Easy Homemade Yogurt

This came out beautifully, nice and thick even though this uses low fat milk. I used organic milk and organic Greek yogurt. Thank you for the recipe.

This is the basic recipe I have been using for years. Some temps and times that work for me: I heat the milk (1/2 gal) in a double boiler to 180 degrees for 30 minutes, cool to 110 degrees in a cold water bath, add the starter (buy a cup of plain yogurt with live cultures), place in a warm place (oven with towel, etc.) for 8-24 hours. The longer it rests and grows the tarter it will be. Special note- resist the urge to check what is happening, the only failure I had was because I stirred the yogurt 6 hours in to the process. You can strain the yogurt at this point or after you have refrigerated it. Strain the yogurt to thicken it (greek style). I use a colander with coffee filters to strain the yogurt. The left over byproduct (whey) can be used in soups or oatmeal recipes. 1/2 of the yogurt will be whey by volume. It has protein and a unique flavor. I keep back a 1/4 cup starter for the next batch. 1/2 gallon batches are plenty for our family of 3 for a couple of weeks.

Other inexperienced reviewers do not understand that much like making sourdough bread, yogurt must have a “starter” bacteria to make yogurt. This recipe uses a small amount of store bought yogurt for that, although you can buy powdered starter if you’d prefer although I don’t know why you’d bother when you easily obtain fresh product. After that you can use part of what you made as the starter (also like homemade sourdough, and no one would dispute that’s indeed homemade!) as long as you have Something to use for the culture. TIP: use your Instant Pot!

That is an awful lot of yogurt to use in 7-10days! I use a similar method, but with 6 cups of milk in a 2 quart glass measuring cup, 14 minutes in the microwave brings up to 180 F without boiling, transfer to another bowl to speed cooling to 110 F, then run oven 1 minute, turn off but leave oven light on, add 1-2 T of plain yogurt, mix well, cover and leave in oven overnight. It's not Greek yogurt unless you then strain it; I use a handkerchief lining a strainer.

I make yogurt this way all the time! If you are like me and want to use exact temperatures, I heat the milk to 180 F and then let it cool to 110 F before I add the yogurt. I put the towel wrapped pot in my oven on the proof setting and it stays the perfect temperature. Don’t have a proof setting? Just turn the oven light on, this works great too. After I let the yogurt sit overnight in the fridge, I line a mesh strainer with coffee filters and strain some whey off to make Greek yogurt. Don’t throw away the whey, it’s great if you make homemade soups. Substitute half of the broth / water the recipe calls for. It gives the soup a pleasant and unique flavour.

I have made this many times before reading this. It is a tested recipe I cherish. Fyi; only use plain Yogurt- no additives. You can add puréed fruits and berries to the yogurt only to what you eat straight away. If you make a giant fruity yogurt and don’t eat it straight away - it will become watery and runny and spoil faster.

I warm my oven to the lowest setting and turn it off. Once the yogurt mixture is ready, I cover the pot and put it in the oven overnight. My morning, the yogurt is ready to go. I find this easier than wrapping a pot in a blanket.

I have been making yogurt for years. I have access to a local dairy and their milk is not homogenized which makes the best yogurt. I have never boiled the milk, just heat it to 185* then let it cool to 110* in the crock of a crock pot . I do the towel wrap and leave it overnite 10 hrs in the oven with the light on. If your oven has a pilot light that's all you need. I use organic yogurt with nothing but milk and active yogurt cultures and it is yummy from the first batch. I make mine with skim and use it in baking or smoothies or with granola/oats/cereal. I monitor the temp closely because milk that's too hot will kill the yogurt cultures,

I have to take issue with a couple of points. Whole milk works best if what you want is a creamy, smooth product. The suggested temp for adding the yogurt will kill most cultures. While you can stand to have your finger in milk that is 120-130 degrees F, cultures will begin to die above 115 degrees. Finally, I have ruined a couple of batches by not stirring the culture enough. Best to ladle out a couple of cups in a small bowl, add the yogurt to that, whisk well and then add that to the rest of the milk.

I do a gallon of whole milk a week in the Instant Pot, using Icelandic Skyr culture. I strained it through cheesecloth. But less work is to buy a greek yogurt straining pot, so I can now just pitch it in the reefer to strain. BTW, if the milk is "ultrapasteurized", then you do not have to boil it, just bring it up to 115 degrees. This is how to make Creme Fraiche too, using heavy whipping cream.

Easy peasy. So much better than store bought especially with organic milk

I like it! But as a food safe concious cook,i would usec a thermomitor,and not dip my fingers in milk to test tempurature.

