Homemade Yogurt Machine recommendations?

Hi Sherry - yes, I make my own yoghurt all the time. I don't use a machine - I just put the sterilized milk and bacteria in a kilner jar and put it in a pan of hot water, with the lid on. If the 'bain marie' is getting too cold, I just heat the pan up again. It helps if you have somewhere warm to put the whle thing. I've never failed (yet!!!). Also, when made, I strain the yoghurt, so that I get rid of most of the lactose, making it more protein-rich (like Greek yoghurt). I then use the whey to start the next culture. I also use the whey to tenderise meat, and I feed a lot of my animals on it.
HTH
If you have any more questions, just ask - I've been yoghurt and cheese making for quite a few years now.....
Justine
 
Nancy & Justinef.....Hello

Nancy thanks for the site info. I am going to check that out later tonight. I have also been researching on amazon. Will let you know if I purchase one (probably will). I am not has handy as Justinef is in the kitchen. I would have a major mess.

Justinef...Yes I am very interested in your ideas on yogurt and cheese making. I am very impressed....you go girl! Like I mentioned above....I will have to use a machine (I think). I am willing to try your way 1st just to see if I can do it. I had to buy a electric pressure cooker because I kept forgetting about my dried beans cooking on the stove. (I don't like food out of a can or box).

Can I use skim milk?


This is a dumb question but what does HTH mean? (I know once you tell me I going to turn red. LOL!)

Thanks in advance. Sherry
 
I'm always leaving beans to boil dry.......
At least yoghurt gets better the longer you leave it! You can use skim milk - any milk, in fact. I use raw goats' milk most of the time - simply because I keep goats :eek:
Bring your skim milk almost to a boil (80C) (this is the only tricky bit - don't let it boil over), then cool to 45C - which is hot to the touch, but just bearable to put your hands on. Then add the starter (half a cup of bought live yoghurt is perfect - choose one you like the taste of, since your yoghurt will have the same characteristics). Mix, and place the container in a big pan. Surround with hot water (1/3 boiling to 2/3 room temp is about right). Put somewhere warm and leave 4-6 hours. Don't stir!
And, hey presto, yoghurt.
As I mentioned, I strain mine - but it does halve the yield. I seem to digest it better, however.
HTH = hope that help. I only know because I have a 19 year old who teaches me these things ;)
Let me know how it goes...
Justine
 
One more thing....if you have, or are thinking of getting, a dehydrator, these work for yoghurt too, so you can use 1 bit of kit for 2 things :D
 
Hi,
I have a yogurt maker and have been making my own yogurt since I got it for Christmas. I love it and don't see any reason to go back to buying yogurt again. I use organic milk, and it's half the price of buying organic yogurt already made. I have a EuroCuisine and it's easy to use. I basically plug it in and come back 5-6 hours later and the yogurt is done. Here's the one I use, Euro Cuisine YM260 Yogurt Maker, 2-Quart: Kitchen & Dining: Amazon.com.

I have used starters but my preferred method is to make new yogurt from old yogurt. After I heat and cool my 8 cups of milk, I measure out 1.5 oz. of my current finished yogurt and add that to the container, mix a small amount of cooled milk until it's uniform, and then pour the rest of the milk in. Then I put it in the sleeve, which keeps a steady temperature for the yogurt to incubate.

I make Greek yogurt, so I strain it. The machine came with a cheesecloth bag which is kind of a pain to use, so I recently bought a yogurt strainer (also made my EuroCuisine) and this is much easier to use, Amazon.com: Euro Cuisine GY50 Greek Yogurt Maker: Kitchen & Dining.

I started off using 2% milk which worked beautifully. Now I use whole milk.

I'm also happy to answer any questions that you might have about this machine. I've been very, very happy with it and don't have any regrets about investing in one.

Eva
 
Justine, Eva & Nanbo. Good Day Ladies,

OK...Sunday is the day. I'm going to try making yogurt Justine style Sunday! Yikes! Wish me luck. Will post my results (even if I am embarrassed). Dehydrators, I will take a look into one. I love kitchen gadgets. Like learning something new everyday...HTH...I'm going to use it now when I text/email.

