Go to the Recipe: Easy, Delicious Sous Vide Yogurt
Can you then use the leftovers from this for your next batch? Will the cultures stay live?
I've made yogurt many times. Don't be intimidated. It is a breeze.
How about a crème fraîche recipe next?
I've made yogurt by heating to 180F then cooling or by just heating to the incubation temperature. I always get a better firmer texture when I heat to 180F first. Is there a scientific reason for this? I love using Skyr for my culture.
@chefsteps would using buttermilk work, and would you get a more tart end product?
If you don't have a water bath to hold it at 43C could you do in oven on low temperature instead
I've been making homemade yogurt for a couple years. I had got my temps from an amalgamation of online resources, but apparently I've been using too high an incubation temp (~115F). It, indeed, separates out the whey a lot, but after draining through some industrial size coffee filters, we mix it with a hand mixer to get the creamy texture. It sounds like I'll be trying 109F tonight.
Also, I'm pretty sure I got it from McGee to hold the milk at 160-170F for 30 minutes, rather than 180F for a moment. I'll need to do a back to back to see what difference it makes.
If you're not so into presentation (I strain mine anyways for "Greek style"), and want to make a crap load for your family, I do 2 gallons at a time, and just Sous Vide the milk+starter mix in the empty milk jugs. I let mine sit overnight, strain throughout the day, and have yogurt for a week or two!
I make it in the microwave! Less pots to scrub the milk from
P.S. Straining Yogurt overnight is how you get Labneh!
+1 on the crème fraîche recipe
I am sorry it is not an answer to your question, but I'd love to see ChefSteps do buttermilk (it's the word that triggered me); grew up on it, have heaps of recipes that call for it and it is completely unavailable here in France :-(
Thanks guys! That's going to be on tomorrows' list of "things to try"!
Yes, I heat a milk & cream mixture to 80c then cool to below 40c, I have several yoghurt cultures (dried) & I also mix in some Kefir culture & a starter from raw organic milk yoghurt, if you don’t have a water bath then a large mouth Thermos vacuum flask will keep it warm. As the guys showed, straining is the way to go but use unstrained for cooking, curries & marinades. Put it in the ice-cream maker with some sour cream & a dash of salt for an Adult desert.
While in the 36-40c holding phase, add some Gelatine & flavours (fruits, spices, herbs or Umami) then pour into assorted Silicone moulds for some exciting additions to any platter.
I do chopped Scallop, Shrimp & lime with coarse grind Umami powder & Nori coating moulded into half egg shapes served with salad & cold smoked salmon.
Here in Thailand a bit hit is my Yoghurt balls Vietnamese Naem Nueng style, instead of all in the rice wrap I seal it into the Gel yoghurt balls, garlic, peanuts,green mango,star fruit, chilli, herb leaves & pieces of sausage etc.
Naem Nueng
Naem Nueng (แหนมเนือง /năeme nueang/) is Vietnamese style meatballs that are wrapped in rice paper and served with a generous platter of fresh herbs and vegetables for wrap customization. The food is known as Nam Nuong in Vietnamese. In the old time this dish was served only in the palace.
Ed
u can. but i would remove some first from the done batch., to avoid contamination, as starter culture for the next batch.
I make yogurt at the temps specified but incubate it in a slightly warm oven in a Le Creuset pot for 4.5 hours. Then I stick the whole pot in the fridge overnight.
One thing not mentioned here which I think is important: do not use ultrapasteurized milk; too much has been killed off already! Pasteurized organic milk is ideal.
I might be wrong, but I thought heating the milk was to sterilize it (so the only cultures you are growing come from the yoghurt). The longer times at a lower temperature might be being conservative, but I don't think it will impact taste.
If your oven has a bread proofing mode (i.e. About 100F), that should work. Anything higher than the temps listed above will kill the culture.
I read that you can use active culture yoghurt diluted with milk as a yoghurt replacement, and it has worked for me many times.
My guess is that their are bacteria cultures in your milk that may be affecting your results. Heating the milk will kill those cultures leaving you with just the bacteria from your yoghurt.
This is a link where I first read about buttermilk substitutes: http://www.seriouseats.com/2015/05/the-food-lab-how-to-make-the-best-buttermilk-pancakes.html
Can step 2 also be done with the sous vide?
I had been told that 180F changes how the milk proteins behave and is not to pasturize as that can be done at lower temperatures. I just can't find anything to document this.
