Home Made Yoghurt

[TimT]

To derail the topic back to kefir, we just spent 4 months traveling through Malaysia, Cambodia, Thailand, Laos and Vietnam. Took a small jar of kefir grains with us and drank kefir every day, even made the kids choke it down (it's a bit sour, not particularly kid friendly). Ate street food every day, and not one instance of getting sick. Not to say that it's due to the kefir, that's just anecdotal, but I am a firm believer that it's a huge boost for your gut being able to ward off any bad bugs.

This is interesting stuff Kaiser. I'm a bit of a raw milk freak and have heard similar anecdotes amongst raw milk enthusiasts - it helps to counter possible infections, good for people with allergies, etc. Now as you so carefully imply, anecdotal evidence on its own is not really good enough. But it seems likely that there would be some connection between susceptibility to infection and the microbial content of foods people consume.

Maybe it's just a topic that's inherently complex - because the bacterias and yeasts that you find in kefir, yoghurt, and raw milk are themselves so freaking complex that it's incredibly difficult to make any generalisations about the connection between them and personal health. I do wonder about the research that has been done into this subject though.

 

[Ducatiboy stu]

Not unlike beer

Bacteria/yeast turn a quickly perishable product into something that can be stored for longer periods of time

 

[Aces High]

UPDATE

Bringing this yoghurt thread back on track to yoghurt

I've been using the Country Brewer yoghurt cultures for a year now and have a reliable source of really good yoghurt. In the beginning I had a series of yoghurts that tasted ok but were unpleasantly stringy and ropey. I discovered that this was because I wasn't denaturing the milk protein properly, I should have brought the milk up to just sub-boiling then let it cool to around 43 degrees before "pitching" the culture. I wasn't heating it enough and when I did I ended up with a bit of milk scorching and a nasty pan to clean.

Then I remembered a post by Florian where he recommended using UHT milk. Not only is UHT sterile but it's had it's proteins denatured already during the heating process so the yoghurt culture has a clean slate. I add some powdered full cream milk as well, similarly nuked. Turns out brilliant, I also use glass mason jars and crank out the yog for around $1.30 a kilo.

So anyone who has been put off making yogurt due to the hassle of the heating and cooling process, you can whip up a batch in about 20 minutes by simply achieving 43 degrees, add culture, pour into jars and place in water bath and the job's done. Next experiment will be to preheat the milk cartons themselves to 43 in a water bath in urn so not even a pan required.

just a tip.....my crappy rice cooker that really doesn't cook rice very well will hold water at exactly 43 degrees when its on its "keep warm" setting.

Makes a great water bath and pretty handy for making yoghurt.

 

[manticle]

My partner brought home white ayran yoghurt yesterday.
Initially thought she'd joined the Natinal Front but all good. Turkish, salted yoghurt it is.
Got my work cut out for me when I settle interstate.

 

[Danscraftbeer]

Excellent thread. Not just a bunch of beer swillin yobo's on this forum thats for sure..
Just finished my first Kefir and mixed the next one. Just read this whole thread.
Trying the yoghurt methods first batch just put in the esky water bath at 38c. Gonna leave it there all night.

Nice quick sauce to spill over your steamed vegies.

Thick and creamy Kefir, crushed garlic, touch of Beer vinegar, touch of hot chilli sauce. Mix well and ..... :icon_drool2:
Totally beats my favorite bought creamy ceasor salad dressing sauce off the shelf that's really expensive,
ha gotta love that!

 

[TimT]

Not just a bunch of beer swillin yobo's on this forum thats for sure..

Yep. Beer and kefir swilling yobs.

 

[hoppy2B]

Had to share the good news. I scored a cup full of free Kefir grains on Monday from a friend who got it from her brother who got them from Dom.

Apparently my friend's brother (who is also a friend of our family) had been having trouble for the last 30 years whenever he ate onions and garlic. It always gave him stomach pains. After he started consuming Kefir he was finally able to eat onions and garlic without any side effects.

I've been adding milk to my Kefir grains every day to build up the volume before I get stuck into it. I did taste some of my friend's Kefir when I got the grains and think it is a lot better than the stuff I made using the powdered culture. Definitely worth getting some grains if anyone is thinking about it.

P.S. : Some great tips on the yoghurt making with UHT milt and condensed milk fellas. :super:

 

[Danwood]

Has anyone added coconut milk when making yoghurt ?

I'm going to try a batch for the wife, who's been doing backflips over this Jalna stuff (I have to admit, it is pretty bloody good).

I assume the coconut milk/cream would still be left at the end of the process, it not actually being a dairy product, but would it impart the flavour (I'd guess yes)?

And would it affect the cultures (I'd guess dunno)?

