The most common yogurt making problems are addressed below. Making yogurt is a fairly simple process, but occasionally problems do arise.
The following tips should help
you out.
A few common problems that people have with homemade yogurt are:
Yogurt is too thin and runny
Yogurt takes to long to set up
Yogurt doesn’t set up at all after 12 hours
Homemade yogurt has a different consistency than store-bought yogurt which is usually made partially from dry milk solids and contains stabilizers and starches.
For thicker yogurt you can either strain it or add powdered dry milk while heating milk.
Some Common Reasons for Yogurt Not Thickening
1. The quality and presence of live yogurt cultures is not adequate.
It is common for people making yogurt for the first time to discover that there are no cultures in the store-bought yogurt they are using for a culture.
If you are using a plain yogurt for your starter, it can be tricky to tell if it actually contains live cultures. It may list cultures in the ingredients, but
if it does not not have the live and active cultures seal, it probably has been heat-treated and will not work.
It can even say contains live cultures or made with live cultures on the container, but if it doesn’t have the seal, it does not contain a suitable amount and quality of live and active cultures.
Look for this when you buy yogurt.Yogurt culture may be too old or not have enough viable culture in it to culture the yogurt quickly. For example a yogurt brand like Dannon which contains 2 strains of culture will take 6-8 hours to culture, while a brand like Stonyfield yogurt (containing 4 strains of cultures) will take 4-6 hours.
I highly recommend using Stonyfield Yogurt for a culture, it works great for me every time.
2. The kind of milk used is not sufficient.
It can be difficult to find regular pasteurized milk in some stores, but ultra-pasteurized milk will not support the yogurt cultures.
Lactaid milk or any other lactose-free milk also will not support the yogurt cultures since they need lactose (milk sugar). Any other kind of milk can be made into yogurt. Soy milk, rice milk, almond milk, coconut milk, goat milk, sheep milk, water buffalo milk… (just in case you happen to have a water buffalo in your backyard)
3. The yogurt is too cold during fermentation.
There are many methods of making yogurt that work well. It is a simple process, however if you live in a very cold climate you might find that some of the methods do not keep the
yogurt warm enough during incubation. The yogurt generally needs to be kept at around 100 degrees, but if it is a little colder, it just takes longer for the yogurt to thicken.
If it is too cold however, it will never thicken.
4. The yogurt culture is added too soon after heating the milk.
The scalded milk needs to cool to at least 110 degrees before adding the culture otherwise you risk killing the cultures.
5. Unclean utensils and containers have been used.
I’ll start with the obvious and easiest way to incubate yogurt. My way, of course.
1. A conventional oven
my oven red
Set oven to 100 degrees F if possible. No need to wrap with towels. (Yikes! Please ignore the dirty oven.)
I heat and cool nonfat milk in a Pyrex, 2-quart batter bowl. It’s the perfect size and holds heat better than plastic or metal.
I’m blessed to have an oven with a bread proofing cycle. I set it to 100 degrees F and go to bed. No towels needed. No babysitting needed. Perfect yogurt in the morning!
My previous oven could not be set that low so I would turn it on briefly to heat it to 100 degrees and then shut it off. I produced numerous successful batches in that oven with the light on and the covered milk container wrapped in towels as illustrated in my original post.
N2ition commented about her own oven that also can’t be set on a low temperature. “Robert, I just saw your post and wanted to let you know that I make about 3 gallons a week. My oven is about the same age as yours and has the same problem (only goes to 200). I always preheat the oven about 1 minute and then turn it off and put the yogurt in. Yesterday’s batch took nearly 13 hours to set up…and at hour 11 it still looked like milk. Next time you try it, make it at night and just pop it in the oven over night. (I have good luck making it about dinner time or right after I put my kids to bed and it’s perfect by the next morning).
Preheating and then leaving the door closed usually will maintain the temp for 12-15 hours but if I am really impatient and open the oven a lot to check I have had to turn it back on for about 30 seconds to get the temp back up enough to keep the yogurt around 110. Good luck!”
2. A crockpot
crock pot
Try a crockpot with a Warm setting.
