Jim Wallace |
We are determined to help you!
One of the differences between our business and others is Ricki’s dedication to her customers. She employs a full-time technical advisor (Jim Wallace) to answer your questions about making cheese. She also publishes a monthly Moosletter with recipes, etc., as well as this blog with articles about every aspect of cheese making.
This is the third in a series of sample questions that folks have written to Jim. He can always be reached at info@cheesemaking.com to help you with any aspect of making cheese. Our extensive HELP section is also available with many questions and answers.
Q. I have your Yogotherm from years ago and want to again make yogurt. Unfortunately I misplaced the recipe. Is there any way I could acquire the yogurt recipe from your site – or elsewhere?
Q. I have been purchasing Activia because the Bifidus Regularis cultures help keep me regular. I hate paying so much for an even smaller quantity of yogurt than the regular yogurt (I prefer making my own). If I use this as a starter culture, can I just clone my own yogurt from the Activia to get the same yogurt for less than the store price? When I was younger I used to do this all the time with Dannon.
Q. I was looking at your website after reading “Animal, Vegetable, Miracle” and was wondering if you have any information on Greek Yogurt? I enjoy it and haven’t found much information on making it at home.
A. Greek yogurt is simply a matter of draining the Bulgarian style yogurt to a drier denser state. Draining through our butter muslin should work for this- just drain until you get the consistency you want.
Q. I received your yogurt culture and immediately put it in the freezer. I used 2 quarts of goats milk and 2 of your packets of culture. I followed the directions very carefully. I heated the milk to 180F for 1-2 minutes, then I cooled the milk to 116F as per the directions on the packet. I mixed the culture with some cooled milk (116F) thoroughly and mixed this with the rest of the milk thoroughly. I put it in the yogurt maker and waited 6, 12, and 24 hours. Nothing happened- the milk was the same as when I put in your culture. I am using the right equipment, using fresh milk, following directions very carefully, and I am totally baffled as to why the yogurt is not making. Could it be a culture problem, or do you have other ideas or suggestions?
A. At the end of your yogurt session does the milk taste at all acidic to you? Is there a yogurt-like flavor? If so, the culture is doing its job converting lactose to lactic acid. If it is not thickening after raising to 180F, then next time hold at that temperature for 20-30 min before cooling. If there is no acid or flavor after ripening, then something has happened to the culture. If your thermometer is off then perhaps you added the culture too warm.This could also be a problem of over processed milk, not UP but heated well over the 161F that is normal for pasteurization. Since I use these same cultures myself, I do not think there is a problem with the culture itself.
Q. My child is allergic to cow’s milk. I saw the yogurt starter has dry milk powder in it. Is there any starter that doesn’t have dry milk powder in it?
Esme says
Can a dehydrator be used for yogurt and do you ever add rennet into your go a t yogurt?
Jeri Case says
Good questions! Contact our technical advisor- Jim Wallace – jim@cheesemaking.com
Thank you for this recipe! I want to taste it! Have you a yogurt maker? I want to buy it but I can’t make my choice. I read a good review at the topreviews.best. What can you say about these models? Help me, pleaseto make my choice
We do sell an excellent yogurt maker at cheesemaking.com. I’m sure there are many other good ones as well. Have fun!
There are probably hundreds of yogurt bacteria cultures – I tried researching them several years ago and found to my dismay that there are now public sector lists – so I tried compiling one myself. It can be found at http://mryogurt.info/probiotics
Much to my surprise, an international agency responsible for such things has no such list. It would be nice if yogurt came out of the closet so everyone could have the same information for whatever purposes they choose to put it to.
Take care and good yogurt making!
Bill
That should read “… no public lists…”
I have been using the same re-culture (started with Dannon) for yrs., and I make approx. a gallon per month. And it is still making what I think is yogurt. Is it? If it tastes the same and has the same consistency, isn't it the same?
Well-I am enjoying this run through-and don’t know if this will even get to you-as I see the question was asked a couple years ago-BUT-just in case-
If it looks like it, smells like it and tastes like it-it probably is!
I used to re-culture from my last batch quite a bit as well-though I was never consistent enough to keep it going for years….I imagine that at the “molecular level” it has changed in balance of buggies or whatever-but people do this with sourdough etc as well.
An interesting side line…a friend of mine is a sourdough officiando-and she is certain that all these cultured and fermented food stuffs also take on the balance of whatever is available in the region…hence-it is difficult if not impossible to make “California sourdough” here in Colorado…she can’t get it to taste the same no matter what she does..though hers is plenty good.
So-it seems that your yogurt culture is a very VERY successful group of happy buggies! Woo hoo! Who knows what would come out of making it in another environment..
I guess that’s “terroire.” Thanks for sharing.
I left my yogurt jars in a water bath in my crock pot on warm by accident overnight and found the temperature was up to almost 160 degrees when I woke. The "yogurt" looks firm but should I throw it out?
I'm making yogurt for the first time using a yogurt maker. I'm using raw milk and I noticed little curdles in the milk as I was warming it on the stove. In pictures, it looks like the consistency is more creamy while heating. Is this a sign my yogurt won't turn out right in a few hours?
Is there a different temp used when using raw milk?
No. It's the same no matter what milk you use.
In making homemade mozzarella, can I use cultured buttermilk? Will it create a better product?
Hi. Can you make homemade mozzarella with cultured buttermilk? Will it produce a better product?
We funnel all our technical questions to Jim Wallace at jim@cheesemaking.com. He knows all! (He also prefers to get his e-mails direct, so the best thing would be for you to contact him with your interesting question.
DASKMA,
I'm sure it's fine, but you will get more of an explanation if you write to Jim Wallace, our technical advisor at jim@cheesemaking.com.
Happy cheesemaking!
HI…I've been making and enjoying yogurt for a while but encountered a new puzzle I hope you can help me with. Yesterday I made a batch of yoghurt in the microwave (unheated, but wrapped in a towel to set) and after 9 hours opened it and it still had not set. So I left it in the microwave overnight. This AM it had thickened and I put it in the fridge. But now I am concerned about its safety. It was out (wrapped and setting in the closed microwave) from about 11AM yesterday until about 8:30 AM today….with one opening check last night. Is it safe to eat? Or should it be thrown out? Thanks in advance…
Thanks for your question. We prefer that all technical questions go to Jim Wallace, our technical advisor at jim@cheesemaking.com. Otherwise, we would all be fielding questions to the best of our limited ability when we have a real expert on our staff!
You recommend holding the milk at 185 degrees for 20 minutes. How accurate does that have to be and what is the best way do it?