How to cook yogurt at home

Yogurt, in our understanding, is a dessert, a delicious sour-milk treat, which, however, has recently ceased to be available to all categories of consumers. At the same time, for example, Greeks or Bulgarians use yogurt as a dressing for salads, cold soups and other dishes, as this product is as if the basis: you can add fruit and make dessert, and if left in its original form, it will execute the role of sour cream.

Traditional yogurt: what is it and how is it cooked

Yogurt is the result of fermentation (fermentation) of milk with sour-milk bacteria, as a result of which the product gets its density, color and characteristic taste. Even doctors often recommend it to those people who have certain problems with their stomach or intestines, since yogurt stabilizes their microflora, improves the metabolic process, and improves the functioning of the gastrointestinal tract. In addition, it is well absorbed by the body and digested, so even people with allergies or lactose intolerance, which are contraindicated in the use of milk and dairy products, can in some cases consume yogurt. But first, you still need to consult a doctor in this regard.

Natural yogurt should not contain any additives in the form of preservatives, sweeteners, dyes, flavorings or stabilizers - only in this case it can really have a beneficial effect on the body. In addition, it can be stored for about a month, but no more, since over time the number of vitamins and live bacteria decreases, and the effectiveness of the product is minimized.

For the production of factory yogurt, live fermented milk cultures - bacteria (thermophilic streptococcus and Bulgarian bacillus) - are introduced into milk, after which fermentation begins. For this, the required temperature is ensured - within 45 degrees and about 10 hours of exposure. After this time, the resulting yogurt is cooled to 5 degrees, and thus it is possible to preserve bacteria, and, accordingly, get the best quality product.

The process is easy to repeat independently, at home, both in the presence of a yogurt maker and without it. Such yogurt is more useful, because it does not contain sugar, and even people who are forced to give up sweets due to diabetes are allowed. Home-made fermented milk product contains a much smaller amount of fat, because salads and dishes seasoned with it will not cause any harm to the figure - on the contrary, accelerated metabolism is characteristic of yogurt, so the process of getting rid of extra pounds can go faster and without any harm for the body. In addition, the composition of homemade yogurt contains more dairy crops, and its usefulness significantly prevails over the properties of the purchased one. The latter, in turn, contains many preservatives that allow you to store the product for months without compromising on taste, but at the same time with a complete loss of health.

Sourdough and milk for yogurt

One of the most important and crucial stages in the preparation of yogurt is the search and selection of yeast. This substance in itself, which causes fermentation. So, yeast for bread is yeast, and for yogurt it is a sour-milk culture that contains all the necessary lactobacilli.This leaven can be consumed in its pure form, by itself, it is also very useful for the body: it strengthens the immune system, creates protection against viruses, especially with the onset of bad weather, improves the digestive tract, speeds up metabolism and helps normalize body weight.

There are several types of yogurt starter cultures:

1. Live acidophilic cultures - they stop the inflammatory process, remove toxins, help cleanse the body, relieve side effects from taking antibiotics, normalize the disorder after eating foods.
2. Live cottage cheese cultures - the basis is made up of bifidobacterium bacteria, which are invariably found in the human body, support the intestinal microflora, break down proteins, normalize cholesterol, and have immunoprotective property.
3. Live yogurt bacteria - such starter cultures are metered and completely ready for home use.

The necessary starter is sold in pharmacies, as a rule, a jar implies the receipt of several liters of the finished product. You should not buy store yogurt to use it as a starter culture, as it inevitably contains pathogenic microbes (most often Escherichia coli). In this form, they pose a minimal risk to the body, but when fermented, they can multiply, and then disorders, the occurrence of infections and food poisoning are possible.

Next, you need to choose milk. The amount of yogurt obtained depends on its quantity; It is recommended to use from 1 to 3 liters at a time. The ideal option is a pasteurized or ultra-pasteurized product, which should not be stored for long periods. Even better - homemade milk, fresh, the quality and reliability of which inspire confidence in you. It must be boiled for several minutes before proceeding with the preparation of yogurt. Pasteurized should be heated to 90 degrees, do not bring to a boil; ultra-pasteurized can be used immediately, without preparatory measures.

