We love yogurt and it’s so versatile. You can eat it plain, with fruit on it, put it on cereal, and cook with it. It makes all kinds of great desserts and it is so good for you!
We use so much of it that we make our own in a 2 litre bucket. It makes quick and easy, much faster than buttermilk.
It doesn’t make at room temperature like buttermilk does, however, so it has to be heated up and put into a container that will hold the heat long enough (about 8 hours). We ordered our 2 litre bucket yogurt maker from a cheese company in New England many years ago. It’s just like the ones that used to be in every home in the 70’s and 80’s. It is a simple styrofoam cooler, not electric, that the plastic bucket fits in, so it can be made anywhere. I know people who have put their yogurt containers in other small styrofoam coolers that hold in the heat and covered it with a warm quilt or blanket. This seems to work and would do in a pinch, if you didn’t have an actual “yogurt maker”.
We let our yogurt “make” about 8 hours. If you like it less tart, you can take it off earlier.
The thickness of the finished yogurt depends on the milk solids in it. If you want a really solid yogurt, add powdered milk to the milk before putting it in the maker. We used to do this regularly until powdered milk got so expensive. To the 2 litre bucket we make, we added about 1/2 cup of powdered milk. Now that I don’t use it, our yogurt is a bit thinner and wetter, but it’s still great yogurt. What we make now is similar to many brands of store bought yogurt.
I have discovered that the addition of plain gelatine will help keep it from watering, so now I add about 2 tablespoons of gelatine to the 2 litres of milk when it is very hot and use the hand blender to dissolve it. If you are adding powdered milk to it, the hand blender would be useful too. If you wanted to get creative and you like fruit yogurt, I suppose you could use flavored gelatine, but I have never done so. You can also add sugar, sweetener, jam or fruit to it at this stage. Freezer jam makes great yogurt. It’s the sugar and almost fresh fruit all in one.
I use yogurt to start it. I rarely ever buy actual “yogurt starter”. Any yogurt will do, as it has the live bacteria culture (acidophilus) in it. I usually make yogurt when there is a little left in the bucket. It doesn’t take much (1/2 cup to 2 litres). I spoon it out of the bucket and set it aside, then wash the bucket before making new yogurt in it. I also buy a small plain yogurt when I need to, in order to start a new batch.
What you need to make yogurt:
- milk to fill your container(s)
- powdered milk (if using it)
- gelatine (if using it)
- thermometer
- yogurt starter
- a container/arrangement that will hold the yogurt and hold the heat in for 8 hours
To make the yogurt, gently heat the milk to 190 degrees F, stirring more or less continuously. Turn off heat.
Add the gelatine and powdered milk and blend until dissolved.
Cool the milk to 112 degrees F, then add the yogurt starter. If you add the starter to the milk when the milk is still too hot, you will kill the bacteria and it won’t make yogurt. If you let it get too cool, it won’t make yogurt either. Anywhere around 110-112 degrees going in, with everything added, will make good yogurt. If you don’t heat the milk to 190 degrees, you might get yogurt and you might not. It’s risky. You might get another bacteria in there that will make something other than yogurt.
Being exact with cleanliness and temperatures is something one gets used to if one makes wine or soap regularly. Making yogurt is much easier! Try it! Yogurt is so good for you!
Good dry yogurt without a lot of water.
Sheryl – Runningtrails blogs at Providence Acres Farm. Do you have a recipe post or kitchen-related story to share on the Farm Bell blog?
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katieiacobellis says:
I just learned to make yogurt like this a few weeks ago and my boyfriend loves it! i froze 1 cup as a starter so i don’t ever have to buy it from the store again. it’s so much healthier when you know it’s only milk and culture. sweeten with some honey and banana – perfect!
On July 7, 2011 at 6:01 am
Suzanne McMinn says:
I’ve got to try the idea of flavored gelatin in the yogurt because Morgan likes blueberry yogurt. I’ve tried using blueberry syrup, and it’s not quite right (how she likes it). Maybe flavored gelatin will do it.
On July 7, 2011 at 8:59 am
Sheryl - Runningtrails says:
I have been conidering it too. Do they make blueberry Jello? I know they make raspberry and it’s good. I’ll have raspberries soon. I’m going to try it then!
On July 7, 2011 at 12:00 pm
Joy says:
During the 70s, I used to make yogurt all the time without any special equipment except for a good thermometer since temperature is important. I’d heat the milk (2%) on the stove, submerge clean jars in boiling water for a few minutes while I waited for the milk to cool down. Stir in some left over yougurt from my last batch or store bought live culture yougurt. I’d ladle it into the warm jars,put them onto a large tray and wrap it into an old comforter and leave it overnight. The heat from the warm jars seemed to last all night in its cozy cocoon. I never had a failure. Nowadays I’d add some gelatin to it to make that luscious thick, sour yougurt. Try it folks. No special equipment needed.
On July 7, 2011 at 12:38 pm
Kenya Cook says:
Two things:
1) Someone please try the flavored gelatin thing and post results. I’ve tried putting dried fruit (freeze dried peaches) in the bottom of the jar and that was a disaster. The fruit in the bottom spoiled and ruined that jar. The non-fruited ones in the same batch were okay, so I know it was the fruit that turned it. I would try the gelatin thing, but I have a limited supply of Jello and don’t want to risk it.
2) You can make yogurt even without a thermometer! Here’s how: Bring half you milk just to a boil. I used 1 liter. Then, add the same amount (1 liter) of cold from the fridge milk. It is just the right temperature for incubating. Not ideal, I know, but it will work in a pinch.
On July 8, 2011 at 6:01 am
Suzanne McMinn says:
Kenya Cook, I make fruit-at-the-bottom yogurt all the time. My yogurt maker makes it in 6 ounce jars. I put a couple tablespoons of jam at the bottom of every jar then pour in the yogurt. It makes just fine!
On July 8, 2011 at 6:14 am
Sheryl - Runningtrails says:
I have done jam a the bottom too and it works great! I usually make it plain these days and use just a little sweetener and plain fruit in it now. (I have to keep down the simple sugar intake.)
I am making it this weekend, probably Sunday and will use the Jello in it. I will let you know how it went on Monday. 🙂
Really, if it’s added when the milk is at it’s hottest and blendered until it’s well dissolved, I don’t see a problem, provided it’s hot enough. It’s not the waste of Jello that bothers me, I buy big stacks of generic in all flavours in the summer. Hubby likes it 🙂 The milk is expensive but I want to see if it works too! I’ll let you know on Monday! This could revolutionize my yogurt making!
Must get a couple of milk goats…
On July 8, 2011 at 8:01 am
Sheryl - Runningtrails says:
I know I said I was going to make it on Sunday,but I didn’t 🙁
I got called into work every day last week. I worked six days in a row. I usually only work 2 of those six days. So, I didn’t get it made. I was off on Sunday, but I slept and tried to get the important work caught up. I never did get to the yogurt and still haven’t. I’m all out of it now.
It was just one of those weeks where I have to say “I’m pedalling as fast as I can…”.
I do apologize for not making the yogurt for you with Jello on Sunday! I promise I will get to it this week. I have to have yogurt!
On July 12, 2011 at 6:14 pm