourdough very much, so I can't get into that game.
@luvche21 You are much better off - it is a road to madness. You would think bending flour, salt, and water to your will would be a simple matter. It is anything but.... MANY bags of flour later and I have yet to get a truly exceptional loaf from the process.
Yet I must continue....
@Pufferfishy It's interesting how bread alone can turn out great one time, but then not so good even though I've done the same thing. And that's not sourdough either!
@luvche21 Thanks for the cool info! I'm not a big yogurt guy, but I do enjoy it sometimes.
My wife and I have been using Fage Greek Yogurt instead of sour cream for a lot of things (we pretend it's healthier.. not sure if that's true). We really like the texture and taste of that one. Do you know how I would go about making something similar to it?
It works really well in chili, on tacos, on a sloppy joe, on baked potatoes, and just about anywhere else you'd use sour cream :)
@kadagan You would do the instructions that I have listed above (it may sound like it takes a lot of time, but it really doesn't! Only 10-15 minutes of work once you get it down), then you would strain the yogurt after you cool it for a bit.
That's where the yogurt machine being sold on Meh right now would be helpful, since you can strain it pretty easily with it. Otherwise you can use a cheese cloth, or a tightly knit jelly strainer. Strain it for 4-8 hours in the fridge depending on how thick you want it.
You can even use your Faje yogurt as a start, which will make a pretty similar flavor as what you are used to. I think the flavor always turns out better than the start that I use it from.
I mentioned this in another thread today, but if you buy the machine from Meh for $14 (which is super cheap for any yogurt maker), it will pay for itself within 3-4 batches, depending on how much yogurt you make at one time.
I hope that helps!
My wife and I use yogurt as a sour cream substitute pretty often, even in baking. I bet it would be really good on chili, we haven't tried that one yet though! My wife found a white chili recipe the other day that uses yogurt in the recipe, and it was fantastic!
@kadagan Oops, sorry for the novel... that was totally going to be a sentence or two...
@luvche21 Thanks for the great response! I don't mind reading a bit ;)
I've found you don't actually have to boil the milk and then let it cool. Our milk today has so little bacteria in it after being pasteurized. I just slowly heat it up to temp in my heaviest pot with a tight lid, the temp is similar to feeding a baby a bottle, so you can stick your finger it and it doesn't burn, add the yogurt, don't stir, put the tight lid back on and put it in an oven with the light on. If I remember I turn the oven on for just a minute or so every hour to keep the temp a little warm, no blanket required, but it wouldn't hurt for sure. I leave it in overnight, or from early morning until after dinner. I find you don't have to be too careful with the recipe or instructions, and I use whole milk to have thicker yogurt. You can make as much or as little at a time as you'd like - again, this process does not have to be very precise.
@DMlivezey part of heating it to boil is to remove any unwanted bacteria that's grown since pasteurization. Skipping this step can very much result in a baaaaaaad day.
@Thumperchick I guess I've just been lucky then ;), have you tried it with just heating, not boiling? I'm saving the planet 1 BTU at a time with my yogurt making technique, now on the other hand if you were right and I did get a bad batch, you don't have to pitch it, so there goes the planet. HOWEVER, you can just use the same stuff and start over. I've taken this route once when I forgot to turn off my oven in the '1 minute to keep the oven warm' step and killed all the yogurt (poor guys and girls), but just started over with the same ingredients and a little new starter (thankfully still had a little left from the last batch) and voila, another new quart of yogurt!
@DMlivezey no, I haven't tried growing bad bacteria and eating it. ;)
@DMlivezey too many edits and re-writes made that not turn out quite as expected, but you get the gist...
@DMlivezey I've heard of techniques not requiring boiling, and I'm sure they work. But, @Thumperchick is right, the point is to kill the non-yogurt bacteria so that the yogurt can thrive. Most of my research in making yogurt for the first time pointed to the need for boiling, so that's what I do. If it works for you, great!
Whether it needs to be boiled or not, it's now a habit, and I'd rather be safe on that one :)
You're right, it really doesn't have to be precise, which is good or bad for some people. I tend to find that people generally want fairly clear instructions, especially for sciencey sounding stuff, so I wrote out our process.