Eva...I have been eyeballing the Euro Cuisine Yogurt Maker it is actually in my Amazon cart waiting for me to hit buy. (I may click that button Sunday after my yogurt experiment - my husband may call it my science project). Glad to hear your positive feedback with Euro Cuisine, thanks. The web site Nanbo suggested has lots of info and they also have Euro Cuisine for sale. I'm sold on the brand.

Can't wait til Sunday.

Later, Sherry
 
Hi Everyone,

Wow, thanks Justine, eva and Nancy.

This thread is really informative. I did consider at some point making my own yoghurt.I do buy about 2kg per month.I love fromage frais, greekyoghurt and cottage cheese.:):)

Eva your option sounds so easy.

I spent a lot of time choosing probiotic, greek yoghurt as I am very selective. I like it really creamy without added sugar. I stopped buying a supermarket brand as soon as I realised they change the recipe. I hate when these big industrial/commercial decide to change recipe without letting us customers know:mad::mad::mad::mad:

This thread is making me think. May be I should invest on a yoghurt maker

Kind Regards,
 
Sherry, I look forward to hearing how your initial foray works. I know you can certainly make yogurt without the device like Justine does. I never tried that route, but I've heard that it works like a charm as well.

Nathalie, I am not sure what products you have access to there, but I would guess they may be more consistent/better quality than the ones we have here in the US, where yogurt is mostly perceived as this super sweet concoction made with fillers and thickeners. We do have Greek and pure yogurt here too, but the sweet stuff is easier to find. American's also tend to shy away from the more tart type of yogurts I've eaten widely when visiting Europe, so even the "Greek" yogurt we get here is not as flavorful as what I ate when I visited Greece. That's why I've come to make it with whole milk as well. It's one of the few sources of saturated fat in my diet, so I don't sweat it, and it does have a richness that I enjoy. If you start making your own yogurt, please post your results and experience as well.

What I like about making my own yogurt is that I can make it to my taste. I have yogurts that are either too tart for me or not tart enough. Now I can make it just the way I like it! You can influence the taste with the starter and the incubation time.

Eva
 
deineira said:
Nathalie, I am not sure what products you have access to there, but I would guess they may be more consistent/better quality than the ones we have here in the US, where yogurt is mostly perceived as this super sweet concoction made with fillers and thickeners. We do have Greek and pure yogurt here too, but the sweet stuff is easier to find. American's also tend to shy away from the more tart type of yogurts I've eaten widely when visiting Europe, so even the "Greek" yogurt we get here is not as flavorful as what I ate when I visited Greece. That's why I've come to make it with whole milk as well. It's one of the few sources of saturated fat in my diet, so I don't sweat it, and it does have a richness that I enjoy. If you start making your own yogurt, please post your results and experience as well.

What I like about making my own yogurt is that I can make it to my taste. I have yogurts that are either too tart for me or not tart enough. Now I can make it just the way I like it! You can influence the taste with the starter and the incubation time.

Eva
Click to expand...

Sorry Sherry for highjacking your thread---I can get passionate about nutrition, especially yoghurt;)

Eva,

I have visited US more than twice and I was not pleased at all with yoghurt. I know I am very selective, may be I should say, my tongue is very selective:D:D:D

Let me tell you, Even here in Europe when you travel around and buy commercial yoghurt the taste is not the same. I can recall the brand Danone which has been around for a very long time. The danone I had when I was a child, a teen is not the same one in terms of the texture, the taste. Recipes have changed so have regulations about preservatives and additives across europe. I personally cut out completely , years ago, any so called"low fat fruity" yoghurt. Those are the worse one :mad::mad::mad: I love my yoghurt plain and thick :):):)

So even in Europe food are loosing natural flavours and taste because of mass production!

I have made my mind---I will invest in a yoghurt maker. I will experiment making from cow and soy milk.

This bring up another question. Have you ever made a drink yoghurt? I would like to make one for smoothies. Can it be made from the machine as well?

Thanks ladies for sharing.

I promise you as soon as I experiment making one, I will let you know.

