Yogurt which is fermented dairy products have all of the health benefits of milk without any possible side effects.
This delicious drink is one of the healthy food products recognized by man.It provides protein and calcium, and enhance healthy gut bacteria.
Yogurt begins with fresh milk or cream which is often first treated with mild heat, then fermented with various live healthy bacteria cultures, and incubated at a specific temperature to encourage healthy bacteria growth. The culture ferments the lactose which is the natural sugar found in milk. This produces lactic acid, which gives yogurt its unique flavor.
Making yogurt at home is a simple process and does not require any specialized equipment and it can save you a lot of money.
Ingredients used in making yogurt
1 quart /946 mL quality whole milk (the quantity of milk added should be subject to the amount of yoghurt you will get in the end)
1/4 to 1/2 cup non-fat dry milk (optional)
1 tablespoons white sugar to feed the bacteria
pinch salt (optional)
2 tablespoons existing yogurt with live cultures (or you can use freeze-dried bacteria instead)
Steps on making yogurt
- Step 1; Heat your milk in a large saucepan until it starts boiling and continuously stir it to prevent it from getting burnt.
- Step 2; Remove from the heat source and allow cooling to around 40°C. Use a thermometer to find out the temperature of the milk. In case you don’t have one, feel the temperature and ensure that it is warm and not hot
- step 3; Add starter culture or live yogurt to the warm milk and mix the ingredients until they dissolve in the milk.
- Step 4; Sterilize your yogurt containers with boiling water before pouring both the yogurt and milk mixture into the containers.
- Step 5; Put the containers in a warm environment or cover them with blankets to maintain the temperature. Leave them for at most 8 hours then, check on your yogurt to ensure it’s thickened. At this point, there may be a small amount of whey separation on top. If so just pour that little bit off.
- Step 6; Let your yogurt sit overnight in the fridge to thicken, add some sweetness to it, or consume it the way it is.
Flavours like honey, vanilla, mapele syrup, banana, mango and coconut milk can be added to the mix for a more delghtful taste.
