# Anybody make yogurt? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 18, 2009, 12:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-make-yogurt/481803 "2009-01-18T00:59:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2009, 12:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-make-yogurt/481803/1 "2009-01-18T00:59:10Z")
I just started, and I like it. It’s cheaper and tastes better than most of the store stuff. I also like knowing what’s in it, and using organic ingredients (milk ;)) My old girlfriend from years ago used to make yogurt, and the memory of that got me started. I have a Donvier that makes up to eight single (about 5 oz. each) servings. I might get a one quart maker to use for cooking, etc. I like to expereiment. BTW; I am well aware you don’t need a special device to make yogurt. Don’t care. 🆒 Peace, mangeorge ---
**Author:** ![romansperson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/romansperson/32/17100_2.png) [@romansperson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/romansperson)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2009, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-make-yogurt/481803/2 "2009-01-18T01:55:10Z")
I’ve made yogurt (I run in streaks between making my own and buying it). It’s easy, and fun. Though I’ve had problems with resuing the starter too often - it tends to get too sour for me after two or three reuses and then I buy new. Blueberry is my favorite add-in. ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2009, 1:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-make-yogurt/481803/3 "2009-01-18T01:57:58Z")
Yup, got a yogurt maker and I like being able to make my own without extra sweeteners or other odd ingredients. Plus, vegetarians like me don’t like eating yogurt with gelatin in it - typically in the fruit stuff - so I make my own with fresh or frozen fruit. ---
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2009, 2:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-make-yogurt/481803/4 "2009-01-18T02:05:50Z")
> [@romansperson](#): > > I’ve made yogurt (I run in streaks between making my own and buying it). It’s easy, and fun. Though I’ve had problems with resuing the starter too often - it tends to get too sour for me after two or three reuses and then I buy new. > > Blueberry is my favorite add-in. Me too. I’ve started alternating. I make one batch from a good organic store bought yogurt, then the next batch from my own, then store bought again. I haven’t tried a freeze dried starter yet. The ingredients put me off a little. I like any berry, and I drain Dole single-serve mandarin oranges to add too. Also, several drops of good vanilla extract and some sweetner is excallent. ---
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2009, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-make-yogurt/481803/5 "2009-01-18T02:14:48Z")
> [@Ferret\_Herder](#): > > Yup, got a yogurt maker and I like being able to make my own without extra sweeteners or other odd ingredients. Plus, vegetarians like me don’t like eating yogurt with gelatin in it - typically in the fruit stuff - so I make my own with fresh or frozen fruit. I buy a basket each of whatever berries are in season, than spread them out on a cookie sheet and freeze them. Once they’re frozen, I put them by type in baggies and take out what I need. That way I have a good variety. ---
**Author:** ![Shalmanese](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/45deac/32.png) [@Shalmanese](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shalmanese)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2009, 2:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-make-yogurt/481803/6 "2009-01-18T02:20:52Z")
Yup, I’ve made my own before. I like using palm/coconut sugar as a sweetener over anything else. It’s got a subtle sweet flavour that goes great with yogurt. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2009, 2:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-make-yogurt/481803/7 "2009-01-18T02:36:09Z")
Ahem… TTIUWR! ---
**Author:** ![romansperson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/romansperson/32/17100_2.png) [@romansperson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/romansperson)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2009, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-make-yogurt/481803/8 "2009-01-18T02:38:53Z")
I should try using honey as a sweetener. I bet that would be good. ---
**Author:** ![dre2xl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/34f0e0/32.png) [@dre2xl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dre2xl)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2009, 5:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-make-yogurt/481803/9 "2009-01-18T05:00:52Z")
My favorite mix-in is rum (vanilla rum works best, but regular stuff works well too). Give it a try… ---
**Author:** ![CairoCarol](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cairocarol/32/3825_2.png) [@CairoCarol](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CairoCarol)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2009, 12:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-make-yogurt/481803/10 "2009-01-18T12:38:40Z")
I used to make my own yogurt, in Egypt of all places. You’d think the ME would have the world’s best yogurt, but quality control was so poor that I opted for homemade. (Reading that something like 30% of domestically produced milk products could not meet international standards for cleanliness didn’t help either.) I have a yogurt maker, although I know I don’t need it. ---
**Author:** ![pseudotriton\_ruber\_ruber](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a9a28c/32.png) [@pseudotriton\_ruber\_ruber](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pseudotriton_ruber_ruber)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2009, 12:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-make-yogurt/481803/11 "2009-01-18T12:49:40Z")
I’d like to try making yogurt without a yogurt maker. Any tips or suggestions? ---