You should not cook yogurt using sterilized milk, since it undergoes rigorous processing, all vitamins and beneficial lactobacilli disappear, and properties are lost. Plus, during sterilization, salt and stabilizers are added to the milk, which will subsequently affect the quality of the prepared yogurt.

Preparatory Activities

Cookware
First of all, you should take care of the cleanliness of the dishes in which yogurt will be prepared. Even the spoons that will come into contact with the leaven should be subjected to the strictest measures, since changing its microflora can lead, at a minimum, to a loss in the taste of the resulting product, and a maximum to the multiplication of pathogenic microbes and poisoning due to the use of low-quality yogurt.

So, the dishes should be thoroughly washed and scalded with boiling water, as well as jars where the yogurt will be poured, and plastic lids to close them. And at the end of the scalding process, immediately cover / close the banks. In addition to this, it is impossible to use aluminum devices, and the thermometer must be wiped with alcohol, and in no case should it be doused with hot water. During the process of preparing yogurt, it is strictly forbidden to touch the inner surface of the cans and lids with your hands or consumables, the latter should also not be placed on the countertop, even if it is turned upside down, as air may remain on the walls, with its "enemy" microflora for future yogurt .

Milk preparation
It is necessary to open the bag immediately before the start of cooking, otherwise later it will turn out not yogurt, but yogurt. Pour it into a clean stainless pan and heat it (how to deal with different types of milk - described above). Do not use enameled dishes - in it the product will quickly burn.If you boiled milk, then it should be cooled to 38-45 degrees (in the case of ultra-pasteurized - immediately heat to this temperature). If you do not have a thermometer, try to determine "by eye" - firstly, through the glass cover that covers the pan, you should feel tolerable heat; secondly, drip a couple of drops of milk on the inner side of the wrist, as the most sensitive area of ​​the skin, it should be hot, but not burn the skin. In its own way, both overheating and underheating are bad for yogurt; but the latter option is still more acceptable, since in this case the product will turn out to be not very thick (although it still depends on milk - choose the thicker the more saturated you want yogurt). During overheating, if you add starter to too hot milk - at a temperature of 50 degrees or more - bacteria that promote fermentation will begin to die, and then all efforts will be in vain.

Leaven
Each sourdough is accompanied by an instruction with a recipe, which indicates how much it should be used for each liter of milk - focus on it. The most important thing is to mix the sourdough with warm milk well. To dissolve it, pour about 10 ml of milk (depending on the amount of yeast and milk in general) into the bottle from the pan, shake it several times to stir, and pour the resulting mass into the pan with the remaining milk.

It is believed that cooked homemade yogurt (if, of course, it is cooked correctly - not malleable and not slippery) can be used as a starter culture in the future. So, it can be re-fermented several times, however, it should be remembered that at home we cannot ensure complete sterility during storage of the product, and it is better to cook yogurt with the help of the starter culture purchased in a pharmacy. Especially if it will be part of the children's diet. In addition, such manipulations can affect the taste and properties of the product.

Cooking yogurt on your own

In the yogurt maker. Not every house has a yogurt maker, but if your plans for the future necessarily include this sour-milk product prepared at home, then it is highly recommended to purchase it. What is good yogurt maker? It maintains the required temperature throughout the entire fermentation period (meanwhile, milk should remain warm from 6 to 12 hours, without any differences, which is difficult to independently control). If you have a yogurt maker, you only need to mix milk with sourdough, pour it into special jars that come with it, and turn on the device. After about 10 hours, you can already take a sample.

Without yogurt maker
This is harder. There are several ways to maintain the temperature of milk:

1. Use a thermos flask for fermentation that retains heat well.
2. Wrap the dishes in a blanket or cover them with a pillow and place them near a hot battery.
3. Pour the future yogurt into jars, cover with cling film, fill any flat container with warm water, put jars in it and wrap it again with film; then put in a warm place - for example, in a preheated oven turned off.

If you want the consistency of yogurt to be thicker and denser, put it in the refrigerator for several hours. In addition, this way you will extend its shelf life and increase its benefits while preserving living cultures.

Video: how to make delicious homemade yogurt