Yogurt
- 1 quart whole milk. 1% works fine. So does nonfat, although it'll be more watery.
- 2 tablespoons yogurt
Heat the fresh milk at 180 to 190 degrees, or to the point that it’s steaming and beginning to form bubbles. The heat alters the milk’s whey proteins and helps create a finer, denser consistency.
Let the milk cool to around 115 to 120 degrees, somewhere between very warm and hot. Make sure you're measuring the temperature from the bottom of the pot. The difference in temperature between top and bottom can be over 10 degrees, and if the milk is too hot, it will kill the bacteria. We discovered this the hard way after a few attempted batches in May 2010.
For each quart of milk, stir in two tablespoons of yogurt, either store-bought or from your last batch, thinning it first with a little of the milk.
Then put the milk in a warm jar or container or an insulated bottle, cover it, and keep the milk still and warm until it sets, usually in about four hours. I simply swaddle my quart jar in several kitchen towels. You can also put the container in an oven with the light bulb on.
Once the yogurt sets, refrigerate it to firm its structure and slow the continuing acid production. To make a thick Greek-style yogurt, spoon it into a fine-mesh strainer or colander lined with cheesecloth, and let the whey and its lactic acid drain into a bowl for several hours. (Don’t discard the whey, whose yellow-green tint comes from riboflavin. It makes a refreshing cool drink, touched up with a little sugar or salt.)
References
History
- June 27, 2009
- Eugene & Jessica's heirloom yogurt starter created. It's since died a few times.
