Homemade yogurt
October 10, 2011 • Category: Main Dish
One of my grandmother’s weekly tasks at home was making a fresh batch of yogurt every week; I could still see her, stirring the pot with the long wooden spoon and wrapping it with a blue wool blanket.
If you care about your health and want a long life, switch to yogurt and eat it daily. Yogurt (especially goat yogurt) is so beneficial that the people of the Caucasus mountains routinely live to 140 years old surviving on yogurt. In addition, Japanese (modern) scientists have discovered the beneficial effects of yogurt in cancer prevention.
Making yogurt is so easy that I feel guilty when buying it.
All you need is a blanket.
Some milk and a little yogurt (about 3 tablespoons).
INGREDIENTS:
- 4 1/2 cups of whole-milk (preferably organic)
- 3 tbsp of yogurt
METHOD:
- Pour the milk in a stainless steel pot; bring to a boil over medium heat. As soon as steam appears, lower the heat and let the milk simmer 2 minutes, then turn off the heat. Let the milk cool until it is still very warm but you are able to stick a finger in and count to 10 (barely); the temperature should be about 100 to 110F. Remove the top skin.
- At this point, take the yogurt and whisk rapidly adding 3 or 4 tablespoons of milk to it. Add more milk to the yogurt, whisking until the two are combined well. Transfer the yogurt and milk mixture back into the pot, whisking to combine all. Cover the pot and wrap in a blanket and place in a cupboard for 6 to 8 hours undisturbed.
- After that time, the yogurt is made. Transfer to a bowl, cover and refrigerate until needed. (Drain it of extra whey before storage).
NOTE:
You can repeat the operation a week later using that new yogurt you made.
Comments
29 Comments • Comments Feed
Eve@CheapEthnicEatz says:
That is so cool I only see recipes normally where you need to get the bacteria. So bookmarked!
On October 10, 2011 at 5:31 pm
Jeannie says:
Yes, making yoghurt is so simple anyone can do it, yet we are lazy at times and prefer to buy them off the shelves….I only made twice and then stopped because there were too much leftover and they turned bad.
On October 10, 2011 at 6:59 pm
Libyan Food says:
Reminds me of when we lived in a tiny flat and had flannel wrapped bottles near every radiator!
On October 10, 2011 at 7:42 pm
Peter says:
Love homemade yogurt – made/shared mom’s recipe very early on the site…still get many hits for it. Easy, delish and healthy as you put it.
On October 10, 2011 at 9:32 pm
Italian Notes says:
Not living in the Middle East, where the real fresh yoghurt can be bought, I make yoghurt regularly in precisely the way described. It is so much better than prefab and it doesn’t take 5 minutes.
On October 11, 2011 at 12:29 am
Chez Loulou says:
So glad that you’ve shared this! People need to know how easy it it to make their own yogurt.
On October 11, 2011 at 1:05 am
Nuts about food says:
Thank you Joumana!!! I am definitely trying this. I never heard this way of making it. Sooo simple.
On October 11, 2011 at 1:59 am
Priya says:
My mom prepare her own yogurt herself,makes me nostalgic..
On October 11, 2011 at 3:55 am
sare says:
We love homemade yogurt so I often do at home. It’s the best choice to make yogurt in a pot as you did. If you make it in the pot you can’t get more leftover. Enyoj. Afiyet olsun.
On October 11, 2011 at 4:40 am
deana says:
That does look easy. I have been buying the same organic yogurt for years but just tried something different… grass-fed… Trouble is, it’s like $8 a quart… whoa! That’s a little pricey but it was delicious. I might give this a try.
On October 11, 2011 at 6:54 am
Claudia says:
I need to pull out my cozy winter blankets. Is it really that simple? I love that thick texture!
On October 11, 2011 at 8:05 am
PJ says:
We, in South India, have yogurt with our noon meal everyday.Our practice is to heat milk to lukewarm and add the starter ie the previous days yogurt and let it set. Since the climate is warm it sets within a few hours and is ready to be used.We prepare a lot of yogurt base dishes here :).Your clicks are lovely….
