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Recipe for Basic Plain Yogurt w/ optional Greek Yogurt step

A simple recipe for homemade plain yogurt with optional instruction on straining for Greek-style yogurt. Use this as a kick-start to customize to your own yogurt preference.
Course Dessert
Author Victoria

Equipment

  • See list of tools for making yogurt above

Ingredients

  • 2 quart milk any kind
  • 2 Tbsp starter yogurt w/ live active cultures store-bought, homemade, or equivalent strength dried powder or 2 doses of 50 billions CFU probiotic for plant-based milk

Optional Additives for Non-Dairy milk & Breast milk

  • 4 tsp sugar
  • 2 tsp agar or equivalent thickener if desired

Instructions

  • Make sure all food-contact equipment, tools, and containers are cleaned and sterilized to avoid yeast or mold during incubation.
  • Pour milk into the heating/scalding pot or equipment.
  • (Optional) Add thickener (agar or similar) and sugar if using. Mix well.
  • Heat Milk gradually to 185F or above but not exceeding 200F. Stir in between to prevent scorching and curdling.
  • When milk reach the high temperature above, reduce heat and keep on stirring. Try to prolong this heating period and maintaining the milk's temperature in between 185F-200F limits for 10-30 minutes or as long as you can.
  • Remove milk from heat source and let to cool down to 110F or per cultures' optimum. Note that you can speed up the cool down by soaking the whole milk pot into cold water bath.
  • While waiting for the milk to cool down to culture temperature, prepare the incubating zone/equipment based on what you have. (See methods of incubating yogurt above).
  • Take some of the warm milk (at culture temperature) to dilute and mix with the yogurt starter. Then pour this mixture into the warm milk and mix them good.
  • Ladle the mixed warm milk into yogurt container(s) and incubate for 6 hours or more. (See How long to incubate yogurt).
  • Once the time is done, stop the fermenting process by chilling yogurt for 6-24 hours. Yogurt will be firmer and thicker the longer as it's chilled.

(Optional) Extra steps for Greek-styles Yogurt

  • Prepare a straining bag with edge covering over a colander. Place this colander on top of a container that has some space for the whey. You can also use double coffee filters, cheesecloth, or food-safe fabric... in place of the straining bag.
  • Once the finishing yogurt is chilled for 12-18 hours, take it out and dump into the straining bag.
  • When there is about half the volume (1 quart) of whey being strained out, stop and transfer the solid back into yogurt container.
  • If you want a starter for next batch, take out 2 Tbsp before proceeding.
  • Whip the yogurt with desired fruit puree, extra sweeteners and flavors, or keep as is.