Homemade yogurt

Last edited Sun Jun 14, 2015, 11:14 PM - Edit history (1)

It's been a while since anyone has posted about yogurt, so I thought I'd post a simple and reliable method. Most commercially produced yogurt contains thickening agents and stabilizers. While there's nothing wrong with that, homemade yogurt just has a better taste and texture, IMO.

Yogurt is pretty simple to make, but one thing you'll need is some way to incubate your culture which means holding the temp of the cultured milk to around 110F. There's lots of ways to do this and you don't necessarily need a dedicated yogurt maker (I've never owned one). A good thermos will work. I've seen some unpowered insulated yogurt makers that are well reviewed. Another option is a small cooler filled with 112F water with mason jars to hold the milk culture. If you buy one, I'd recommend something that has at least a 2 qt capacity, especially if you want to make Greek yogurt. You'll also need a good thermometer. It doesn't have to be an instant read thermometer, but that's a nice option.

If you want to make Greek yogurt, you'll need some kind of fine strainer. Fine mesh cheesecloth tied up inside a colander over a bowl will work. I use a commercial strainer which works very well.

For ingredients you'll need milk and a culture. If you like lowfat yogurt, use 1-2% milk. If you like non-fat yogurt, use skim milk. You can use whole milk or goats milk as well. You'll also need a culture. This can be commercial plain yogurt with live cultures (1/4-1/2 cup for 1-2 qts milk), or it can be a commercial powdered culture. Once you get started you can reuse a portion of your last batch for the next batch. You can do this several times, but eventually the results start to get inconsistent and you'll need to refresh your culture from scratch.

1) In a medium saucepan heat your milk to 185F over low heat covered (I use the #3 setting on my burner). Stir every 10 minutes or so using shorter intervals as the temp approaches 185F.

2) Once the milk temp gets to 185F, remove the pan from the burner and let cool with the lid slightly cracked until it gets to 112F.

3) At this point there will be a thin layer on top of the milk which you can remove with a slotted spoon for best results. Pitch your milk with your culture and stir well.

4) Incubate at about 110-112F. How long you incubate depends on what kind of results you want and what method you use. If you use a non-powered insulated method, the temperature will slowly go down which means you'll need longer incubation times. The longer you ferment your culture, the more tart and thicker the yogurt will get. My homemade incubator holds the temp precisely at 110F and I go with about 7-8 hours.

5) After fermentation, put your batch in the refrigerator for at least 6 hours.

When your yogurt is done, it's not uncommon to have a layer of whey at the top. Resist the urge to stir this back in. The more you stir your finished product, the thinner it will get. You can just leave the whey on top, or you can pour it off (I usually save whey to make smoothies).

My favorite way to serve is with macerated fruit or just plain. You can also strain it at this point for Greek style yogurt. Make sure you strain inside the refrigerator as this will take a few hours.

Edited to add:

Make sure that everything that comes in contact with your culture after the initial heating to 185F is as sterile as possible. I make my culture in mason jars and before use I either run them through the dishwasher or clean them by hand and fill them with boiling water for about 20 minutes.