Easy DIY Yogurt: How to Make Homemade Yogurt

 

A few years ago, I tried making homemade yogurt after a friend told me it was really easy.  Well, after two failed attempts, I gave up.  That is, until one of the other Spendwise Moms, Nicole, started making her own and told me how to do it.  I also realized why my yogurt wasn't working out.  I wasn't using a thermometer, and I didn't think it was a big deal at the time.  Now that I have made it with a thermometer, I see how important it is.  My yogurt worked out so well this time.  What a difference the right tool can make!  It tastes great and I plan on making it from now on.  I even made it the next day, using the homemade yogurt as my starter for the second batch to see if it would work.

Ingredients:

1/2 gallon of milk

1/2 cup plain yogurt

You also need a candy thermometer.  Here is the one I used.

I will explain the basic steps:

1.  Pour 1/2 gallon of milk into a pot.  Using whole milk makes the yogurt creamier.  

2.  Clip the thermometer onto the pot.

3.  Turn the stove on to medium heat.

4.  Heat, stirring regularly to prevent the milk from scorching.  When the thermometer gets to at least 180 degrees, take it off the heat.  I try to let mine go to a little higher, between 180 and 190 degrees just to make sure.

5.  Take milk off the heat. and let it cool until it is 115 degrees.

6.  Put 1/2 cup of plain yogurt into a small bowl.  You NEED to use plain yogurt.

7.  Once the milk is at 115, take 1 cup of the warm milk and mix it with the 1/2 cup of yogurt.  

8.  Add the yogurt/milk from the small bowl to the pot with the rest of the milk and stir it together.

9.  Put the milk into containers with lids.  I used glass canning jars, which worked well.

10.  The containers need to keep warm to incubate , but there are several ways you can do that.  Here is another place you can check.

I will share what I did.  I took the inside of my crockpot and put the jars inside.  Then I heated some water up to 110-115 degrees and put it in.  I didn't put too much, just about an inch.  The first time I made yogurt, I put a little more warm water in a few hours later.  I only put water in once when I made the second batch.  Then, I put the lid on the crockpot and wrapped it in a couple of bath towels and then put a blanket over it.  

11.  It takes about 8-10 hours to incubate, and then your yogurt is done.  Put it in the refrigerator immediately and keep it refrigerated until you use it.  Remember to save a little to make your next batch of yogurt!

Good luck with your yogurt making.  I hope it works and you find satisfaction knowing you can make it yourself!

If you have an instant pot and want to make it in that, go here for the directions.