I tried this for myself last night and it worked. After heating the crock-pot long enough to bring the temperature of the milk to 115 degrees, I unplugged it. Then I wrapped the milk container inside the crock-pot with a towel and wrapped the covered crock-pot with a couple of big bath towels
Others have similar experiences. Whitney said, “Just tried your recipe today! After a few tries of finding a place where the temp stayed the most consistent my crock-pot won out. On warm with a water bath surrounding a smaller bowl (I only tried a half batch to see if I would like it or not) it stayed a consistent 103ish.”
Stephanie had beginner’s luck. “Success on the very first try! But I want to try to find a better way of incubating, as the process is long and ties up the oven. Think I will find a crock-pot with a “warm” setting and donate my old one to my parish kitchen (we always seem to need them for nachos, puzzle, etc.).”
3. A heating pad and towels
heating pad red
A lot of people like to use a heating pad. Be sure to place a towel between the bowl and the pad--unlike what you see here.
I’ve tried this too but it takes a little experimenting. The Errant Cook writes, “Hi! I’ve made yogurt 4 or 5 times now thanks to your instructions, and it’s fantastic. I set the covered bowl on top of a heating pad on low, check it frequently with an infrared thermometer (a lovely gadget from my husband), and after about 11 hours, it’s ready to go.”
Nancy shared a word of caution. “We used a heating pad on the first round which had an automatic shutoff (something we didn’t realize before starting the process)–the yogurt did not get thick overnight! We added more starter (from a small container of nonfat Fage plain Greek yogurt) and found another pad in the house (lucky!) which didn’t shut off at all. We have had a great experience with this yogurt and will make it often!”
Julie likes the heating pad too, ” I have a glass casserole bowl with a cover that holds about 3/4 of a gal. I heat the milk in the microwave to 160 -180 degrees ( about 20 min in my microwave) then let it cool to 110 -115 degrees. Stir in about 2 tsp of my starter yogurt and put the lid on. I set it on a heating pad (mine is not adjustable it only has off and on) with 2 layers of a bath towel under it and I cover the rest of the bowl with the remaining towel. It keeps it at 105 – 110 degrees. I make it before going to bed, I check on it if I wake up for some reason, but in the morning before work I have a nice big batch of yogurt”
4. A microwave oven
towels
Towels help even out and preserve heat.
From Tamara, a self-professed Greek yogurt addict, “A couple of tips that have worked for me — I’ve put foil over the top of the bowl to help retain heat and then double wrapped in dish towels. I incubate mine in the microwave, because it’s smaller than the oven. I also heat up a microwavable hot pad that will stay warm for hours. That provides the right amount of heat in the small space. I usually put it to bed about 11pm and it’s ready by 7am.”
Tony from Australia shared this idea,” ….Next, how to keep warm! Saw another reader’s microwave and pad idea. No pads, so used wheat bags we regularly use for muscle strain/pain. Heated the bags and wrapped around the bowl which was covered in foil. Then covered in two small towels making sure door side of microwave was well insulated with toweling. 8.5 hours later the microwave was still nice and warm and lo and behold I had lovely yogurt with no strong tang. Just very yummy.”
5. A camping cooler or ice chest
ice chest red
A camping cooler or ice chest reportedly makes a good incubator.
I have not personally tried this one but several have.
Yogurt man wrote, “I set up a regular camping cooler, and I put one plastic container in it which I fill with 2 kettle fulls of boiling water, then seal container/cooler right away. When yogurt is ready I put all the containers inside the cooler (where the boiling water makes it the perfect sauna and maintains the temperature you need) and let it sit for 7-8 hours and then it’s ready. ”
From Lynette, “This was so fun!! It is so easy. My gas oven did not stay hot enough with the pilot light on. I got our cooler out of the garage and put a heating pad in the bottom. I set it at medium heat. Wrapped the bowl in a beach towel, and set it in the cooler with the lid on. Next morning (12 hours) I have the most yummy stuff ever.”
Deanna said, “LOVE the tips here. I love making yogurt and used a yogurt maker with about 8 oz cups until now. A friend of ours makes his yogurt in quart jars and wraps the warm jar in towels and then puts it in an ice chest. Using commercial starter this method only takes about 4 to 5 hours.”