Have a good day ;)
 
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Hi Nathalie,
Based on your feedback about your experiences with and your opinions of your local yogurt options, and your level of consumption, you might want to entertain making your own as well. I eat yogurt almost every single day. It's kind of ridiculous, but I don't seem to get tired of eating it. I may stray a day or two here or there, but I always miss it when I'm not eating it. I've eaten yogurt for breakfast almost daily for over 5 years! Sometimes I eat it for dessert too.

I do not make yogurt drinks or kefir, though, so I have not had any experience with those.

Eva
 
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Making my own yoghurt

deineira said:
Hi Nathalie,
Based on your feedback about your experiences and opinions with your local yogurt options, and your level of consumption, you might want to entertain making your own as well. I eat yogurt almost every single day. It's kind of ridiculous, but I don't seem to get tired of eating it.

Eva
Click to expand...

Same here...The first visible container in my fridge is yoghurt. Like you I do ridiculously have yoghurt everyday. I do have it as the last meal about 60-80ml per day. This is my "healthy low carb cheat "to keep my eating under control evenings :eek:

I have actually just purchased a yoghurt maker as a result of our discussion. This will make me save a lot of money in long term. It will also save me from moaning and cringing about commercial yoghurt. i will just make my own :D This is it no going back :):)

It's funny we are having this discussion. Yesterday I tried a cottage cheese from a supermarket. I actually made a low carb pudding with: cottage cheese, egg white and 4 teaspoon of pea and whey protein.Very quick to do on a blender. It was delicious. This keeps me full for hours. The issue is any time the recipe can be change or the brand can simply be discontinued and disappear from supermarket shelves:(:(:(

As I posted previously muscles are made in the kitchen :D:D. It is high time we get busy in the kitchen and gain more control of what we are consuming.;)

I will report on my first home made yoghurt,
 
I have a Salton machine (one that makes a quart at a time). I don't see it on Amazon, where I bought it years ago, but this one is similar:
Euro Cuisine YM260 Yogurt Maker, 2-Quart: Kitchen & Dining: Amazon.com

Too bad they are so expensive now. I got mine for something like $25 years ago. :(

I used to do yogurt using a thermos container--and it works fine--but something that kept a constant, proper temperature was nicer for me.

Oh, and I use my yogurt in smoothies all the time. I prefer to strain it and make Greek yogurt, though. If you want "drinkable" yogurt, you might be interested in trying Kefir. It's easier to make than yogurt, and has different beneficial bacteria. I love having both kefir and yogurt.
 
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Sorry to hijack the thread, but Justine, I need help! I just found out that I have access to fresh goat's milk (and I'm very excited about this), so I've made a couple batches of kefir. I would like to make yogurt as well. How hot do you heat your goat's milk in the initial heating?

My attempts at making yogurt with raw cow's milk have been disastrous! When I use pasteurized skim milk, I heat the milk to just under boiling, cool to between 105 and 115 degrees, add my starter, and let it incubate. The first time I tried raw milk, I discovered that I was heating it too hot (curdled mess). I searched online, and it said to heat only to 110 degrees for raw milk--but the milk separated and started to clump at an even lower temperature than that. This milk I've been trying it with is a little older (hasn't turned or anything), but I was wondering if it wasn't fresh enough. I've wasted almost a gallon of milk, I don't want to waste any of my precious goat's milk through trial and error.
 
I LOVE THIS THREAD!!!!
Yogurt maker is on my wish list!!! MY DH and I will be celebrating our 2 year wedding anniversary (27 years together ;)) on Sept 27th...maybe we should gift ourselves the Euro Cuisine yogurt maker :eek:!!!
 
This Thread is great

We do not have euro cuisine brand here on Amazon uk but I treated myself with another brand.

I do have yoghurt every day and as Eva mentioned above, It is was high time I took action and started making my own.

I am looking forward to my first attempt.
I shall let you all know :):):)

Love this thread too;):D
 
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Christie,
That's awesome! I hope you really enjoy making your own yogurt. It's so easy, and delicious. Let us know if you have any questions, and how your first batch goes.

Nathalie, what machine did you order?

Eva
 
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