tortoise
Wild Hare
I had that yogurt maker, hated it, traded it to someone here on SS. My #1 problem with it - the jars do not seal water-tight!!
Euro style Yogurt maker
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Bubblingbrooks
Made in Alaska
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Good to know!tortoise said:
I would never get a yoghurt maker with individual jars - it is just too fiddly!!
I use one big pot, then strain the yoghurt to the thickness I want (you can even make cheese if you just keep straining) and then divide it into individual jars if I want to. Individual jars would only work if you want that amount of set yoghurt each time, otherwise it is actually easier to divide it after making. Individual jars would also be more fiddly in regards to temperature, I would expect there to be more problems with setting than with a single larger pot.
The things I have learnt in my time making yoghurt:
UHT / long life milk works best (and is cheapest) - and if you heat it in the microwave, you only have to work out how long your individual machine takes to get to the required temperature, and then you heat it for that long, add the starter, and leave it the right amount of time.
You don't NEED a yoghurt maker - but it is easier if you can afford one. I have made yoghurt in a food dehydrator, and by leaving in a tub of warm water etc. The important thing is to keep it warm, but don't be fooled into believing it needs to be perfect temperature - if you can't afford a yoghurt maker, or are not sure if you want one, give it a try with other ways of keeping it warm first.
If you like a thicker yoghurt, straining in a jelly bag works wonders - I messed around with adding milk powder etc. before I settled on this method, but now just strain it in the jelly bag every time. You can leave it long enough to make "yoghurt cheese" (you might need to add some weights for a really solid cheese) but I just leave it until it is thick like cream - if you leave it too long you can add some of the whey back into it.
Different cultures really do make a difference to taste - I started off with one of the cultures with all off the beneficial bacteria strains, and it was a lot more tart than the yoghurt I use now - which I use as a cream substitute! If the yoghurt you are making does not taste like the yoghurt you have been buying, you might need a different strain of bacteria.
Using previous batch of yoghurt as starter for next batch - I have not had much success with this, after one or two batches the quality really started to deteriorate. This might vary depending on your milk source - I suspect if you could source raw milk this might work better, but am not sure - for me, a frozen starter culture has always been the best starter, but I would love to be able to sustain my own (as buying it is not particularly self sufficient).
I use one big pot, then strain the yoghurt to the thickness I want (you can even make cheese if you just keep straining) and then divide it into individual jars if I want to. Individual jars would only work if you want that amount of set yoghurt each time, otherwise it is actually easier to divide it after making. Individual jars would also be more fiddly in regards to temperature, I would expect there to be more problems with setting than with a single larger pot.
The things I have learnt in my time making yoghurt:
UHT / long life milk works best (and is cheapest) - and if you heat it in the microwave, you only have to work out how long your individual machine takes to get to the required temperature, and then you heat it for that long, add the starter, and leave it the right amount of time.
You don't NEED a yoghurt maker - but it is easier if you can afford one. I have made yoghurt in a food dehydrator, and by leaving in a tub of warm water etc. The important thing is to keep it warm, but don't be fooled into believing it needs to be perfect temperature - if you can't afford a yoghurt maker, or are not sure if you want one, give it a try with other ways of keeping it warm first.
If you like a thicker yoghurt, straining in a jelly bag works wonders - I messed around with adding milk powder etc. before I settled on this method, but now just strain it in the jelly bag every time. You can leave it long enough to make "yoghurt cheese" (you might need to add some weights for a really solid cheese) but I just leave it until it is thick like cream - if you leave it too long you can add some of the whey back into it.
Different cultures really do make a difference to taste - I started off with one of the cultures with all off the beneficial bacteria strains, and it was a lot more tart than the yoghurt I use now - which I use as a cream substitute! If the yoghurt you are making does not taste like the yoghurt you have been buying, you might need a different strain of bacteria.
Using previous batch of yoghurt as starter for next batch - I have not had much success with this, after one or two batches the quality really started to deteriorate. This might vary depending on your milk source - I suspect if you could source raw milk this might work better, but am not sure - for me, a frozen starter culture has always been the best starter, but I would love to be able to sustain my own (as buying it is not particularly self sufficient).