6. Miscellaneous ideas
Lenore uses a dehydrator and reports, ” I’ve got yogurt!! Straining now! Woo hoo! I followed the temperature instructions to a tee, but may have put too much yogurt in as a starter. I popped in a dehydrator at 100 degrees overnight and in the morning I had warm milk and a skin. Hmmm…pulled off the skin, added some probiotics and popped it back in the dehydrator again for the day. Got home late and..yes! I have yogurt.”
Janet
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ปัญหาการทำโยเกิร์ตที่พบมากที่สุดจะอยู่ด้านล่าง ทำโยเกิร์ตเป็นกระบวนการที่ค่อนข้างง่าย แต่บางครั้งปัญหาเกิดขึ้นเคล็ดลับต่อไปนี้จะช่วยคุณออกมีกี่ปัญหาที่คนมีโยเกิร์ตโฮมเมด:โยเกิร์ตจะบางเกินไป และและน้ำมูกไหลโยเกิร์ตใช้เวลานานถึงการตั้งค่าโยเกิร์ตไม่ตั้งเลยหลังจาก 12 ชั่วโมงโยเกิร์ตโฮมเมดมีความสอดคล้องแตกต่างกว่าโยเกิร์ต store-bought ซึ่งมักจะทำเพียงบางส่วนจากของแข็งแห้งนม และ stabilizers และสมบัติสำหรับโยเกิร์ตหนา คุณสามารถสายพันธุ์นั้น หรือเพิ่มนมผงแห้งในขณะที่ความร้อนนมเหตุผลโดยทั่วไปสำหรับโยเกิร์ตไม่หนา1. คุณภาพและของวัฒนธรรมโยเกิร์ตสดไม่เพียงพอเป็นเรื่องปกติสำหรับคนที่ทำโยเกิร์ตครั้งแรกสัมผัสที่มีวัฒนธรรมไม่มีอยู่ในโยเกิร์ต store-bought ที่พวกเขาใช้วัฒนธรรมถ้าคุณกำลังใช้โยเกิร์ตธรรมดาสำหรับเริ่มต้นของคุณ มันสามารถหากินจะบอกว่า จริง ๆ แล้วประกอบด้วยวัฒนธรรมอยู่ มันอาจแสดงรายการวัฒนธรรมในส่วนผสม แต่ถ้ามันไม่มีวัฒนธรรมการอยู่ และใช้งานที่ประทับตรา มันคงได้รับ heat-treated และจะไม่ทำงานมันสามารถแม้พูดประกอบด้วยวัฒนธรรมสด หรือทำให้ มีวัฒนธรรมอยู่ในคอนเทนเนอร์ แต่ถ้ามันไม่มีตราประทับ มันประกอบด้วยจำนวนที่เหมาะสมและคุณภาพของชีวิต และงานวัฒนธรรมได้ค้นหานี้เมื่อคุณซื้อโยเกิร์ต วัฒนธรรมโยเกิร์ตอาจจะเก่าเกินไป หรือไม่มีวัฒนธรรมการทำงานได้เพียงพอในเรื่องวัฒนธรรมโยเกิร์ตได้อย่างรวดเร็ว เช่น โยเกิร์ตแบรนด์เช่น Dannon ซึ่งประกอบด้วยสายพันธุ์ที่ 2 วัฒนธรรมจะใช้เวลา 6-8 ชั่วโมงวัฒนธรรม ในขณะที่แบรนด์เช่น Stonyfield โยเกิร์ต (ประกอบด้วยสายพันธุ์ที่ 4 วัฒนธรรม) จะใช้เวลา 4-6 ชั่วโมงคำแนะนำใช้โยเกิร์ต Stonyfield วัฒนธรรม ทำงานที่ดีสำหรับฉันทุกครั้ง2. ชนิดของนมที่ใช้ไม่เพียงพออาจเป็นเรื่องยากในการค้นหานมพาสเจอร์ไรส์ประจำในร้าน แต่นมพาสเจอร์ไรส์ทันจะสนับสนุนวัฒนธรรมโยเกิร์ตนม Lactaid หรือใด ๆ อื่น ