I'm Loving my Yogurt Maker

[kenny]

I'm making some yogurt right now.
I've made it maybe 5 times and keep refining the process.
I found out adding the fruit before you 'cook' the yogurt makes it yucky.

Now I blend fresh strawberries and freeze them in an ice cube tray.
No added sugar, honey or anything.

When needed, I thaw a strawberry cube and blend into plain yogurt.
Cheap, fairly easy, healthy, and tastes soooo much better than any store-bought.
My unit makes a half-gallon at a time and it really does keep perfectly for up to 3 weeks with no taste degradation.

My remaining challenge is to develop the lowest-fat, but lowest-cost recipe.
I prefer non-fat milk but you have to add gelatin and powdered milk to adds solids.
The powdered milk about doubles the cost so I'm experimenting with low-fat milk, no powdered milk, and less gelatin.

I also cut the expensive powered yogurt cultures in half and it still comes out perfect but must cook 5 hours instead of 4.

Home-made yogurt may be more green.
I'm no longer responsible for zillions of plastic tubs.

Perfect!

 

[bluegirl123]

Wow that's a nice looking setup. Love the glass container.

I make a gallon of yogurt every couple of weeks, but I just use mason jars and place them in a cooler with a few inches of warm water overnight.

I suggest using existing plain yogurt to make fresh yogurt, instead of expensive culture each time, if you want to reduce costs. I use about 2 tablespoons per litre. About every so many months, I'll buy a new container of plain yogurt to use, to 'freshen' up.


We enjoy ours with a spoonful of homemade organic jam, frozen organic berries, and of course, some chocolate chips.

Edit: forgot to mention, different brands of plain yogurts at the store seems to makes different homemade yogurt. Some makes thin, soupy yogurt (trader joes), others makes thick ones, even with lower fat milk.

 

[dk168]

I would love to make my own yoghurt, and have an Easy Yo pot myself. However, being on my own, I do not eat enough to worth the bother.

I do purée strawberry with added sugar, lemon juice and some strawberry liqueur, before freezing it when the soft fruits are in season. This way, when I fancy a refreshing drink, I would put a scoop of the frozen strawberry purée into a glass of lemonade, yummy!

DK

 

[Ximena]

Wow that's a nice looking setup. Love the glass container.
I make a gallon of yogurt every couple of weeks, but I just use mason jars and place them in a cooler with a few inches of warm water overnight.
I suggest using existing plain yogurt to make fresh yogurt, instead of expensive culture each time, if you want to reduce costs. I use about 2 tablespoons per litre. About every so many months, I'll buy a new container of plain yogurt to use, to 'freshen' up.
We enjoy ours with a spoonful of homemade organic jam, frozen organic berries, and of course, some chocolate chips.
Edit: forgot to mention, different brands of plain yogurts at the store seems to makes different homemade yogurt. Some makes thin, soupy yogurt (trader joes), others makes thick ones, even with lower fat milk.

Cool machine.
Yes, we use reserved yogurt from prior batch as a starter and let it rest for a minimum of 9 hours [longer in winter] for a thicker product. First batch made with commercial culture will be always thinner; consequent ones made with mature culture will be much thicker.
DH and I do it a bit different: He heats/keeps the milk @180F for at least 40 minutes, stirring frequently then stirs in 1/2 of starter [loves tartness] to the cooled milk [100F] then let to ferment overnight, covered.
I whisk in 1/4 C of non-fat milk per quart of 1-2% milk before heating. Might not be the cheapest recipe but it is my favorite. We add fruit after it has been chilled for at least 6 hours and I have removed most of the whey. I really like seeing everyone in this house reaching for the stainless steel pot of ripened yogurt from the fridge to add their goodies most mornings.

 

[Mia16]

I use low fat milk, skim is okay but can't have gelatin so I often let the yogurt sit for longer.
Some strain their yogurt through cheesecloth or paper filters to make it thicker, I detest doing that I'm getting better at removing the floating liquid to be used in the garden.
I find individual jars pretty cool but I'm also kind of lazy lol. 2 quarts lasts about 3 weeks in the fridge.
If I remember correctly, I used a full 6oz plain Dannon as a starter for my first batch and that was a long time ago. I flavor every other batch with vanilla for a change by adding 1/4 C of sugar and a tablespoon of vanilla before adding the starter. Yummy!

 

[bluegirl123]

Wow that's a nice looking setup. Love the glass container.
I make a gallon of yogurt every couple of weeks, but I just use mason jars and place them in a cooler with a few inches of warm water overnight.
I suggest using existing plain yogurt to make fresh yogurt, instead of expensive culture each time, if you want to reduce costs. I use about 2 tablespoons per litre. About every so many months, I'll buy a new container of plain yogurt to use, to 'freshen' up.
We enjoy ours with a spoonful of homemade organic jam, frozen organic berries, and of course, some chocolate chips.
Edit: forgot to mention, different brands of plain yogurts at the store seems to makes different homemade yogurt. Some makes thin, soupy yogurt (trader joes), others makes thick ones, even with lower fat milk.

Cool machine.
Yes, we use reserved yogurt from prior batch as a starter and let it rest for a minimum of 9 hours [longer in winter] for a thicker product. First batch made with commercial culture will be always thinner; consequent ones made with mature culture will be much thicker.
DH and I do it a bit different: He heats/keeps the milk @180F for at least 40 minutes, stirring frequently then stirs in 1/2 of starter [loves tartness] to the cooled milk [100F] then let to ferment overnight, covered.
I whisk in 1/4 C of non-fat milk per quart of 1-2% milk before heating. Might not be the cheapest recipe but it is my favorite. We add fruit after it has been chilled for at least 6 hours and I have removed most of the whey. I really like seeing everyone in this house reaching for the stainless steel pot of ripened yogurt from the fridge to add their goodies most mornings.

Yah, I heat the milk too, but not for that long, just until it starts foaming. I cool down the pot with cold water, add the reserve yogurt (works out to roughly a cup per gallon) and pour into mason jars. Ferments for about 12-14 hours in the cooler overnight with warm water. Do you just let yours sit out? The cooler thing is a hassle and I'm thinking of using the oven light but it doesn't seem warm enough?

I didn't know that the relationship between maturity and thickness, thank you! I'll stop using a new tub of yogurt unless I have to.

 

[bluegirl123]

I use low fat milk, skim is okay but can't have gelatin so I often let the yogurt sit for longer.
Some strain their yogurt through cheesecloth or paper filters to make it thicker, I detest doing that I'm getting better at removing the floating liquid to be used in the garden.
I find individual jars pretty cool but I'm also kind of lazy lol. 2 quarts lasts about 3 weeks in the fridge.
If I remember correctly, I used a full 6oz plain Dannon as a starter for my first batch and that was a long time ago. I flavor every other batch with vanilla for a change by adding 1/4 C of sugar and a tablespoon of vanilla before adding the starter. Yummy!

Ohh I'm going to try that next time! Great idea.

I strained the yogurt a few times, but it is a pain, I rather let it sit longer like you. Now I only strain to make frozen yogurt.

 

[Ximena]

Wow Cool machine.
Yes, we use reserved yogurt from prior batch as a starter and let it rest for a minimum of 9 hours [longer in winter] for a thicker product. First batch made with commercial culture will be always thinner; consequent ones made with mature culture will be much thicker.
DH and I do it a bit different: He heats/keeps the milk @180F for at least 40 minutes, stirring frequently then stirs in 1/2 of starter [loves tartness] to the cooled milk [100F] then let to ferment overnight, covered.
I whisk in 1/4 C of non-fat milk per quart of 1-2% milk before heating. Might not be the cheapest recipe but it is my favorite. We add fruit after it has been chilled for at least 6 hours and I have removed most of the whey. I really like seeing everyone in this house reaching for the stainless steel pot of ripened yogurt from the fridge to add their goodies most mornings.

Yah, I heat the milk too, but not for that long, just until it starts foaming. I cool down the pot with cold water, add the reserve yogurt (works out to roughly a cup per gallon) and pour into mason jars. Ferments for about 12-14 hours in the cooler overnight with warm water. Do you just let yours sit out? The cooler thing is a hassle and I'm thinking of using the oven light but it doesn't seem warm enough?

I didn't know that the relationship between maturity and thickness, thank you! I'll stop using a new tub of yogurt unless I have to.

On my initial post I meant to say that DH uses 1/2 C of starter not 1/2 starter
We use a 3 Qt stainless steel pot with short handles through the whole process. After adding the starter, we place the lid on then place the whole thing inside a larger pot [8-10qt] cover with lid then wrap the whole thing with a beach towel.
During winter months, we ferment the yogurt away from granite.
Super old-fashioned, I know!

 

[kenny]

Cool set up.

I love reading and learning your guyziz' many ways of making yogurt.
It's a really old-fashioned homey thing, much like making your own bread or tortillas or keeping chickens or bees.

 

[Lulie]

I would love to make my own yoghurt, and have an Easy Yo pot myself. However, being on my own, I do not eat enough to worth the bother.

I do strawberry with added sugar, lemon juice and some strawberry liqueur, before freezing it when the soft fruits are in season. This way, when I fancy a refreshing drink, I would put a scoop of the frozen strawberry purée into a glass of lemonade, yummy!

DK

That purée sounds delish over fresh homemade plain yogurt, tempting...tempting.

 

[bluegirl123]

We use a 3 Qt stainless steel pot with short handles through the whole process. After adding the starter, we place the lid on then place the whole thing inside a larger pot [8-10qt] cover with lid then wrap the whole thing with a beach towel.
During winter months, we ferment the yogurt away from granite.
Super old-fashioned, I know!

That's awesome! I would've never thought of that, and thanks for the pics. I have a 'sleeping' bag made for the cooler to keep it warmer in the winter. Funny how alike but different our methods are. I will try without the warm water next time and just rely on the cooler to insulate.

 

[Mia16]

I would give it a try Lulie
This has been a fun thread! I experimented yesterday with dry milk using one jar and a mini cooler.
To make things fair, I bought plain yogurt [voskos brand] to start from zero.
After heating half a gallon of 1% organic milk to 180F with 3 T of dry milk [all I had], I placed the pot into the sink filled half way with cold water. Temp dropped to 105 F quite rapidly. Whisked in the yogurt and poured into the sterilized pickling jar. Covered with the lid and placed into the cooler then filled with 120F tap water to come 3/4 of the way up the jar. Closed the lid and let it be for 3 hours.
My typical recipe stays wraped inside the [off] oven for 8 hours and continues to firm up in the fridge though; this recipe was very thick at the 3 hour mark Next time I will add the full amount of dry milk Ximena suggested. Thank You!
My breakfast with tart berry compote and proof of damage caused by me to all.

 

[Saoirse2]

Great ideas shared. The little yogurt maker from my childhood made such a small amount and it was quite sour!