Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
yogurt you wish to make. Viili culture produces a thick but
mild yogurt similar to what you mostly see in stores, whereas
Piimä culture makes a thinner, drinkable yogurt. There are
many other cultures available, but no matter how you start
your first batch, yogurt cultures are serial cultures, meaning
that you can continue to propagate them indefinitely simply
by using a quantity from the last batch to make the next.
If you decide to use plain yogurt from the store to make more
yogurt, please read the ingredient label carefully to make sure
you are buying a product made only from milk and cultures.
There are some yogurt brands whose “plain” yogurt contains
adulterants and other ingredients that won't be helpful. Pectin
is often used as a thickener and this is okay.
First, heat your milk to 185 degrees in a double boiler while
stirring often. This is to kill off competing organisms. Then,
remove the milk from the heat and allow it to cool to between
105 and 122 degrees. Once it is between these two
temperatures, add either your starter culture according to
package directions or ¾ cup of live yogurt per gallon of milk.
Pour the mixture into cleaned and sterilized quart canning
jars, and adjust the two-piece caps for a seal. Keep the
temperature of these containers at 105 to 122 degrees for the
next eight hours. The temperature can be maintained by
filling the sink with water at 120 degrees, and then adding a
bit of boiling water to the water in the sink whenever the
temperature drops below 110 degrees. After eight hours, put
your jars in the refrigerator where the yogurt will keep for
two weeks.
Maintaining this temperature for so long will be difficult, but
the bacteria have a better sense of humor than most regulatory
