Home Made Yoghurt

[TimT]

No expert me but my guess is there'd be varying levels of lactose intolerance?

LI is actually the norm in our species - the gene mutation that allowed us to drink milk without fear of becoming sick happened quite recently and most of the world's population don't have it I think.

You can make vegan cheeses at home too. Found a surprisingly easy recipe in Martha Washinton's cookbook (17th century) using almond milk and lemons/oranges (or probably anything acidic). METHOD - Heat almond milk until it seeths (that dramatic rising up out of the pot stage that milks do just before boiling), remove from heat instantly and stir in the juice of several lemons and set aside for a few minutes. The curds should separate naturally, if not add more juice. Drain through a cheesecloth over a bowl, tie up and leave to drip and cool for a few hours. (Oh, you'll have to dissolve sugar in the almond milk before you boil it, it'll be quite sour otherwise).

Since store-bought almond milk isn't entirely trustworthy either, you can make that at home too. Soak almonds in water for a day. Then drain off that water, and put almonds in a blender with more water - the quantity you want is 1: 4, 1 = the almonds and 4 = the water. 1 cup almonds, 4 cups water is a good size for a blender. Pulse until it looks like milk, which is not that long at all. (If you want a creamier texture, increase the amount of almonds compared to the amount of water).

No, no, don't thank me, I'm here to obsessively talk on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and ON about my pet subjects until someone clobbers me over the back of the head and tells me to shut up.

 

[Airgead]

My Missus was lactose intolerant for about 5 years after a really nasty bout of gastro ( and some medical misdiagnosis) so I had to make lactosse free yogurt and cheese. Fortunately she eventually recovered and is back on milk.

The trick was to use the lact-ese enzyme drops that you can buy. They turn lactose to galactose which is digestable. The problem is that the yogurt bugs want lactose not galactose so you can't pre-convert the milk. Also, once the milk is set into yogurt, the enzyme doesn't work very well due to the acidity so you can't add it afterwards. What you need to do is add your yougurt starter then about half an hour later, add the enzyme. Its then a race between the enzyme and the bugs. I found that the bugs got enough lactose to acidify things and get a good set while the enzyme was able to mop up the rest of the lactose before things got too acidic.

Wouldn't recommend that method for the anaphalactic but for milder cases, it worked really well.

Also worked well for cheese. Add the cheese starter then add the enzyme when you add the rennett. Bingo. Lactose free cheese.

Cheers
Dave

 

[Glot]

There are other reasons for not wanting to use dairy other than lactose issues. Cruelty to animals is one at the top of my list.

 

[djar007]

Surely it isnt cruel to milk a cow these days is it Glot? Or a cat for that matter. They usually purr within three strokes of the nipple.

edit: can't spell cat

 

[Glot]

Cat?
I do not condemn you for your ignorance of the dairy industry. The majority of people are also ignorant of the process. That is just modern society.
I was merely stating why I was asking about soy yogurt.

 

[TimT]

The bad: calves of dairy cows often get killed straight after birth. Perversely, the colostrum (just-after-birth milk produced by the cow, very rich) is sold to athletes. The dairy industry isn't perfect, that's for sure.

That said, I've heard tell of brewers who have purposefully slaughtered goats in order to use the skin for a recreated ancient brew, to get, as it were, the full experience.

 

[Not For Horses]

Have you worked in the dairy industry Glot?
I did for 6 years. Dairy farmers get paid, on average, sfa.
Maybe an exaggeration.
The point is the dairy cow is remarkably well looked after in most cases. We looked after them, they looked after us.
I also know personally one of the animal cruelty investigators here in tas. And while he has told me some fairly horrible stories, they are in the minority. A very small minority.
Now I am in NO WAY saying that this is true for everywhere but not eating dairy because of cruelty to animals in Australia is a bit much.

Just out of interest, what is this "process" you refer to that is the cruel bit?

 

[djar007]

Whenever business needs to profit from animals the animals suffer. I understand. I worked as a ringer on cattle stations. Most cattle sent live export. Have quite a few mates who work in the dairy industry. I also had some experience through alpacas with the Paris Creek dairy operation. Proof to me that dairy products can be produced ethically and sustainably. That was my point. There is cruelty throughout primary producers. There is also ethical primary producers.

 

[Glot]

1. Yes I do know what I am talking about.
2. I am not going to bombard you with details as this is a brewing site and not a site for discussing animal humanity or nutrition ( unless it is yeast nutrition).
Therefore, I am not going to be drawn into an irrelevant conversation but instead am going to go pour another dark wheat.

 

[djar007]

Have you ever milked a cat?

 

[Not For Horses]

I think, well vague memory actually, in Europe in the middle ages they did milk cats.
Not sure about yoghurt but I think they made cheese.
I honestly can't recall where I read this though so take with a grain of salt.
Or milk. Cats like milk.

 

[djar007]

And they are known to be lactose intolerant. Anyway I am here to learn more about making my own yoghurt. So apologies for the derailment. Very interested in Bribies feedback. And everyone elses. Regards dave

 

[Byran]

Id like to know what the cruel part is of the main ingredient used in this thread?

 

[Not For Horses]

It has inspired me to try again.
I might try the wild culture capture again. It actually made very tasty yoghurt. Didn't last as well as the bribie version though.

 

[NewtownClown]

There are other reasons for not wanting to use dairy other than lactose issues. Cruelty to animals is one at the top of my list.

I assume you don't use any finings or gelatin then? Since you have decided not to proselytise and fan the flames of debate over the issue; I, also, will not, and I hope this thread doesn't get derailed into the rights and wrongs of eating things that once had a face... (mmmmmmm faces :icon_drool2: )

When making yoghurt with this method, is it normal for the whey to be be separated and floating on top when "fermentation" is complete and the yoghurt removed from the "incubator"?

 

[TimT]

When making yoghurt with this method, is it normal for the whey to be be separated and floating on top when "fermentation" is complete and the yoghurt removed from the "incubator"?

NewtownClown - you mean with gelatin/finings? I haven't tried that method but it probably is normal. What you see in yoghurt is a partial clabber, with the curds beginning to separate from the whey. The addition of rennet (an enzyme), as it were, encourages this to happen so the separation is very clean. My guess is gelatin and finings would work in a similar way. I also wouldn't be surprised if some of the strongest yoghurt cultures were sufficient to cause this separation themsevles, indeed once when I left my culture out for a bit longer than usual this is exactly what did happen.

 

[Bribie G]

TimT I think he was referring to the use of animal products in beer.
Ayurvedic cooking relies heavily on yogurt and curds as they only allow animal foods that have been "gently obtained".

 

[TimT]

If that's the case then what is 'this method' that you are referring to NewtownClown?

 

[NewtownClown]

I was enquiring of Glot as to whether or not he uses gelatin/finings when brewing, for they are, invariably, made from animals. By his original first post in this thread stating his main reason for avoiding dairy products was due to animal cruelty (personally, cruelty to humans is priority). Makes me wonder why one who takes that stand would even visit a thread on yoghurt if it wasn't to be critical...

As for the yoghurt, I made my first batch last night, Due to interruptions from visitors, the milk "pastuerised" for just over an hour and towards the end of the 4 hours incubation (or is it fermentation?) a further distraction saw me accidentally bump the temp. up to 54C.

I wondered if that had caused the separation for I poured off (into a glass and drank) close to 150 ml of whey from a 700 ml batch before fridging the culture.

 

[NewtownClown]

If that's the case then what is 'this method' that you are referring to NewtownClown?

"This method" refers to the entire subject started by Wolfy in this thread... .