I've tried reusing from second batch but it isn't as firm... Why do you experts think that is?
I do the entire process with canning jars and the sous vide. I fill the jars with the milk and set in the water with the circulator set to 180°. After the milk reaches the target temperature, I take the jars out to cool and turn off the heat. When the yogurt cools to 115°, I add some starter from the previous batch or from commercial yogurt. Put the jars back in the water, set the circulator to 110° and check after 4 to 6 hours. So easy!
Heating the milk to 180° denatures the milk proteins so that they will coagulate. You do not have to do this step but you will get a thicker product by holding the milk at that temperature for 5-30 minutes. Then cool to about 115 before adding the live culture. Yogurt is a mesophilic culture and does best at lower temperatures. http://www.milkfacts.info/Milk%20Composition/Protein.htm
If you have it, a Buchner filtration rig makes straining much faster (and is useful for all sorts of other tasks, like filtering consommé, stock, juice, nut milk etc). I have a big porcelain one and a manual vacuum pump to attach to the beaker (all available on amazon for <$50).
Yaaaaaas!!!! Thank you guys for this super simple and useful recipe. I can now big batch yogurt for our home and save some cash... in 3 months ill probably have enough to buy another sous vide.
Would there be an application for fresh/paneer cheese as well?
I'm so happy to hear I can put lids on the jars! I've been reading other places not to do that until the yogurt is done, so I've had to build a platform in my bath to hold the plastic wrap (the reco) covered jars just above the water level. It forced me to have uniform containers instead of the assorted jars that live in my kitchen. It also made me have to do a dry run with all my containers (filled with water) to get the water level right. Grrr. I thought it was because of pressure from fermentation off-gassing, but I did notice that my wrap never bulged or anything. It was a pain and reduced the amount of space in my bath because I had to work around the circulator with my jerry-rigged platform. I had great results, but I can certainly increase my yield now that I know it is OK to sink sealed jars. I'll also be spared some hassle. Thanks!
I've been making yogurt for a while, but I haven't experimented with flavors or aromats. Any specific recommendations aside from the obvious fruits?
I've been reusing and sharing yogurt cultures with my friends. Some will live on, but others won't. Even my stable cultures change a bit over time. It's kind of fascinating. Like a sourdough. Reuse, but if things go wrong, go back to the source. That said, some seem to get better. You'll know if they don't. Don't worry about poisoning anyone. You're first tip will be - it's kind of "meh" texture or flavour wise. If it smells or moulds, don't eat it of course. Also, don't leave your culture in the fridge for too long. Try to make even a small batch before a week or two has passed just to refresh it.
Is there anything you can do to make a lactose-free yoghurt?
It does more than sterilize. It changes the proteins in the milk. If you don't bring it up to temp, you'll get a thinner product. I've found that keeping it hot longer will change the texture as well - thicker/more viscous, but it a gooey kind of way. Not unpleasant, but different, almost honey like. Heat and time matters here. I'm still playing with different temps. The slightly lower (160-170) temp for 30 min does change the product quite a bit.
Since the organisms in the culture consume lactose, yogurt is lower in lactose than the milk you started with. Is it lactose free? Probably not entirely. Many people find it easier to digest though. I suspect that commercial products add lactase to the finished product to get rid of what is left. If you start with lactose free milk, you'll have trouble with your culture.
I usually do my yogurt every couple of days, but I never cooked the milk before it! That will be an interesting change. The yogurt used as starter make a big difference, so I had quite a few try to choose my favorite. I let it sit for 8h at 40C, then iced water and fridge overnight. Then i strain it for about 30min to get it thick like curd. Anything more and it gets like cream cheese. I then keep the whey and use it instead of water when I do some bakery. It helps a lot to keep my bread or cake moist. Just like yogurt would. Last thing (or first): sanitation is of the utter importance! It's so easy to ruin your yogurt because of contamination!
You guys are great, had a solid audible laugh at the end too! Thanks for sharing, I'll start a batch right after work tomorrow, and breakfast will be perfection.
GREAT !!!!
But I have Pasteurized milk .... what can i do ?
+2 on the crème fraîche recipe
I love yoghurt, and love making it, but it spoils way too quickly, so to avoid this I end up eating yoghurt just to stop it wasting, and that get's a little tiresome. So my question: How do you guys store yoghurt to stop it spoiling?
impeccable
j'adore!!
