Homemade Yogurt

Have you ever wanted to know how to make homemade yogurt? If so you've come to the right place and just as an added bonus it's actually really easy to make! 

Since we have small children (14 mos. and 3 yrs) that love yogurt we tend to buy lots of it, but one thing that has been an issue is finding plain whole milk yogurt. You can sometimes find it at store with more selection like Farm Fresh, but it's not typically found at your local Food Lion. Also we have found making it ourselves has allowed us to make our own flavors using fresh fruit we have around here.

How exactly do I do this....

A large pot with lid, Candy Thermometer, 1/2 gallon of milk, and 1/2 cup of yogurt, Digital thermometer with probe (if you have one)

For the milk you can use any kind you like, but of course whole milk or 2% are going to produce a thicker, creamier yogurt, but you can use skim if you'd like. That's the wonderful thing about making it yourself! It's YOUR choice!

When it comes to the 1/2 cup of yogurt you can either use Greek or regular yogurt but make sure it is plain, no added flavors. Also make sure to check the ingredients for "Live Active Yogurt Cultures". This is what turns the milk into yogurt, so of course this is a must! The higher number of cultures the better because each strain of bacteria has its own health benefits, but as long as there is at least one, you can make yogurt. Note once you make your first batch of yogurt you can actually take out a 1/2 cup since it now has the active culture in it and save it for your next batch so you no longer have to buy any yogurt!

The first thing your going to do is pour all your milk into your large pot and start heating your milk up. 

Make sure you stir as it heats up to prevent it from sticking to the bottom. As you can see LM wanted to help with this part!

Once your milk reaches the correct temperature (200 degrees Fahrenheit) It's then time to let it cool stirring occasionally to keep from forming a skin on the top. If you notice it forming the skin on the top just stir it into your milk, it's not going to hurt anything.

Then once your milk is cooled to (110-115 Degrees Fahrenheit) scoop about a cup of the milk into a bowl with your 1/2 cup of yogurt and whisk until all the yogurt is dissolved. Add your yogurt and milk mix to the remaining milk in your large pot and mix well.

Now its time to put your lid on your large pot and place your pot into an off oven while monitoring the temperature (110-115 degrees Fahrenheit) for at least 4 hours or as long as over night. Really until you get your yogurt to the consistency you want. 

This is where I used the digital thermometer with the probe to monitor the temperature, but if you don't have one you can just use whatever thermometer you have to check the temperature periodically.

Give it one last jiggle to make sure it's the thickness you want and if so you can go ahead and stir it. 

Then place it in your container and refrigerate it.

Once cooled, then enjoy!

Ingredients:

1/2 gallon Milk (whole or 2% or Skim can be used)

1/2 cup of Commercial Yogurt containing active cultures

Equipment:

Large pot with lid

Whisk

Spatula

Small measuring cup

Candy thermometer (or one that clips to your pot)

Instructions:

1. Pour all your milk into your large pot and heat over medium-high heat, stirring to prevent from sticking until it reaches 200 degrees Fahrenheit. 

2. Let the milk cool at about 110-115 degrees Fahrenheit, stirring occasionally to prevent a skin from forming over the top.

3. Scoop out about a cup of your warm milk and stir it into your 1/2 cup of yogurt until all the yogurt is dissolved. 

4. Add all of your yogurt and milk mix to your large pot with the rest of your milk. Mix well.

5. Place your lid on your large pot and transfer it to an off oven keep it at 110-115 degrees Fahrenheit for at least 4 hrs or more till yogurt sets to the consistency you want.

6. Once yogurt has cool some transfer it to a container and store in the refrigerator until your ready to enjoy.