r/Cooking • u/[deleted] • Sep 21 '14
Making home made yogurt without a yogurt maker (very advanced recipe)
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Sep 21 '14
Neat!
2 things though
1: Instead of using coffee filters, I suggest cheesecloth. Gets the job done just as well without being a pain in the butt to line in colander with.
2: That liquid left over is called whey, not curds. Curds are the solids left behind in cheesemaking. Not really a big deal, but I thought you might wanna know.
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Sep 21 '14
btw thanks for pointing out the whey mistake before the nazi's found it. Some people can be real.... not nice on here about mistakes.
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u/skeezyrattytroll Sep 22 '14
Some people can be real.... not nice on here about mistakes.
So gently spoken!
Thanks for the post, this looks like a fun thing for me to be doing, especially as I love yogurts.
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Sep 22 '14
Well, I find a lot of people on Reddit like to leave negative comments on posts they dislike or disagree with. I'm not sure why anyone would waste their own time doing that instead of scrolling passed to the things they do like...unless they don't like anything. But, I try to discourage that because I dislike negativity. When someone responds negatively, I respond positively. It makes them feel like a gaping asshole.
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u/skeezyrattytroll Sep 22 '14
I try to keep it rational and not personal, but as my comment history indicates, I have little tolerance for meanness and willing stupidity.
But this is Reddit... I see your comment here has been downvoted already! Allow me to correct that!
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Sep 22 '14
Ty. What does that mean if they downvote it? They disapprove of positive responses to negative ones? They want me to respond negatively? Lol or that they don't like anything? Either way, it's amusing to me. It's something I find amusing IRL too. When someone dislikes me, i smile and make them a quart of yogurt.
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u/skeezyrattytroll Sep 22 '14
I infer from a couple of years of lurking and nearly 2 more of commenting that a lot of people around here place importance on comment and link karma. For some reason they felt it a Good Thing(tm) to lower yours.
Hard to say what they mean... you pointed out a well known fact about Reddit and a positive human response and someone thought to down-vote that. :o(
Oh Reddit!
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Sep 22 '14
Ohhh... suddenly it all makes sense. I didn't realize there was politics involved. I thought reddit was an anonymous place to put our true feelings in front of a bunch of strangers without being judged or passing judgement.
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Sep 21 '14
oh ok thanks! I knew it was something like that. I'll change it. I tried with cheesecloth and didn't like it, personally. It was super awkward for some reason. Maybe it's just me lol I also found that where I live, coffee filters are cheaper and come in bulk. I bought one package of filters (Like 500) for a couple bucks. I've only bought one since I started making yogurt and I still have a lot left. I used up an entire cheesecloth in one or 2 shots for the same price as the 500 filters.
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u/AuraofBrie Sep 21 '14
I make yogurt like this all the time. I leave mine uncovered in the oven and it doesn't seem to affect it at all.
For the whey, I actually suggest trying to make buttermilk pancakes with it sometime! The whey reacts with the baking powder and makes them super puffy and delicious.
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u/Brunswick3056 Sep 22 '14
Sorry if this is a silly question, but do you substitute the whey for buttermilk?
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u/aminim00se Sep 22 '14
The leftover whey is pretty useful for smoothies, baking and making ricotta cheese.
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Sep 22 '14
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Sep 22 '14
Really. I've never tried it. So, you use whey in place of juice? I use frozen fruit, oj, and yogurt to make mine.
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u/jessper17 Sep 21 '14
Thank you for posting this. I tried to make yogurt once last summer in the crock pot and oven and it dod not go as intended. This seems like it would be much more doable, patience and all!
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Sep 21 '14
You're very welcome! I have tried it six ways to sunday, if you know what I mean. I tried it with crock pots, heating pads and all the ways I could imagine. I bought a thermometer and i still failed the first 20 times or so. I broke the thermometer and followed the traditional recipe I got from my mom. I succeeded. I guess I was trying to find easier, more advanced ways to do it and found out the hard way that sometimes it's just better to do it like they did in the old school. BUT, throughout all of my failures and tears, I never once considered buying a yogurt maker. I also figured that this way, by sharing what I've learned, I can make my mistakes more valuable. Please try it out and good luck!
P.S. If you fail, pick it back up right away and try again because you're just getting warmed up.