HOW WE MAKE CREME FRAICHE?
+3 on the crème fraîche recipe
What are the results when using lower fat milk?
Looking this up in my book "On Food and Cooking The Science and Lore of the Kitchen" I see that Creme Fraiche is usually fermented at 20°C for 15-20 hours. Oh and you need to use cream and not milk
Victoria is correct. I double checked McGee, and he mentions a few things:
1. Traditional methods boil the milk to concentrate proteins.
2. Modern manufacturing boost protein by adding dry milk powder, but still heat the milk. Usually to 185F for 30min or 195F for 10min.
3. The heating denatures a whey protein which then links with the casein, making a structure that is much better at holding in the liquid. Indeed, the whey protein lactoglobulin doesn't denature until ~172F, which means I've been doing it wrong!
Thanks ChefSteps, for making me reexamine my yogurt process! And thanks again Harold McGee, for literally writing the book on it!
can you substitute skim milk and maybe add more Yogurt to compensate for thinness?
I make it often. 1 L good cream, preferably low-heat pasteurized. 1/3 cup full-fat, live yogurt, stir together, cover bowl with dish cloth to prevent anything from falling in. You can then leave it at room temp for 24-36h, but I put it in a 100 deg F/ oven overnight. Taste after 12h, but sometimes it takes up to 24h. That's it. You can use it as is, put it in a food processor to make cultured butter, and save some as the starter for your next batch.
We use pasteurized milk too, follow the recipe as is.
I strain my yogurt to extend the shelf life. The whey will continue to slowly ferment in the fridge causing it to spoil. So the more whey you take out the longer the shelf life.
Your end product will be thinner in texture. Add 1% nonfat milk solids to help thicken in step 1.
Totally agree, thanks Victoria!
What is your time and temp?
pssshhhhh yea Kysha, I like your style!
Love making Créme fraîche. Here it is:
Heavy cream 100%
Buttermilk 25%
Combine and store in a sanitized container at room temp out of direct sunlight. I like to store mine for about 72 hrs. I know some people go as short as 16 hrs. If I'm making a nice funky cultured butter I let it age at room temp for 10 days, Then beat to separate the fat from the buttermilk. Then season with a tickle of msg and salt.
Hope this helps!
The Raita recipe reminded me of Greek Tzatziki. Could you please add a recipe for Tzatziki?
Spectacular! Could the same procedure (+acid) work for making ricotta/mascarpone?
If you are making sweetened yogurt like common vanilla flavored yogurt, when would you add the sweetener? Before culturing or after?
Add it at the beginning, sometimes I even add 4% honey at the start.
And here are the results: perfectly white, delicious yoghurt! Super!
How do you know when the milk reaches 180F? Are you opening the jars and testing then using the determined time to reach temperature for future batches? Thanks, I'm going to try SousVide for heating the milk. @Cinda
This seems to take a long time, unfortunately
Thanks @Anthony Sosso That is what I would expect unless the containers were smallish. On a purely doing something just to try it, using a magnetic stir plate with the magnet in the jar of milk would probably speed the heating up.
Yogurt is all about the protein. High fat doesn't necessarily make a thicker product. As Nicholas says, add some powdered milk and make sure to cook it well before incubating. It will be thick and creamy.
Holy crap this ALL sounds delicious. I wanna try those yoghurt balls Naem Nueng style NOW
I love the sourness and thicker texture of buttermilk personally.
I was thinking it would be awesome if it worked for the savoury
applications.
I am spoiled I can get both fresh and powdered buttermilk.
Hey Ron theres an idea have you thought about ordering powdered
online? Or I could try sending it to you if it would help.
I don't know why Victoria and Nicholas think you'll have trouble with your culture. I make a half-gallon of whole milk lactose-free yogurt every week. I use whatever brand I can find – storebrand, Lactaid, or organic. I never have a problem. I haven't tried sous-vide, I use a Yogourmet maker and Fage as a starter. It's rich and creamy and not at all sour. In fact, for the first time ever, I can eat it unsweetened! I could never do that with commercial yogurt!
Hey Nick!
Can you also sous vide the cream to make the creme fraiche/cultured butter go faster? I'm a bit confused because ive read that the bacteria needs oxygen to make cultured butter-but for yogurt it doesnt oxygen. But like...aren't they the same bacteria? Thanks!