I plan on using a few tbsps of the Jalna for it's cultures.

Thanks for any advice,

Dan

 

[TimT]

You should be able to. Never done it myself. Bear in mind the natural environment of the lacto-bacilli is animal milk and it just won't thrive in coconut milk, almond milk, or any of the other non-animal-based milks.

I think you'd probably get some souring and fatty parts of the coconut milk separating out. Be interested to hear how it goes.

 

[benno1973]

I haven't made coconut milk yoghurt, but I have done kefir that way. Kefir grains in a tin of cocnut milk from memory, and it was gooood! I'm sure I have some notes on it somewhere... looking for them now...

 

[Danwood]

Ok, thanks.

I plan on using a 3:1 ratio of milk to coconut milk, maybe 4:1.

I'll report back.

 

[Bribie G]

Just cranked out a batch for our "yoghurt club" and did a test jar half and half milk with coconut cream. Will report.
The "wort" tastes delicious B)

 

[Bribie G]

OK, mixed results.

It was obvious after fermentation that the yog had settled into two distinct layers.
The top layer is smooth, thick and rich and spoons almost like mascarpone cheese with a pleasant yogurt acidity, incredible aftertaste of coconut, cream and lovely comforting fatty mouthfeel. To die for.
However the lower layer is fairly sloppy, with curds and whey and tastes much more mild than the upper layer.

By contrast the all milk yogurt always comes out fairly solid all the way to the bottom of the jar. What seems to have happened is that the coconut creams and milk fats have migrated to the upper half of the jar and set to a rich thick yogurt. This layer is floating on a bed of curds and whey. However I'll definitely make it again, using the top half as a luxury dessert or curry accompaniment and drain off the bottom layer as a morning drink, or mix it with kefir.

yum

Recommend.

 

[TimT]

Well curds and whey is the normal result anyway, though it's less noticeable in most yoghurts because, well, most yoghurt customers find whey icky., and the whey will yoghurt will often produce less whey (because there's no enzyme - rennin - to really help the fat and the non-fat present). Remember the permeate "scandal" of a few years ago? As someone on my blog commented at the time, "It's just wrong, taking something out of milk and putting it in again!"

Maybe the coconut milk exacerbated this result somehow - more acid? Natural curdling enzymes present in the coconut?

PS I just put some raw milk through some culturing to get yoghurt and in one jar the separation of curds and whey is *very* noticeable indeed - it's about one fifth curds floating at the top, and 4/5ths whey.

 

[hoppy2B]

I like the sound of Bribie's top layer. Could be a Greek style yoghurt resulting from the addition of coconut milk is the only logical direction to go with it.

I've had the vanilla Jalna and love it. That uses fruit juice juice for the sweetness. I'm definitely going to go out and get some of the Greek style coconut Jalna pictured above to try.

 

[Danwood]

Sounds like it'll get me into some good books then !

Might do a big batch and use it in a no-cook banana cheese cake this weekend.

Hoppy-Jalna was on special for $5 at Coles

 

[hoppy2B]

Actually, here is a thought. You can get coconut oil in the supermarket. It is probably better described as coconut butter because it is quite solid and comes in a jar. Just add that straight to milk and make your yoghurt from that!

 

[Bribie G]

Bloody expensive though. Coconut milk and cream are only about 80c a tin.
For culture, rather than use supermarket yoghurts that gave me wildly inconsistent fermentations, I get absolutely reliable results and lovely creamy not too acidic yoghurt using cultures from Country Brewer. Bloody lovely, and I've converted everyone who has tasted them to home made yoghurt.

I use the Probiotic and the Strong and Creamy cultures. The website doesn't make it clear but you can order bigger packs that work out far cheaper per batch.

 

[hoppy2B]

You would probably only need to add a teaspoon of the coco butter Bribie.

 

[Dave70]

Has anyone added coconut milk when making yoghurt ?

I'm going to try a batch for the wife, who's been doing backflips over this Jalna stuff (I have to admit, it is pretty bloody good).

I assume the coconut milk/cream would still be left at the end of the process, it not actually being a dairy product, but would it impart the flavour (I'd guess yes)?

And would it affect the cultures (I'd guess dunno)?

I plan on using a few tbsps of the Jalna for it's cultures.

Thanks for any advice,

Dan

Thought about using coconut in a batch, though have yet to get around to it. My method however would be to add that dried shredded stuff to the milk and process it until I got the taste and consistency right.
Since coconut milk is basically flavored saturated fat, water and no casein, I suspected I would likely just split. Much like Bribies results would indicate.
The plan was to then experiment making 'frogurt' for a nice summer treat. Unfortunately now its winter. Suppose it would go alright on a curry..