**Author:** ![Carson\_O\_Genic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/cdc98d/32.png) [@Carson\_O\_Genic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Carson_O_Genic)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2009, 12:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-make-yogurt/481803/12 "2009-01-18T12:51:59Z")
Have you tried using powdered non-fat milk? Start with 1/2 C to a quart of milk. It helps to bind the whey. Adding 1C makes very thick yoghurt. ---
**Author:** ![teela\_brown](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/d9b06d/32.png) [@teela\_brown](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/teela_brown)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2009, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-make-yogurt/481803/13 "2009-01-18T14:32:07Z")
I used to make yogurt, and it was good. I discovered early on that nonfat milk wouldn’t turn into yogurt (although nowadays a method may have been devised to get around that). Nowadays I love that thick strained Greek yogurt (Fage) from Trader Joe’s so much that I just buy that, and it comes in nonfat as well. I think I made it in a slightly warm oven, which involved turning the oven on for minute or so and then off several times a day. It was in the days before yogurt-makers. Using a similar method, you can make French-stye creme fraiche. Use store-bought buttermilk as the starter, and stir a spoonful or two into a pint of warmed, heavy whipping cream. Keep the cream warm, and it’ll clot into a heavy, rich zillion-calorie treat. ---
**Author:** ![pseudotriton\_ruber\_ruber](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a9a28c/32.png) [@pseudotriton\_ruber\_ruber](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pseudotriton_ruber_ruber)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2009, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-make-yogurt/481803/14 "2009-01-18T14:39:17Z")
What type of container is best? Metal? Ceramic? Glass? No difference? How long does it stay in the oven? How often do you re-start the over? Every hour? Every two hours? Every half-hour? Does non-fat milk work or not? ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2009, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-make-yogurt/481803/15 "2009-01-18T14:43:03Z")
> [@teela\_brown](#): > > I used to make yogurt, and it was good. I discovered early on that nonfat milk wouldn’t turn into yogurt (although nowadays a method may have been devised to get around that). I use nonfat (skim) milk plus the aforementioned nonfat powdered milk addition, and of course some live culture yogurt as a starter. Works fine. ---
**Author:** ![Carson\_O\_Genic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/cdc98d/32.png) [@Carson\_O\_Genic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Carson_O_Genic)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2009, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-make-yogurt/481803/16 "2009-01-18T19:08:37Z")
> [@pseudotriton\_ruber\_ruber](#): > > What type of container is best? Metal? Ceramic? Glass? No difference? How long does it stay in the oven? How often do you re-start the over? Every hour? Every two hours? Every half-hour? > > Does non-fat milk work or not? The best container is CLEAN, which could rule out anything that has deep scratches or scars, notably plastics, though smooth plastic is fine. Temperature is ideal at 110F. Once you add your hopefully pasteurised milk to the culture, all around that temp., it will take four hours to be yoghurt, with longer time contributing tartness. Most ovens have a viewing light. Experiment with different wattage bulbs to attain that temp. Most oven thermostats aren’t reliable that low. I’ve never used totally non-fat milk, but 1% worked fine. The powdered non-fat dry milk is an addition to the liquid. ---
**Author:** ![anu-la1979](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/47e85d/32.png) [@anu-la1979](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/anu-la1979)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2009, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-make-yogurt/481803/17 "2009-01-18T23:52:40Z")
My parents kick it totally old school and have been making it for years (my mom used to grate her own coconut until 2 years ago when my dad stole her little third world coconut grating stool and forced her to buy pre-shredded). When I was growing up store bought yoghurt was a treat and we used to _beg_ my parents for it. Of course, now that I’m older, live apart from them and do my own groceries I long for the taste of the old school shit I grew up on. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2009, 12:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-make-yogurt/481803/18 "2009-01-19T00:15:41Z")
> [@anu-la1979](#): > > my dad stole her little third world coconut grating stool I thought the stool was just used for getting the coconut milk. 😕 ---
**Author:** ![mangeorge](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d78d45/32.png) [@mangeorge](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mangeorge)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2009, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-make-yogurt/481803/19 "2009-01-19T00:17:10Z")
> [@anu-la1979](#): > > My parents kick it totally old school and have been making it for years (my mom used to grate her own coconut until 2 years ago when my dad stole her little third world coconut grating stool and forced her to buy pre-shredded). When I was growing up store bought yoghurt was a treat and we used to _beg_ my parents for it. > > Of course, now that I’m older, live apart from them and do my own groceries I long for the taste of the old school shit I grew up on. My old gf’s kids begged for store bought too, but only for the flavored stuff. ---
**Author:** ![vison](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/e47774/32.png) [@vison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vison)\ **Post date:** [January 19, 2009, 12:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-make-yogurt/481803/20 "2009-01-19T00:18:59Z")
Glass jars work best, they hold the heat a bit. Johnny L. A., I think he meant “tool” not “stool”, but I could be wrong. I have been wrong before. A couple of times. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/anybody-make-yogurt/481803.md?page=2)