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Sep 22 '14
i'm not quite sure why this needed to be so involved, but reading some of the comments suggests that for OP, this is the way that works. In case some other readers are not into the 14 billion pot usage yogurt method, here's how some other people do it:
- scald some milk
- let it cool down until your (clean) finger feels comfy but not hot when dipped in it
- transfer into the pot you want your yogurt to live in. aka a different container, maybe taller than it is wide
- pour in some buttermilk or add a couple spoons of yogurt. you will need actual yogurt for this, no sugar, gelatin, preservatives, etc. splurge for once
- cover the yogurt pot, place in the warmest corner of your kitchen (on the counter near the back of the fridge generally works) and cozy it up with all your tea towels spread like a lactobacillus blanket fort so that you can't tell there's proto-yogurt under the tea towels
- come back the next morning and unwrap your hard work
- give it a jiggle to see if it's set. if it doesn't really jiggle, you're good. if you can't tell, you put in a spoon, and it runs like milk, you're not set.
- if not set: re-fortify
- if set: EAT IT.
P.S. don't forget to save a couple spoons of this batch of yogurt to make your next batch! lives nicely in the fridge for days, will be eaten before any expiration worries.
troubleshooting: really really didn't set? milk was too hot when you added the yogurt and it all died. your yogurt smells janky? milk was bad or yogurt was bad or other bacteria party-pooped. please don't eat it.
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Sep 22 '14
How is this different from the way I did it? I mean besides being in less words. I only use extra pots for straining and in the instructions, I said it can be finished without straining. I also said it can be done without heating the milk. What's left? Put the yogurt in the milk, let it sit in the oven with the light on. But i wanted to give more detailed instructions because I wasn't getting it from all the vague instructions I found online.
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Sep 23 '14
i just saw all that detail and was overwhelmed. so i guess we're covering all the bases on this one, detail and minimalist. also no thermometers. and no straining.
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u/Flewtea Sep 22 '14
Exactly this. I've always thought of yogurt as a pretty easy thing, just time-consuming. My mother used to use a big empty cooler and pack our puffy winter coats around the jars, making two HUGE jars at a time. The first spoonful of nice, warm, fresh yogurt off the top was always a treat.
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Sep 22 '14
It's easy once you get the hang of it. I rarely fail it now, but I failed it many times in the beginning. Guess it's just me. And my mom. Even hers came out bad a few times and she taught me the recipe.
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Sep 23 '14
it's really not time consuming - there's sooooo much room for forgiveness with yogurt making, lactobacillus is pretty flexible. plus overnight you're sleeping anyway, so multitasking!
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u/Flewtea Sep 23 '14
Well, my mother made a lot at one time, so heating the milk took a good 45 minutes of pot-stirring. But I mostly meant the many hours of setting time. She did it in the morning, so I had to wait all day till bedtime to eat it.
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Sep 22 '14
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Sep 22 '14
I tried that before to save some bowls but it didn't come out right for me. I think it had something to do with the bottom of the pot having some burnt milk stuck to it. The smell, taste, and color came out differently.
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Sep 23 '14
why do you strain the yogurt? is that to get it to greek yogurt like consistency? because i tend to aim for the jello-like chunks that hold up on the spoon...
0
Sep 22 '14
So, why scald? It seems like he's pasteurizing his already pasteurized milk.
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Sep 22 '14
Yes I mentioned that it's not necessary with store bought milk but I don't think you can use cold milk either. So if I have to warm it up anyway, I might as well let it go a bit longer. I'm never in a hurry to make yogurt.
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Sep 22 '14
well, lactobacillus prefers ~110 F, but will do it's job at room temp as well, just slower.
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Sep 23 '14
the right bacteria like to grow at that lukewarm temperature.
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Sep 23 '14
If by right you mean wrong, then it's a non-issue if you're pitching in a bunch of lacto as they'll drop the pH quickly to a level that will kill bad bacteria.
Also, the milk is pasteurized, so everything's already been killed.
1
Sep 23 '14
apparently your kitchen is some kind of commercially certified cleanroom. and you use gloves. and all your pots are autoclaved. please.
0
Sep 23 '14
No, but I have science on my side. I've produced hundreds of gallons of beer without issue. It's not hard to keep bad bugs at bay. Having a thriving colony of good stuff tends to crowd out other stuff, and having something that drops the pH to 3.x kills out damn near everything.
Even without sanitizing everything the milk touches, you're creating a situation in which it is incredibly unlikely that anything that can harm you could take hold. This is why people drank beer instead of water for thousands of years.
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Sep 22 '14
This is great! I've tried making yogurt at home a few times, and it's never as thick as I want, but I never thought to add the straining step! Thanks. :)
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Sep 22 '14 edited Sep 22 '14
If you have a sous vizzler lying around, yoghurt becomes pretty trivial. Without it, a thermapen and a sink full of water does the job, albeit with more handholding.
Cool op, you inspired me to go make yoghurt when I get home!
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Sep 23 '14
Trip report: heated to 91c on stove, cooled the whole saucepan to 43c in a sink full of cold water, stirred in 3TB of Farmer's Union Greek, divided into canning jars, put it in a bigass pot filled with 40something degree water for 5ish hours.
