Homemade Yogurt

I started making my own yogurt because I had lots of extra milk (don't ask) and I didn't like the idea of it going to waste. I found a recipe on A Year of Slowcooking but was hesitant to try it as it sounded really hard. Alas, the milk continues to sour whether or not I was going to be too chicken to try it, so I decided to give it a go and if I ended up wasting the milk, it was going to end up wasted anyways. I will warn you, the first batches you make will probably be edible although more liquidy than store bought yogurt, but don't give up after the first batch cause it really is true that you have to practice the recipe a few times before you are truly good at it.

So you may look at the recipe I found.... and feel free to google homemade yogurt recipes. The more you read about it the better, unless you have someone who has made it you can ask questions of. Real live help is always better.

I tried it in non-stick pans on the stove..... I found that the milk at the bottom of the pan would burn and once mixed in the really cooked milk wasn't all smooth and creamy like I liked it. I then used the nonstick pan in the oven, and that worked wonderfully, though I had a hard time regulating the temperature for the last part because ovens don't have 120 degree temp readings. Then I tried copper bottom pans - I would NOT recommend them for yogurt making, there is too much of a temperature difference between the top of the pan and the bottom. I found the difference to be about 10 degrees different and in yogurt making that is a lot of variation. So then I tried the crock pot. I actually had tried it first and found it not to be what I liked, however, if you have a newer crock pot, like the ones with the removable stoneware, then it is absolutely hands down the BEST way to make yogurt. So if you have one of those crock pots, go pull it out of the cabinet. JUST DO IT.

Enough already- Let's start the yogurt!

Pour your half gallon (or however much yogurt that you want) into your crock pot. Put the lid on, turn it on low, and walk away. Yes, I said walk away. Go play with the kids for an hour or two, depending on how much milk you poured in the crock pot. Your goal is to heat the milk to pre-boiling stage.... or 180 degrees. check it with your thermometer.

If it is at 180, turn off your crock pot, remove the stoneware from the heating elements and walk away again. This takes another couple of hours typically, so don't fret over it too much. **** Some recipes will say to do an ice bath too cool it quicker.... I hear you will break your stoneware doing drastic temp changes..... Don't worry it will not matter if it has to come back down in temp slower than some recipes say.... ***** I find as it cools there is cooked milk that rises to the top. I skim it off, but that is personal preference.

When your milk is between 110 and 120, you need to add your yogurt mixture. Your store bought starter yogurt must be ACTIVE culture. Stonefield Farms sells an organic version, but all active cultures works well. If you want, you can use previous batch yogurt as your culture, but only once or twice as it loses its potency. The rule of thumb is that you want one Tablespoon of yogurt per quart of milk. (If you add more, your yogurt will be ready quicker.... if you add less, it will have to sit longer at the next stage.....) You will also want to add one package of dry milk. It is not necessary, but it will make the yogurt thicker.

Mix all the milk and yogurt culture and dry milk together thoroughly. I usually beat it with a whisk till I start getting milk bubbles on top, though that is probably more than necessary. Now replace the crock pot lid, and add it back into the heating elements, but DO NOT TURN IT ON!!!!

Walk away, and check it about every half hour but do not stir. You need to keep the temperature of the milk between 100 and 120. DO NOT HEAT ABOVE 120 - It kills of the yogurt. If it goes lower, it doesn't matter, the yogurt just falls asleep. Reheat to temp and expect the yogurt to take longer to thicken.

After 4-8 hours, your yogurt is done. Now you can stir it, add sweeteners, flavorings etc..... then put it Tupperware and refrigerate or send to neighbors for their refrigerators. Enjoy.

So to recap: Heat milk to 180, cool to 120, mix in yogurt. Keep temp between 100 and 120 till yogurt is done. Easy as pie..... actually easier if you ask me.