@luvche21 You did the community a great service by offering this information up, I'm looking forward to trying some of your recipes. My issue with boiling is that I usually get too busy with other things and scold or burn it, so finding out that a slow heat up to temp is adequate makes me ruin less good milk ;)
@DMlivezey Once you get around to trying the recipes, let me know how they turned out!
Heating up the milk was one of the hardest parts for us to get perfected. That's why we microwave it now - it's sure saved us from lots of scalded milk and saved loads of time too!
Does this work with heavy cream instead of milk?
@Quadrashocker I'm sure it would, but I think that would be a little over the top in the end. I haven't tried it though.
Whole milk is definitely better than 2% or 1%. We normally go with 2% since it's plenty creamy, but still not as fatty.
If you try it, please let me know how it turns out :)
@luvche21 The reason I ask is because I'm on a low carb diet, and heavy cream has none! I will most definitely let you know how it turns out. Thanks!
@Quadrashocker Does milk have much carbs in it though?
@luvche21 Yes! 2% has 12 grams of carbs and 11 grams of sugar per cup!
@luvche21 Compared to heavy cream, yes. Because milk has a lower fat content, it ends up having a higher sugar content.
Also @Quadrashocker - HWC absolutely has carbs in it. Best rule of thumb is 1 net per TBSP. If you're in early stages, you may want to just hold off on yogurt altogether - as too much dairy can stall you. If you are at a higher rung, going with a full fat (Cream top if you can) milk and watching your overall intake should be just fine.
@Quadrashocker TIL
@luvche21 lactose does end in -ose, after all :)
@Thumperchick The HWC I use has 0g of Carbs. http://www.bordendairy.com/products/cream/heavy-whipping-cream.aspx
@Lotsofgoats I assume you're implying lactose/glucose/sucrose all have carbs? ...don't have much of a sciencey background...
@Quadrashocker Your call. Many manufacturers like to use the loophole that anything <1/serving = zero. It could have .9/net/TBSP and they can call it zero. But if you're not having a problem with it, carry on!
@luvche21 -ose = sugar. If it ends in -ose, it's got carbs.
@Thumperchick Wow, I don't know if I've ever learned this much on a Friday!
@tHumperChick:
acaulose
acerose
acetose
acinose
adipose
agarose
albumose
aldose
amylose
anastomose
anginose
angulose
ankylose
annulose
anthracnose
appose
arabinose
arenose
ariose
arkose
arose
bellicose
biramose
bluenose
botryose
brose
brownnose
bullnose
burnoose
caboose
caespitose
calaboose
callose
carboxymethylcellulose
caseose
cellobiose
cellulose
chloralose
choose
chose
cirrose
close
comatose
comose
compose
conenose
corymbose
counterpose
crustose
cymose
decompose
deoxyribose
depose
dextrose
diagnose
disclose
discompose
dispose
dose
enclose
erose
exosmose
expose
farinose
filose
firehose
flexuose
floccose
foliose
footloose
foreclose
frondose
fructose
fruticose
fucose
furanose
galactose
gibbose
globose
glucose
gneissose
goose
grandiose
granulose
grumose
gummose
gyrose
hamulose
hardnose
hawknose
hemicellulose
heptose
hexose
hognose
hooknose
hose
impose
inclose
indispose
interpose
isodose
jocose
juxtapose
keratose
ketose
lachrymose
lactose
lacunose
laminose
lanose
leprose
levulose
lignocellulose
lobulose
loose
lose
maltose
mannose
megadose
metamorphose
methylcellulose
misdiagnose
mongoose
moose
morose
mucose
multipurpose
mungoose
narcose
nebulose
necrose
nitrocellulose
nodose
nodulose
noose
nose
nubilose
operose
oppose
ose
osmose
otiose
overdose
overexpose
pantyhose
papillose
papoose
pappoose
pappose
papulose
pentose
phagocytose
photocompose
pilose
plumose
pluviose
porose
pose
predispose
presuppose
primrose
prognose
propose
prose
proteose
pruinose
purpose
pyranose
quartzose
racemose
raffinose
ramose
ramulose
rechoose
rechose
recompose
redispose
reexpose
reimpose
religiose
reoppose
repose
rerose
rhamnose
ribose
rimose
rivulose
rockrose
roose
rose
rugose
rugulose
sabulose
scapose
scariose
schistose
schmoose
sclerose
secalose
setose
setulose
shovelnose
sorbose
spathose
spinose
spinulose
squamose
squamulose
starnose
strigose
strumose
suberose
sucrose
superimpose
superpose
suppose
talcose
those
tomentose
torose
transpose
trappose
trehalose
triose
tubenose
tuberose
tubulose
tumulose
typhose
unclose
underexpose
unloose
uprose
urinose
vadose
vamoose
vamose
varicose
venenose
venose
ventricose
venulose
verbose
verrucose
villose
virtuose
viscose
vorticose
whose
xylose
zygose
Not all have cabs. For instance, I was just very verbose, but yet I remain carb free.