My Family & I have been making yogurt at home for, ever since I can remember ( i am 62yrs old). This is exactly the way we have been making it and it really turns out great. In fact my kids would not eat store bought. It can be made with any % milk. even fat free.

Did this in the mid 70s in Honduras, with whatever milk was available and yogurt from the Mennonite market. Worked great. Watch the finger in the mixture stuff these days...germs, don't cha know.

Easy and I save the store bought yogurt to continue to make my own every time. Doing it this way gives me so much more and saved me money. Plus it's delicious. Fyi to people who do not understand why you need yogurt, the live cultures are what actually turn the milk into yogurt. So ya need it. I usually can make 3 to 4 batches of homeade yogurt with one store bought yogurt. Score!!

This is just how my mother used to make it including the "pinky" test! We had a small kitchen, so she would put it in the dining room behind the drapes

Great

I made it with 1/4 cup of organic yogurt and 1quart of whole milk. It was delicious. I’ve seen it made in Greece in a similar way.

I have not made this yet, but I do make homemade yogurt every week. it seems some people still don't know that yogurt is a bacterial culture. You HAVE to add yogurt culture to the yogurt! If you don't all you will have is spoiled milk!

I usually make my own yogurt for all the good probiotics. I'm always willing to try new ideas and this recipe was just ok with me. It didn't seem to get as nice and thick as my usual yogurt.

Great recipe!! I added 2 Tbl. dry milk powder after stirring in the yogurt and that thickened it up nicely! Thank you!

have been making this for many years....easy peasy!

You don't get it? You must not scratch cook. Like sourdough bread you need a starter. With yogurt that means you'll need to purchase one. As a home canner, I will be making mine with whole milk I jarred about 6 weeks ago. Can't wait to try it. Canned milk is richer and more like right out of the cow and since I don't own a milk cow....well, you know. Also, Thanks for all the comments, folks. They really help and I love the ideas.

I make my yogurt like this. I learned from a friend who came to America from the Middle East. If you want to make a nice “cheese” spread, after letting yogurt sit for 6-8 hrs, put it in a clean cotton pillowcase and strain out the rennet for a few hours. Put the strainer into a big bowl or pot so the rennet stains and can be checked occasionally. Save the rennet and use it instead of prepared yogurt to make your next pot of yogurt. Yummy.

Came out perfect.

Using your ingredients, I put the mixture into my yogurt maker over night. Perfect! I use a thermometer to check the cooling boiled milk when it reaches 110 degrees, I add the cup of yogurt..

Best Homemade Yogurt Ever!!!!

I make my yogurt like this. I learned from a friend who came to America from the Middle East. If you want to make a nice “cheese” spread, after letting yogurt sit for 6-8 hrs, put it in a clean cotton pillowcase and strain out the rennet for a few hours. Put the strainer into a big bowl or pot so the rennet stains and can be checked occasionally. Save the rennet and use it instead of prepared yogurt to make your next pot of yogurt. Yummy.

This is an easy recipe. Basically it's the yogurt starter (it acts like yeast) to help the yogurt get going. I've made in an instant pot and all that does is keep the temperature constant and its hands off. I added a little condensed milk and it's outstanding. The yogurt thickens during the incubation period and when it's chilled in the fridge. I will never go back to store bought yogurt!!! Making it at home is so easy.

Followed reviews that heated milk to 180, cooled to 110, then added the yogurt starter. Turns out my oven has a PROOF setting, so I covered the yogurt, with the thermometer in and popped it in the oven at 8pm. Temperature stayed steady at 105 until I topknot out at 8 am. I also only did a 1/2 batch: 8 cups 2% and 1/2 cup yogurt starter. Most of it is being strained for Greek style and a Mason jar is currently in the fridge to see how it turns out. Really pleased with the result so far. Thanks for the original recipe...and to reviews that posted extra details about the process!!!

I have made it. And it works as is. Thank you for such recipe.

2 tablespoons milk, 1 cup of yogurt? I don't think so. Numbers may be switched. Add 1/4 to 1/2 cup dried milk powder to increase nutrition.

I kind of lied!! What I want to comment on is that this is the way my mother taught me! And I make it all the time with one exception and I think I’ll try it this way next time. Once the milk was the correct temperature I’d take some milk and mix it with the “ starter” and then pour it back in the milk. This recipe seems much easier and I can’t wait to give it a try!!

Came up creamy and smooth. Taste good. But not thicken.

I made it with homemade yogurt and whole milk.

Very easy. Tastes as good as Greek yogurt, which I used for the starter. Very economical, too.

You do not need to bring it to a boil, 180 degrees is fine to denature the protein. Let it cool to 115 degrees before inoculating it with the yogurt and 1/2 cup active yogurt is plenty.