Yoghurt Recipes Thread

calleyw

In the next few days I am going to start making my own yoghurt as I eat a lot and want to save money and make my own.

Anyway I know that I need a live plain yoghurt. But once I get in to the supermarket I then get confused about which one to buy.

What brand should I buy?

I have also read that you can freeze it in ice cube tray to be keep it for later and use as a starter at a later date.

Also what milk as I we use skimmed. And i tried to make it in a flask and it failed and was runny. Do I need semi-skimmed rather than skimmed.

I thought about buying a easiyo one. But then realised that I have to buy packets of mixes so it would cost more than buying in the shops.

Thanks in advance for any help.

Your

Calley

Magentasue

I go through yogurt making phases. I buy any plain yogurt that says bio or similar and lists a couple of bio ingredients. I go for the cheapest!

Milk - I've never had any luck with semi-skimmed or skimmed. With full fat milk, I fill my small saucepan, heat the milk to boiling, turn it off to cool. This saucepan holds the right amount for my yogurt maker. Easier but not as cheap is UHT Longlife milk (full fat again) because you don't have to heat it.

The first lot of yogurt may be a bit runny, you use a couple of spoonfuls for your next batch which should be better.

Before I gotmy yogurt maker, I used to make mine in a casserole dish with a lid and put it in the airing cupboard overnight.

When I make yogurt, I make two batches and then strain it to make greek yogurt. I line a colander with a clean cloth, tip the yogurt in and let the whey drip through. You end up with lovely thick yogurt and the whey is a treat for my hens!

Good luck!

Alison_B

In one of the Jamie Oliver cookery books there is a recipe for making your own yogurt, he says it is easy to make and delicious, so I had a go.


It just stated you boil 2 pints of organic full fat milk and allow it to cool to body temperature, then you add 500 ml of natural orgainc bio yogurt. Leave it overnight and then it will be ready for eating.

Got up in the morning expecting to have delicious homemade yogurt and I was very disappointed that it was just as runny as when I had left it the night before. Ended up throwing it away.

Alison

Ted_Hutchinson

The current yoghurt I'm eating is made using Rachel's Dairy organic bio yoghurt. It's lovely.
I use semi-skimmed, my partner uses full cream milk, her's tastes better but mine has less fat (calories)
We heat 1 litre of milk with 2 heaped tablespoons skimmed milk powder, in the microwave for 3 mins (to get it to blood heat) I use a yoghurt termometer/spoon which when I'm sure the temperature is right I stir in 2 heaped tablespoons of yoghurt from Rachels Dairy or from the last batch of yoghurt (Tesco live Bio non set also works)
I then pour this into pre-warmed glass jars and leave on the yoghurt maker base for about 4 hrs.
If you are using a thermos or bulk yoghurt maker then I presume you just put these in a warm place until set. We've had our separate jar type yoghurt maker for years now and I'm not sure where you can buy a new one.

Eventually the home saved yoghurt doesn't work as a starter any more and you have to buy another fresh starter but "touch wood" the current batch is from a starter bought at xmas so it doing very well and is still good flavour and texture. You can tell when the starter is going past it's best when the yoghurt starts getting a stringy texture or separates a bit.

The yoghurt made from full cream milk tends to last better as a starter than my semi skimmed milk so I generally eat all mine and pinch a bit of my partners to start my next lot off.

Edit
Just read the other ideas which appeared while I was writing the above. We've also used the litre boxes of UHT and not had any problems, they are very handy for having in reserve if your yoghurt is running out and you haven't got enough fresh to make a new batch. It was using the UHT which got us into the lazy habit of not bringing it up to the boil and then waiting till it's cooled down. It seems to work all right with fresh milk, I suspect that anything near it's sell by date wouldn't be so successful. Remember organic milk has a higher Omega3 content and therefore is better for you.

scared-i-jellyfish

When i have made it in the past, I have put a tablespoon of dried milk in with the full fat or semi-skimmed milk before the milk is warmed up. It adds a bit more body to the finished yoghurt.

Mustang

Ted_Hutchinson wrote:

I then pour this into pre-warmed glass jars and leave on the yoghurt maker base for about 4 hrs.
If you are using a thermos or bulk yoghurt maker then I presume you just put these in a warm place until set. We've had our separate jar type yoghurt maker for years now and I'm not sure where you can buy a new one.

Just bought one from Lakeland a few weeks ago. Small heated 'box' + lid with 6 glass jars + screw-top lids.

furrypig

I use Lakeland bought plastic set that you add powdered mis and water and put in overnight.
Cheaper than shop bought and kids like it and very very easy and minimum fuss and time (my particular fave!)

culpepper

I use any plain yoghurt.
I heat skimmed uht in the microwave 25fl oz takes about 2.5 minutes on high in mine.
Then put it in the flask with a good dollop of yoghurt,stir and put the lid on.Next day its all yoghurt.
I also have an electric yoghurt thingy with 5 cups in.You put the cold milk in the cups,add a teaspoon of yog to each cup,put lid on and switch on.

I always use fully skimmed milk and rarely have to use anything to thicken it.
If you do want really thick yog,add milk powder to the milk before you add the yog.

If it doesnt work,the yoghurt may be too old or the milk too hot when you put the yoghurt in,or you may not have put enough yoghurt in to start with.You do need to keep the temperature constant once its mixed or it wont become yoghurt.

moggins

I haven't made yoghurt in ages but when I did I used to make mine in a Thermos flask, it came out lovely and thick.

sabbykins

Hi Calley,
I just read your post and thought i'd let you know about easiyo.
I bought a kit a few months ago after trying it at my sis in laws and i am HOOKED
It is absolutely delicious!! It costs about £1.50 per sachet, and this makes 1kilo of the best yogurt i have ever tasted! I havent bought yogurt from the supermarket since , its just not good enough. My kids love it too, when i make a tub, they cant wait to dig into it. And when you make it yourself its got billions of the good bacteria- more than shop bought stuff which has been on shelf for days dying off


I got my kit from lakeland, but if you watch Ideal world TV they regularly have good offers on the kits and sachets. In fact today they are featuring easiyo and offering free P&P all day, and the sachets are cheaper than i've ever seen them (its ideal worlds birthday today so they're being generous)

Anyway whatever you decide to use i hope you have a great time and make lots of yummy yogurt- its SO good for you.

Sabbykins xx

Caterina

Just a note in case any vegan or non-dairy eaters are interested, you can make yoghurt out of soya milk as well. You can start either from a natural soya milk starter (from teh shop) or from dairy milk. If you don't eat dairy milk, give away your first and second batch (or give them to chickens etc) and after the third batch, if you continue to use your starter from your previous batch, you have dairy free yoghurt!

As soya yoghurt tends to be more expensive, I have made a lot of it at home using an old fashioned 5-cup electric machine that I got at a jumble sale for 10 p ages ago (and it consumes very little electricity).

Caterina