YOUR GUT LOVES REAL HOMEMADE YOGURT!
Without any doubt homemade yogurt is the standout, make a difference, too good to be missed, jam-packed with probiotic goodness, white, wobbly stuff that is a must for everyone's gut!
Did you know that not even the most expensive, organic, whole milk, natural tub set yogurt can ever be as good as yogurt you can easily make at home yourself? And if you set your yogurt to ferment for 24 hours it may well become the holy grail of beneficial foods.
SO WHAT IS REAL YOGURT ANYWAY?
We all know what happens when we leave milk out on the bench on a warm day. It curdles and goes a bit stinky. Lumps form and the milk separates. This is what naturally occurs when milk is left to ferment.
But yogurt is more than just curdled milk. Real yogurt has only a vaguely sour smell and is made by bacterial fermentation. The process is very simple. Specific bacteria known as 'yogurt cultures' are added to milk and left to ferment the lactose, the natural sugar found in milk. Technically, yogurt must have two strains of bacteria to be labeled as yogurt: lactobacillus bulgaricus and streptococcus thermophilus. This process produces lactic acid, a substance that causes the milk proteins to curdle and thicken.
NUTRITIOUS, YES!
Real homemade yogurt has strains of beneficial bacteria that support the native beneficial bacteria in your digestive system. Homemade 24 hour yogurt is teaming with probiotics that are essential for gut health.
Fermentation also improves the nutritional quality of any milk you use, resulting in about 20% more protein. Yogurt contains, vitamins, minerals, amino acids, and good fats. As a bonus, both vitamin B and vitamin C are also increased during milk fermentation.
How to make yogurt from scratch
If you want to enjoy some homemade yogurt, you
don’t have to be a scientist or a chef. There is a very easy way to make yogurt
with the least amount of ingredients. For this recipe, you will need:
✭ 1 to 3 liters of
milk;
✭ 2 tablespoons of
unsweetened live yogurt or a bag of starter culture.
No, we haven’t missed anything, this is really
all you will need to make yogurt at home. The amount of milk depends on how
much yogurt you want to get in the end.
Instructions:
➀ Pour your milk
into a large saucepan and heat it up until it is boiling. Stir it continuously
so it will not burn.
➁ Take the pan off
the heat and leave it to cool until it is about 40°C. If you have a thermometer
at your disposal, use it to determine the milk’s temperature. If you don’t,
just make sure that it is just warm to the touch and not hot.
➂ Put your live
yogurt or starter culture in the warm milk and mix them together until they
dissolve in the milk.
➃ Take some
containers for storing your yogurt and sterilize them with boiling water.
➄ Pour the milk
and yogurt mixture into your containers.
➅ Put the
containers in the warmest spot of your house and cover them with blankets (or
you can use any other way of maintaining the temperature). Leave them for at
least four hours (ideally six-eight hours).
➆ After the time
has passed, check your yogurt. If it is firm, store it in the fridge for at
least one hour before consuming it. If it is still runny, leave it in a warm place
for a bit longer.
➇ You are done!
Enjoy your homemade yogurt :)
How to make yogurt from raw milk
There is a way of making yogurt at home that
does not involve heating your milk to 100 degrees. The ingredients are still
the same, but the way you make it is slightly different.
Instead of heating the milk all the way up to
100°C and then cooling it off, heat it to 40 degrees and take it off the stove
right away.
If you are using a starter culture, scroll up
and use the instructions for the previous method. On the other hand, if you are
using live yogurt, you need to add a tablespoon of yogurt per one cup of milk
for it to work. And now you can scroll up to the recipe above.
Some people prefer this method, as the milk is
not pasteurized. But the end product is thinner than that of the first method.
So choose for yourself, or consider the third option — powdered milk yogurt.
How to make yogurt from powdered milk
If you don’t have the option of regular milk,
or you actually prefer to use powdered milk, try this recipe. You will need:
✭ 2 cups of warm
water
✭ 2 tbsp. of
unsweetened live yogurt
✭ 1.5 cup of
powdered milk
Instructions:
➀ Take a pot and
mix the water with the powdered milk. Stir until well combined.
➁ Put the pot on
the stove and heat the milk mixture until boiling. Don’t forget to stir constantly,
so that the milk won’t burn.
➂ Take the pot off
the stove and let it cool until it is about 40°C.
➃ Put the live
yogurt in the milk and mix them thoroughly together.
➄ Pour the mixture
in the sterilized containers and place them somewhere warm for 3-4 hours.
➅ Place the yogurt
in the fridge for the night.
➆ Add some
sweetness to it or consume it the way it is.
Notes:
➊ Homemade yogurt
can last for up to three days in the fridge.
➋ You can use any
type of milk you want (except for lactose-free milk). If you use this kind, it
will not affect the process of making yogurt but it will affect the consistency
and the taste.
For example, lately, goat milk has been
gaining popularity for making yogurt. The finished product is thinner than that
of cow milk. On the other hand, there is sheep milk, that results in thicker
and sweeter yogurt. You can also use non-dairy milk, but you might have to use
gelatin to achieve the desired thickness.
And that's all. We hope that our article has
helped you understand how to make your homemade yogurt and you enjoy a
delicious result.