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Post by woolybear on Apr 6, 2022 14:09:17 GMT
I made yogurt for the first time ever Monday. Instructions said it would take about 6 hours, mine took 24 hours. Boiled the milk, cooled it, added a couple of spoonfuls of commercial Iceland yogurt, covered up in a towel and into the oven with the light on for the heat. I used Iceland/Skyr type yogurt for the inoculate because it has more "buggies" than the dannon type varieties. My yogurt doesn't seem to be as firm as the commercial types..I'm guessing that this is because it doesn't have thickeners added to it? I like it way better than the store bought, I can eat it straight without any added sugar (I did add honey and that brought it up a notch) Can I keep making more batches using a couple spoonfuls of the current batch? What other uses or recipes can someone recommend for using yogurt? Oh just thought of something...can it be strained, pressed and a cheese made from it? What type of cheese would it be? Sorry for all the questions but I have a new obsession/rabbit hole to dive into.
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Post by kkbcc on Apr 6, 2022 19:50:31 GMT
Yes you can use a previous batch to inoculate the next batch. Like sourdough you'll develop a flavor that's local for you. Temperature is key: you want 110±10° for best results. I do it in a dehydrator and it sets to my liking in about 5 hours.
To make "Greek" style let your yogurt drain in the fridge overnight. I'll put it in a coffee filter lined tub that has some drain holes for the whey. Makes for an almost cream cheese spread.
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Post by mzgarden on Apr 6, 2022 19:57:33 GMT
my yogurt sets up pretty thick and takes 7-8 hours. I don't boil my milk, I heat it to 190F. Seems if I don't get it to 190 degrees, it does not thicken much. I cool it to 110-115F, stir in the culture and then put it in my dehydrator at about 113F for 7-8 hours.
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Post by solargeek on Apr 6, 2022 20:04:51 GMT
Doing mine right now in instant pot, already in the glass pint jars that will go in the fridge. YUM!
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Post by woolybear on Apr 6, 2022 23:29:56 GMT
When I did mine I had wrapped it in a warm towel and placed in the warm oven. After 10 hours it was still just like milk. So I removed the towel and left it over night. I'm not sure if the towel was keeping the milk from getting warm enough. Next batch I will try it in the oven without the towel. Can't use the dehydrator because it's a round nesco and not enough height for a bowl. I had read that if you let it ferment for longer times you get a more sour yogurt. I was really afraid I had made an extra sour batch letting sit that long, but it turned out great. For this batch I've just been spooning out a few spoons at a time and then draining off the whey the next time I go to use it. Gave a spoonful yogurt and a small bit of whey to the dog - she loved it (but what dog doesn't like the humans food)
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Post by Txsteader on Apr 7, 2022 11:19:43 GMT
I make mine just like Mzgarden but I incubate it in the gas oven, using the heat from the pilot light, for 8 hours. My oven runs a but warmer than ideal, so I have to prop the oven door open about an inch with a rolled up potholder. woolybear , do you have a thermometer in your oven? I wonder if it wasn't warm enough for a more firm 'set'. Between 110-115 degrees is the 'sweet spot' for incubation. Multiple Ways to Incubate Yogurt
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Post by woolybear on Apr 7, 2022 12:56:57 GMT
Txsteader, I think the oven with the light on runs around 90* + or -. I'll have to pull the thermometer out of the smoker and place in the oven to see for sure. A new project for today, can't do much else because of calling for rain all day. I'll give an update once I know what the temps are
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Post by woolybear on Apr 7, 2022 19:14:16 GMT
So after about 6 hours the oven temp is 102*. I'll have to test how warm the seed heating mat gets. I could do a batch on the mat and see how that turns out. Experimentation is in my near future
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Post by blackfeather on Apr 7, 2022 19:22:51 GMT
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Post by Txsteader on Apr 7, 2022 20:17:04 GMT
Another suggestion - you might want to try a different brand yogurt as the 'starter'. I've had different results using different brands, some not as thick set as others.
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Post by cccindy on Apr 8, 2022 4:07:36 GMT
Well, I was about to chime in until I realized my yogurt story took place nearly 50 years ago and is probably irrelevant today. So never mind.
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Post by mzgarden on Apr 8, 2022 8:35:24 GMT
cccindy, we could probably still get something out of it - I wouldn't discount a 50 year old yogurt story.
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Post by woolybear on Apr 8, 2022 12:22:55 GMT
cccindy, spill the story, 50 years is just a blip on the yogurt timeline.
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Post by gayle on Apr 8, 2022 12:28:26 GMT
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Post by cccindy on Apr 9, 2022 6:31:46 GMT
Txsteader's recommendation to try different brands brought this all to mind:
Sorry I don't recall the details or even the course, but once upon a time when I was a college student I was introduced to an exotic new food called yogurt. In this class, the instructors had repeated failures trying to make yogurt and finally decided the only supermarket yogurt they could trust to contain live culture was Dannon. Around that same time, I discovered the remains of a carton of milk left sitting out in my dorm room over a weekend. The contents had curdled & solidified but did not smell unpleasant. Was this yogurt accidentally created by some wandering spores? I had always been warned not to eat spoiled food and milk was at the top of the list, so I threw it away. That is all...
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