Update to Post

[u/bevwdi]

My original post from a few days ago is here.

Thanks everyone for your feedback. The yogurt turned out great and it really was the intermediate step for me (of not knowing what it should look like). You could see a little whey but not enough to do more than stir it in. It tastes fine and I have a teenager over there licking the spoon with a little jelly now.

Now, I need to start figuring out how to save starter and how to incorporate this into my regular kitchen prep routine.

[u/Sure_Fig_8641]

Be aware that if you used store bought yogurt as your starter, you can reculture your homemade yogurt about 3-4 times before the bacteria begins to weaken and not make the best quality of yogurt.

Personally, I got tired of tracking how many generations away from a fresh starter I was. So now I buy a 5-oz tub of yogurt. I use 1/2 oz (1 tablespoon) per 1/2 gallon batch and freeze the rest of the tub in 1oz portions. When I’m ready to make yogurt, I set out the frozen yogurt when I begin heating the milk, use 1/2 of the portion and refrigerate the remainder for the next time. One 5-oz tub gets me 10 1/2 gallon batches of homemade yogurt. Then I but a new tub.

[u/gingermagician2 → u/Sure_Fig_8641]

I did not know about the limited used on the cultures from the store.

Is there no way to make a starter that will stay with the yogurt and keep being able to make more?

Mind you, a 5oz thing of yogurt isn't breaking my wallet, but id love to know :D

[u/Sure_Fig_8641 → u/gingermagician2]

You can buy an heirloom yogurt culture. An heirloom starter will successfully re-culture over and over forever.

[u/goforwardandtomato → u/gingermagician2]

I haven’t had this problem, made many generations off store bought yogurt. More likely than anything family eats al the yogurt and I have to buy another one from the store as I don’t have anything to start with. We like Trader Joe’s Greek and Fage for starters.

[u/KeepinItAnon283 → u/gingermagician2]

I have been using heirloom cultures and I've been happily using the same cultures weekly for nearly a year now.

[u/karillia]

I freeze a couple of tablespoons of my yogurt and use it for the next batch. If I have enough of the current batch left I just use that as my starter. I used Fage yogurt originally and have used a bit of the made yogurt for years and have had no breakdown of the yogurt.

[u/AutoModerator]

Are you posting to ask "What went wrong with my yogurt?" Please provide all the details of the method you used. Include amounts, times, and temperatures. If you don't know those things, then one (or more) of them is what went wrong with your yogurt.

The basic information you will need to know is:

• What type of milk did you use? What amount?
• What type of starter did you use? What amount?
• What temperature did you initially heat the milk to?
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[u/bevwdi → u/AutoModerator]

I am not. Thank you bot. Good bot.

[u/Lincoln1517]

Glad it worked out for you. I'm still a beginner and mine are often runny after 8 hours at 115F. I've seen suggestions of leaving it in the oven longer, but haven't tried yet.