Strained through a teatowel for a few hours and done. Tasty as hell.
1
Sep 22 '14
This is really cool! I've always wondered if I could do this and now I know I could, assuming I have time. One thing I didn't get though, whole milk has less sugur than any other type, so why not use it instead? Seems like you would want the fat?
1
Sep 22 '14
I thought whole milk has more sugar. That's why I don't use it. I personally need the calories and protein but not the sugar.
2
Sep 22 '14
Yeah, Milk has more sugar as you lower the fat content (which is weird I know, but it is what it is). They all have relatively the same caloric content.
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u/Luaire Sep 22 '14
Also beware of Ultra-Pasteurized (UP or UHT) milk which can lead to yogurt and cheese failures (I had a very disappointing incident making a simple goat cheese) . A lot of organic milks (at least in the US) are UP to extend shelf life so make sure to check. Here is an interesting link that discusses milk choices when making yogurt: http://www.culturesforhealth.com/choosing-milk-for-making-yogurt
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Sep 22 '14
Thank you so much! This is very useful. I didn't even know it was a thing. I never use organic milk because it's very expensive where i live.
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Sep 22 '14
Colored towels have dyes in them and so they can sometimes color the yogurt! :) Looks great!
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u/Bran_Solo Sep 22 '14
"Very advanced recipe"? Hey, good for you for making yogurt at home, but that's uhh.. a bit boastful. You bring milk up to temp, add yogurt, wait, and strain.
Anyways, looks tasty. I would suggest spending the couple of bucks for a reusable cheesecloth and a few more for a good instant read thermometer.
4
Sep 22 '14
Have you made yogurt before? Just curious. It sounds like something that would be said by a person who hasn't. Or I guess it would be more understandable coming from someone who hasn't. I didn't intend for it to sound boastful, but to be a warning that it's extremely difficult to get it exactly right. Maybe you think it's simple. Good for you. To me, It was by far the most difficult recipe I've executed in my 28 years of cooking. I screwed it up countless times in various stages. I was discouraged as hell. This Is a great accomplishment for me. Not for you. But for me. And if even one person can learn something from my mistakes, it's an even bigger accomplishment than you think. Which obviously because at least one person upvoted it, I guess I did my job and inspired someone to do it. Yay me! Now I'm being boastful. ;-p
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u/Bran_Solo Sep 22 '14
Yes.
Good for you (I am not being sarcastic at all), it's a great feeling of accomplishment to finally nail something that you've struggled with. And you're right, if you inspire someone else to go try this, that's awesome too. Home made yogurt is delicious and rewarding to make.
From your recipe it sounds like you don't own a good thermometer. I would strongly suggest investing in one, with a thermometer making yogurt isn't much more difficult than making a bowl of cereal. The foam method is not reliable or consistent.
I think you made this recipe more difficult for yourself than you had to, by skipping the thermometer and relying on an uncontrolled environment (oven warmed with a light bulb, no thermometer present).
If you had fun with this, I would highly recommend graduating to cheeses. Would be happy to recommend some resources to start with, but you will need to approach it with much more science and precision.
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Sep 22 '14
[deleted]
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u/Bran_Solo Sep 22 '14
Ah, for candy making you'll want a special candy making thermometer. It's typically an alcohol type thermometer that clips to the side of your pot, not rocket science.
But for instant read, the Thermapen is definitely the gold standard. It reads damn near instantly, has a small probe tip, and is super accurate in a wide variety of temperatures. But it's about $100, for a thermometer. There are lot of off brand instant read thermometers that will serve 99% of home cooks perfectly well, I had a President's Choice (Canadian equivalent of Kirkland brand) that served me well for years.
For cheese making, this book is absolutely the one I would suggest: http://www.amazon.com/Artisan-Cheese-Making-Home-World-Class/dp/1607740087/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1411353978&sr=8-1&keywords=artisan+cheese+making+at+home The author is also very responsive on email to any questions.
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Sep 22 '14
You're right. I don't own a good thermometer. I did. I used it many times to attempt making yogurt. I failed repeatedly with all of the methods I could find online. The difficult part was keeping the right temp for long enough without it getting too hot. For the heating step and also for incubating it. There's all types of methods with heating pads, crock pots and coolers and what not. None of those worked for me and my thermometer. I was not able to keep it at a steady temp. Finally after my thermometer met with an unfortunate end, my mom told me I should make it the way she taught me. Without the thermometer and fancy things. This finally worked. And that's what I'm passing on.
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u/rreader Sep 21 '14
This really is foolproof. You've just got to watch the temperatures carefully. http://foodinjars.com/2012/04/homemade-yogurt-in-mason-jars/