On October 11, 2011 at 9:04 am
Belinda @zomppa says:
Didn’t quite expect you to say blanket…but this is fantastic!
On October 11, 2011 at 9:18 am
Oui, Chef says:
Why have I never made my own yogurt? I can’t explain, but with your help I’ll remedy that problem soon.
On October 11, 2011 at 9:31 am
Vagabonde says:
My Armenian father used to eat yogurt daily. My mother made the yogurt about twice a week, like you said but with a variation. She would pour the yogurt in individual glasses (like jam glasses) and then would place them in a large pot, very large. She would cover it and place a blanket around it. She made it in the evening and it was ready the next morning.
On October 11, 2011 at 9:40 am
Joumana says:
@Vagabonde: What a great idea! Similar to what Peter’s mom does (just checked her method-Greek); it saves having to do that operation afterwards.
On October 11, 2011 at 1:02 pm
Steve @ HPD says:
been putting off making this for too long … your instructions looks so easy to follow, there’s no excuse now. cheers!
On October 11, 2011 at 10:22 am
domi says:
Un yogourt maison à déguster à la…maison
On October 11, 2011 at 12:09 pm
Susan says:
This would be a fun and rewarding project. I’d love to know how homemade yogurt would taste.
On October 11, 2011 at 12:38 pm
Familycook says:
Awesome post Joumana! I love your pot too:)
On October 11, 2011 at 6:37 pm
Dana says:
I’ve been thinking of adding more yogurt to my daily routine. This sounds like fun! You could add your own fruit to it for breakfast!
On October 11, 2011 at 8:11 pm
Dana says:
I wonder though, if using it in cooked preparations (like a yogurt marinated chicken) would ruin it’s beneficial effects. How is it’s nutrition effected by cooking? To google!
On October 11, 2011 at 8:12 pm
LeenyDeeny says:
Thank you for another warm memory. My grandma, Meheba, wrapped our yogurt in my uncle’s green wool WWII army coat. It always looked like the bowl was getting a big hug until it was ready. I miss my grandma so bad.
On October 11, 2011 at 8:56 pm
Kathy says:
This looks just like the yogurt my grandmother used to make. I have always wanted to give this a try. You have inspired me.
On October 18, 2011 at 7:07 pm
Mark Wisecarver says:
Excellent! Thanks Peter, just found it:
http://www.kalofagas.ca/2007/11/04/homemade-greek-yogurt/
On October 20, 2011 at 2:11 pm
Sana says:
Joumana, mom has been making yogurt for over 40 years, but in the past couple of years her yogurt has been turning out stringy-slimy. When you spoon it, it trails a long slimy string from the spoon. I’m not sure how else to explain it. We don’t understand why as she’s preparing it in exactly the same way she always has. We’ve changed the brand of milk and we’ve gotten new starters, and still. We’re in Houston and in the summer, mom only leaves it out for 4 hours and that’s all it needs to set. Winter, she’ll leave it covered for 6-7 hours. Could the shorter time in the summer be the cause? We do notice it is more slimy in the summer. Would you have any suggestions for fixing the stringy/slimy texture we are getting now? Thanks so much.
On September 3, 2012 at 10:06 pm
Joumana says:
@Sana: I am as stumped as you are; the only explanation I could guess is the diet of the cow that is making the milk!
On September 4, 2012 at 1:52 am
Sana says:
I do want to add one more thing. Your step #3 ‘transfer into a bowl and refrigerate’, mom refrigerates without disturbing the set yogurt, and it sets even more. She will break into it the next morning. I don’t think the difference in this step contributes to the slimy texture, what do you think?
On September 3, 2012 at 10:13 pm
Astheart says:
Sana, there is a need to use just fresh farmer’s milk. The fatter, the better. If the milk you use was UHT treated, you won’t get good yogurt never ever.
On July 23, 2014 at 2:10 am