[Rosemary]

I thought I'd get the yogurt maker out - just using shop milk though. Does anyone know where I can get starter culture? I know I can use shop yogurt but it gets diluted and I'd like to get a proper culture.

Also, should I bring the milk to boiling point before I put it in the yogurt maker? We've lost the instructions.

[katie]

Ascott do a starter cuture. I think you can also get them from health food shops.

[Sudanpan]

I've been making yoghurt recently using the Yeo Valley yoghurt as the starter - and its worked really well )
I do bring the milk 'just' to the boil, I wait until the little bubbles are all up on the surface of the milk and as the whole lot of milk starts to move up the sides of the pan I remoe it from the heat and then stick it in a sink of cold water to get the temp dwn to 40C ish.
I've made it with semi-skimmed and full fat milk -the full fat is definitely creamier (duh!)
Tish

[SallyintNorth]

I've just made up a batch of the Ascott one.  It's nice but quite mild.  I think I will mix it with my own 'home-grown' culture to get a bit more bite.

I've posted on another thread that I have been told that one should not boil as boiling denatures the proteins.  But Delia amongst others recommends holding it quite hot (68 to 80 deg C would do it) for 30 mins or so to make the end result thicker and creamier.  I don't do this but I do get a rather whey-ey result and usually strain it quite hard and then beat it before potting up for other-than-immediate use.

If I am pasteurising (I don't always unless I am making a batch of starter to freeze) I just do the 72 deg C for 30 seconds one.

My 'yoghurt-maker' is an insulated box that I got some internet meat delivered in and an old coke bottle filled with very hot water!      (I used a fleece hat and the welly-warmer in winter but we don't have that on now  )

[Crofter]

Hi Rosemary

We heat a litre of milk to 82 degrees C then cool as quickly as possible to 43 degrees c. Add 2 Tbsp of yogurt and put into a vacuum Flask overnight. In the morning pour the yogurt into a bowl and chill it (it will still be warm).
You can make up a starter batch from the powdered starter or use Yeo Valley, then put any surplus into ice cube trays and freeze it. Next time you make yogurt just add 2 of the "ice" cubes as the starter.  

Dave

Oh... you can get starter from Ascott or Goat Nutrition.

[ellied]

Crofter that sounds like even I could make it   I used to have a wee yogurt maker but that was about 20 years ago and it's long gone.. strangely I assumed you needed "kit" cos I never really understood how the kit worked

Thermos and milk and 2 spoons of yogurt I reckon I might have a go - thanks 

[Crofter]

It really is that easy.  If you're using shop bought milk it's pasteurised, so you only have to warm it to 43 degrees, add 2 tbsp of Yeo Valley and pop it in a flask overnight. The heating to 82 degrees is only needed if you're using "raw" milk.


Dave

[doganjo]

I have a yoghurt maker but to be honest I've not bothered with it for ages because the yoghurt always came out too thin - like a yoghurt drink.  Might try the flask method too.  Can you use Greek Yoghurt to start it?

[VSS]

I use plain Yeo Valley as a starter aswell. Haven't found anything to beat it.

Ideally boil the milk and then cool before adding the starter but you can get away with heating it to 86deg c.

[little blue]

HELP!
My yoghurt has separated  (goats milk, starter culture and a tiny sprinkling of powdered milk - cos the last batch was really thin so thought I'd try it) .

I've used an EasyO thermos for the first time, could have got this wrong too - how hot should the water be in it?  My other one just plugs in - thought we'd save on the electric this time!

The culture is within date, but abit old,
the milk was a mixture of the last couple of days so not the freshest

Any ideas which of these (many!) reasons could have made it separate? 
thanks

[Crofter]

Doganjo,
You can use any live yogurt to start it with, but greek yougurt is strained to make it thicker so don't expect the result to be as thick unless you strain it too.

Little Blue
I've never had it seperate.
The age of the milk should not be too important if it was not going "off". We often use milk a couple of days old.
The culture is either alive or it's not so I don't think that is the problem either.

That leaves the temperature or contamination from somewhere. I don't know what an EasyO is but we put it in a normal vacuum flask at 43 degrees and leave it overnight and it's always been fine.
Could there have been traces of some other dairy product somewhere? Perhaps some cheese starter on something?

Try it again and see!
I always put a 170g tin of evaporated milk in a litre of goats milk to thicken it for yogurt, lovely and creamy.
Do try Yeo Valley as a starter too.

Dave

[little blue]

ooh, I'll try Evaporated (that'll please hubby - he loves the stuff!) 
It's probably the temperature then, there's unlikely to have been contamination from cheese etc.

cheers Dave

[Skirza]

I've been using starter culture to make my goats milk yoghurt for a couple of years. However the last batch was not really nice, sort of gloopy. After reading various things on TAS I tried Yeo yoghurt instead. YUMMY!!! I admit to using 1 mug of milk powder to make it thicker but I have to say that it was the nicest yoghurt I have ever made and so much easier than faffing about with making starter (lazy or what) I realise that if there is a cows milk allergy problem it wouldn't be viable, but I have to say it's the best I've tried

[Womble]

I've always made it with evaporated milk. The recipe is just one tin of evaporated, one tin-full of water (boiled first and then allowed to cool to tepid, so as not to kill the starter), and a couple of spoonfulls of plain live supermarket yoghurt.  It was one of the first things I learned to make as a child, and I've been doing it ever since!

[Rosemary]

I've always made it with evaporated milk. The recipe is just one tin of evaporated, one tin-full of water (boiled first and then allowed to cool to tepid, so as not to kill the starter), and a couple of spoonfulls of plain live supermarket yoghurt.  It was one of the first things I learned to make as a child, and I've been doing it ever since!

I love evaporated milk but my cows can't produce it  I'm going to try Crofter's but use the yogurt maker as well, since I've got it. Wonder if we've got a thermometer.

The Yeo Valley is £1.59 for 500ml in our local Co-op - a bit cheaper in Tesco (spit) so I'll give homemade a go.