This Monday series checks out whether something that sounds like a good deal — or takes a bit of extra work — is a good deal. We’ll look at cost and benefit — with everything filtered through my individual experience. Please chime in with your take.

This post is appearing rather late in the day, but better late than never. It’s been fermenting … just like yogurt.

For a couple of months now, I’ve been making homemade yogurt instead of buying it. I follow a loose combination of a recipe from our friend Dr. Fankhauser, the recipe followed by No Impact Man and a recipe from a 1970s children’s cookbook called Love at First Bite.

If I am honest with you, dear readers, I am far more lax than Dr. Fankhauser suggests. We haven’t died of food poisoning yet (or gotten sick), but it has only been a couple of months, so follow my technique at your own risk.

Now that the legal disclaimer is out of the way, I’ll tell you that my recipe is so simple that I can reproduce it for you here from memory after doing the process several times:

1. Heat 4 cups of milk (1 quart for the measurement challenged) in a pan. Any type of milk will do; I use 1%. As it is heating, whisk in ½ cup of dry milk. (Some people say you can add honey or vanilla at this point to flavor the yogurt; I tried honey and found it yucky.) Let the milk heat until very hot — just about boiling or just over boiling — a skin will probably form on top, with the boiling bubbles around the edges.
2. Turn off the heat. Let the milk sit until you can stick your finger in it without it being painful. At my house in this warm weather, that’s about 15-20 minutes.
3. Have ready about 2 tablespoons of other yogurt for a starter. Dr. F. suggests Dannon Plain. I used an amazing buffalo milk yogurt that was very very thick.
4. Whisk a little of the warm/hot milk into the yogurt starter to warm it up (this technique will be familiar to those of you who have warmed up eggs to mix them into a dish without curdling them; this is to not kill the yogurt cultures).
5. Then whisk the warmed-up yogurt starter into the warm/hot milk. Whisk well to combine thoroughly.
6. Pour the inoculated milk into a large jar with a tight-fitting lid, or you could use several small ones.
7. Place the jar(s) in a pot or cooler. Fill the pot or cooler up to the level of the top of the yogurt in the jars with very warm water from the tap.
8. Put a lid on the pot and wrap the pot in a towel to keep it warm.
9. Let it sit for about 4 hours. Check by lifting the jar(s) carefully out of the pot to see if the yogurt is thick enough. Try not to disturb it too much, as some people report that disturbance makes the yogurt not set up.
10. When it’s done, put it in the fridge. My yogurt has a liquid all around an inner “solid” when it is done. After it cools in the refrigerator, it sets together.

These steps are provided to give a clear recipe, but it’s really a simple process.

The cost breakdown:

• Organic milk = $1.64 per quart
• Powdered milk = $0.19
• Yogurt for starter (1/4 container) = $0.16
• Natural gas for stove = $0.14

Total: $2.14 per quart (for the first batch; now that I’m using my own yogurt for a starter, it’s $1.98 per quart)

The best price I’ve seen on a quart of yogurt in the store is $2, so homemade is comparable to that. I usually have bought yogurt that might go on sale for $2.50, and homemade is 20% cheaper than that price.

The winner: Homemade.

The priceless factors:

• I can use whatever milk I like, including organic. (I have been buying a delicious organic milk from Farmers Creamery in Iowa. It isn’t local, but boy is it good. I would love to find as good a milk from a local source.)
• No yogurt tubs to discard — they are not recyclable in Denver.
• I like the mellow flavor of the homemade yogurt.
• No preservatives or unexpected ingredients.

A couple of caveats:

• It took me a few tries to get it right. I threw out a few batches first. (Try a half batch to minimize waste … or if you like the liquid “yogurt,” throw it into a smoothie, I suppose.)
• The big pot of hot water is bulky, but I try to use it when I’m not doing anything else in the kitchen.

The verdict:
Sticking with it.

Grade: A

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Comments ( 8 )

Cool! I just bought a quart Stoneyfield organic yogurt for $3. I love this brand, but have been wishing it was packed in glass. I will try a batch of my own today, using our local milk which is packed in glass!

patti added these pithy words on Jul 10 07 at 4:56 am

If you have a thermos that isn’t being used, leave the yoghurt in that overnight. You can always pour off some of the yoghurt into other containers the next day and if you like to take yoghurt with you to lunch, it’s already in a container and ready to go!

mosaik added these pithy words on Jul 10 07 at 12:08 pm

I think I hadn’t tried the thermos trick because ours is buried in a cupboard — and I read someplace that the longer it sits, the sourer it is. But I just tasted my last batch, which sat out all night (oops), and it’s not sour at all.

cheaplikeme added these pithy words on Jul 10 07 at 4:22 pm

question: does the yogurt still contain the probiotics found in store bought yogurt?

miss muffet added these pithy words on Jul 10 07 at 8:09 pm

Well, I’m no scientist, but YES. It’s the “active cultures” that make the milk ferment. I found a couple of comments online.

Those familiar with the benefits of probiotic often consume yogurt, a long-recognized source of friendly bacteria. Unfortunately, commercial yogurt often lack the probiotic. Even the commercial yogurt fortified with Lactobacillus acidophilus and sitting on the shelf for several days does not have viable probiotics as they tend to produce bacteria-killing acids. For this reason, fresh, homemade yogurt can be a reliable source of probiotic(s). However, it often fails to provide sufficient amounts for its intended purpose.

— http://www.uaslabs.com/sections/about/probiotics.php

And then this page has a detailed refutation of the arguments of probiotic manufacturers (like the one quoted above) with source references: http://www.healingcrow.com/ferfun/conspiracy/conspiracy.html

cheaplikeme added these pithy words on Jul 10 07 at 8:46 pm

Thanks!!

miss muffet added these pithy words on Jul 15 07 at 7:20 pm

I use a cooler to let the yogurt sit undisturbed- it keeps the water temp fairly well even, but I have not yet tried it in the winter. I think I’ll try using a pot on the stove next time. I wonder if I do that while I’m baking something if the residual heat will keep it warm?

Also, I use whole milk and that allows me to leave out the powdered milk… and in my research, seems the healthier alternative. It sets up much better than any other percentage, and there is nearly no liquid with the finished product, making a thicker yogurt.

Good for you for trying it in the first place! Keep it up!

Amber added these pithy words on Dec 15 08 at 7:09 pm

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