Post by Michelle on Jan 15, 2009 12:01:39 GMT -6
Homemade Yogurt
3-3/4 cup warm tap water
1-2/3 cups instant nonfat dry milk
2 to 4 tablespoon store-bought, plain yogurt with active yogurt cultures
In a large saucepan combine the water and dry milk. Stir it very well, and let it sit a few minutes. Then stir it again. All of the dry milk should be dissolved. Heat the milk over medium low heat until it reaches 180°. This kills off any competing bacteria so that the yogurt will respond better to the acidophilus cultures. Remove from the stove and allow to cool to 115°. If the milk is any hotter than this then it will kill off the yogurt cultures. Add the store-bought plain yogurt to the warm milk. Stir well. Allow it sit for a few minutes and stir a final time. This should dissolve the store-bought yogurt completely.
Carefully pour the mixture into a clean, quart-sized container. Incubate the yogurt in a warm spot for 6 to 8 hours, or until it is set almost as thick as store-bought yogurt. Chill and eat.
I always use prepared yogurt as my culture. I buy a large container of plain store brand yogurt and freeze it in ice cube trays. When it is completely frozen, I pack the cubes in a plastic freezer bag. Each time I make yogurt, I use one cube as the starter. You can use your own yogurt as a starter too, but it loses it's power after using it about 3 or 4 times.
It is good to use more dry milk powder than you would to just make fluid milk to make yogurt. To reconstitute milk for yogurt, add an extra 1/3 cup of dry milk, using 1-2/3 cups of dry milk powder for a quart of yogurt. This makes the yogurt thicker and also higher in calcium.
Ways to incubate yogurt: Set the stove at approximately 100°. Set yogurt in the oven and leave it for 6 and 8 hours. Take out when thick. Place the jar in a pan filled with warm water, to keep the temperature even. This works well next to the wood stove. Use a medium sized picnic cooler to incubate yogurt. Place the jars inside the cooler; add two jars filled with hot tap water, to keep the temperature warm. After 4 hours, check the yogurt to see if it is thick enough. If not, refill the jars with hot water and let the yogurt sit another 4 hours. This works very well. It took a full 8 hours, but the yogurt was perfect. You should try to disturb the yogurt as little as possible while incubating, to get good results.
After the yogurt is thick, place it in the fridge. It will stay fresh for about a week or two.
3-3/4 cup warm tap water
1-2/3 cups instant nonfat dry milk
2 to 4 tablespoon store-bought, plain yogurt with active yogurt cultures
In a large saucepan combine the water and dry milk. Stir it very well, and let it sit a few minutes. Then stir it again. All of the dry milk should be dissolved. Heat the milk over medium low heat until it reaches 180°. This kills off any competing bacteria so that the yogurt will respond better to the acidophilus cultures. Remove from the stove and allow to cool to 115°. If the milk is any hotter than this then it will kill off the yogurt cultures. Add the store-bought plain yogurt to the warm milk. Stir well. Allow it sit for a few minutes and stir a final time. This should dissolve the store-bought yogurt completely.
Carefully pour the mixture into a clean, quart-sized container. Incubate the yogurt in a warm spot for 6 to 8 hours, or until it is set almost as thick as store-bought yogurt. Chill and eat.
I always use prepared yogurt as my culture. I buy a large container of plain store brand yogurt and freeze it in ice cube trays. When it is completely frozen, I pack the cubes in a plastic freezer bag. Each time I make yogurt, I use one cube as the starter. You can use your own yogurt as a starter too, but it loses it's power after using it about 3 or 4 times.
It is good to use more dry milk powder than you would to just make fluid milk to make yogurt. To reconstitute milk for yogurt, add an extra 1/3 cup of dry milk, using 1-2/3 cups of dry milk powder for a quart of yogurt. This makes the yogurt thicker and also higher in calcium.
Ways to incubate yogurt: Set the stove at approximately 100°. Set yogurt in the oven and leave it for 6 and 8 hours. Take out when thick. Place the jar in a pan filled with warm water, to keep the temperature even. This works well next to the wood stove. Use a medium sized picnic cooler to incubate yogurt. Place the jars inside the cooler; add two jars filled with hot tap water, to keep the temperature warm. After 4 hours, check the yogurt to see if it is thick enough. If not, refill the jars with hot water and let the yogurt sit another 4 hours. This works very well. It took a full 8 hours, but the yogurt was perfect. You should try to disturb the yogurt as little as possible while incubating, to get good results.
After the yogurt is thick, place it in the fridge. It will stay fresh for about a week or two.