Best "vessel" to make yoghurt

[caquince]

Hello...

Learning a lot about making yogurt from you all - thanks!  I have not made it yet, but trying to minimize my mistakes. Just a little confused about what I am supposed to put the yogurt into when it is cooked.  They talk about a "yoghurtmaker" or a "thermos flask", but I am not familiar with either of these terms.  Would anyone be able to enlighten me?  What do you all use?  I read somewhere that people just put it into the thermoserver, but don't know if it will work.  Also, what is the best way to sterilize things?  Just boiling water?
Thanks all!
-cq

[Nay-nay]

Speaking for myself thermoserver worked great. Just washing and scolded with boiling water works for me. Others are using the 'Easyo' thermos (insulated container to keep heat in) you buy from the supermarket to make the prepackaged yogurt (powder and add water) in sachets. All the best with it - Let us know how ya go. 

[andiesenji]

This is a Yogurt making kit   available from Cheeselinks.

Less expensive is the "EasyYo" which is simply a container inside an insulating container (as noted by Nay-nay),  which holds the milk that has been heated and cooled to the correct temp  before adding the yogurt culture.
The EasyYo was developed in New Zealand and I have been told that it is widely available in Australia. 

Here in the US there are numerous yogurt makers, both the insulated type and powered ones that supply the heat to maintain the desired temperature.   They all perform the same task and usually with excellent results (as long as the directions are followed correctly).

I have and use both types - I consume a lot of yogurt and use it extensively in baking and cooking.

[faffa_70]

I make yoghurt a couple of times a week and have not had a failure yet using my thermoserve 

[caquince]

Thanks everyone...just going to give my thermoserve a try tomorrow for some yoghurt - here's hoping for a bit of luck!

[trudy]

Hi Caquince,  I had trouble with making the yoghurt at first.  It was just too runny for our liking.  My daughter added a bit of powdered milk to her batch and this has made all the difference.  Now each batch is lovely and thick, rather like greek yoghut but a little tangier.  I do set it over night in the thermosaver and the next morning spoon it into a pyrex dish that has a plastic seal.  Good luck!!

[gertbysea]

I use the thermoserver overnight then into another container into the fridge. If I want it thicker I strain it through a chux in the fridge for a day.

Gretchen

[caquince]

So far I tried once and it was only slightly thicker than the milk that it started from...a little bit of a downer.  I tried again and it seems to have done the same thing - it has not quite been 8 hours yet.  I am not sure what I am doing wrong.  I am pretty sure that the Jalna biodynamic yoghurt that I have used is the right kind.  Not sure if the temp is the factor.  I have been using a thermometer, but maybe it is faulty or something.  I did add slightly more milk powder, but did not make much difference.  Maybe putting it in the fridge afterwards will make the difference.  Fingers crossed.  Could it be that it is too cold in my house???  I have it in the thermoserver with the lid on, but the house is only about 16...?
not giving up yet!!

[farfallina]

I don't have thermoserve but let me tell you my way Caquince
I leave it in TM bowl after I make it. I wrap TM bowl with a blanket and let it rest overnight
In the morning I put it in the containers and then into the fridge

There are a few yogurt recipes. They all work great. However I can say that Valerie's way gave me thicker results
(I usually make it with 1litre of whole milk and 120g yogurt)

You can check this out: http://www.superkitchenmachine.com/2009/2883/how-to-make-yogurt-thermomix.html

[ryan]

So far I tried once and it was only slightly thicker than the milk that it started from...a little bit of a downer.  I tried again and it seems to have done the same thing - it has not quite been 8 hours yet.  I am not sure what I am doing wrong.  I am pretty sure that the Jalna biodynamic yoghurt that I have used is the right kind.  Not sure if the temp is the factor.  I have been using a thermometer, but maybe it is faulty or something.  I did add slightly more milk powder, but did not make much difference.  Maybe putting it in the fridge afterwards will make the difference.  Fingers crossed.  Could it be that it is too cold in my house???  I have it in the thermoserver with the lid on, but the house is only about 16...?
not giving up yet!!

I have been having the same problem. My last 2 batches have just been thick milk! My first batch was most successful but the texture was quite stringy.

Cheeselinks.com.au said

In terms of procedures, one thing that you should be aware of is that if the milk is too cool when setting the yoghurt has a tendency to go ‘stringy’. If the milk is at or below 35 degrees when it is set this is a common problem. This is more common in winter than summer, as the outside temperature is cooler.

So I tried to keep it warmer the next couple of times but this didn't help. I've bought a new organic yogurt for starter so hopefully that will work.

[judydawn]

Yoghurt seems to be the most troublesome thing, works sometimes but not for everyone.  Will we ever find a foolproof method so that everyone succeeds, everytime   I have given up and reverted to buying it again.

[ruth]

Hi Caquince.  I made my first batch this week and like you I spent ages reading everyone's comments first.  Fortunately it worked (this time at least) as it seems quite random.   Sorry yours hasn't worked yet, it would be frustrating. 

I used Barambah organic yoghurt (european pot set) and Valerie's method adjusted to 90 degrees.  Plus I added in some organic powdered milk just to be sure (a bit less that what the EDC book suggests).  I used Margaret river organic full cream non-homogenised milk.  The yoghurt is not super thick and doesn't taste very tangy but its still really good and I am hoping that it will improve with each batch.  I just used the thermoserver but covered it in a few tea towels, as it was cold overnight in my house, and let it set for about 7 hours.  I only made a litre in case it didn't work, but that was plenty anyway.   

Actually I did also add in some powdered acidopholis (sp?) that I have for my kids, as I really wanted to try everything, but I since read that too much starter can be a bad thing too.

I just tested it with my finger to make sure it wasn't too hot before I added my starter (a tip I got from here) as I could not find my thermometer. 

[andiesenji]

I just tested it with my finger to make sure it wasn't too hot before I added my starter (a tip I got from here) as I could not find my thermometer. 

You would do better to test it on the inside of your wrist.  Your fingers are not as sensitive to heat as that area.  I know from experience that what seems lukewarm to my fingers can be ten to fifteen degrees hotter than I sense.   

I recently learned that some of the dairy companies here in California have (because of some new rulings coming down from the FDA) been performing a secondary pasteurization following the manufacture of yogurt, Mexican "crema" (sour cream) and other fresh dairy products.
This renders the culture in the yogurt much less active than the regular process and I doubt one could get a good homemade yogurt using it as a base culture. 
Noted is the extended shelf life of the dairy product.   I saw one brand of yogurt at the market (WalMart) that had a sell-by date of Aug 5!   That is three times as long as the "natural" product at the health food store. 

[faffa_70]

DH and I were discussing this last night and came up with the idea of putting the thermoserve in the (UNHEATED)oven or microwave -if you have one, to set the yoghurt as it would be a smaller area of air to keep warm around the thermoserver now that it is getting colder and hopefully it would help keep it warmer for longer. I am dreading a failure now though my house is pretty warm as all my windows face north and west (not so pleasant in the summer )

[judydawn]

Two heads are definitely better than one Kathryn - good idea. Placed inside one of those thick, quilted pillow protectors might help too.