http://www.popsci.com/article/science/ask-anything-would-cannibalism-make-you-fat
@Pavlov o_0
@Pavlov overachiever
;)
@Pavlov If I ring a bell, will you salivate? -ate, -ose, nevermind...
@DMlivezey My response would be conditional.
@Pavlov Actually a bunch of those are sugars, some pretty common ones too. Dextrose, fructose, glucose, sucrose, etc.
@luvche21 I have a very sciency background and carbohydrates are sugars and poly sugars. So lactose/glucose/sucrose are pretty much the definition of carbohydrates.
@luvche21 you're doing alllllll kinds of chemistry and biology here! science!
@Lotsofgoats And psychology too!
@Pavlov and vocabulary!
@Lotsofgoats Doing sciencey stuff and understanding the sciencey stuff is totally different :)
I made yogurt! I used the instructions that came with the yogurt maker, next time I will use @luvche21's. They are pretty close but the maker instructions say to use a cup of starter for 9 cups milk and to cool to 95 to 110. I underestimated how long the boiling/cooling would take so it only incubated for 7 hours. Then the Greek part was in the sieve overnight.
The yogurt was really mild and creamy, almost too creamy. I think next time I'll use 2% milk and let it incubate longer. I added frozen raspberries mixed with sugar and left in the fridge. My yogurt loving child refused to eat it, but it was different than Yoplait. I'll make one that he likes yet. Thanks for the info luvche21!
@sammydog01 I'm glad you gave it a shot! As you learned, you'll find instructions all over the board for temperature, how much yogurt to use, how often to replace it, how long to leave it in, etc. The instructions that I gave is what works (extremely) well for us.
We use 2% all the time and it's plenty thick. Whole milk is heavenly creamy, but we only do that once a year or so.
I hope your kid likes it soon! Ours sure does, but he's only ever eaten our homemade yogurt, and even likes it plain!
A really easy way for flavoring is throwing in a spoonful of jam (which we also make homemade) - it gives you the fruit and the sugar to make it plenty sweet with just a little bit.
Let me know how it turns out next time!
p.s. I would definitely recommend 8 to 8 1/2 hours - I find that gives it the perfect combination of thickness and tartness. I'm sure this will depend on what temperature you set it at as well.
@sammydog01 Another p.s.: raspberries are my favorite way to flavor it, especially when they're fresh. Frozen works well too though, but gives you a different texture.
I used mine today for Greek yogurt and a couple days ago for plain. In both cases, very nice! When I made yogurt with the steps above in the past, with the 'warmish' oven being the incubator, my yogurt was usually a little runny, 'pourable'.
The plain yogurt with the Oster Mykonos was much thicker, 'scoopable' I would say.
The Greek Yogurt is very thick, 'spreadable'.
I only heated the milk up to just above baby bottle temperature (no boiling required) in both cases. For starter I use a heaping soup-spoon's worth to a quart of whole milk. I let both batch stay in for about 12 hours, just because it was convenient.
Now I am researching what to do with the whey left over from the Greek - any favorites out there?
I really need to break out the maker I bought and do a test run...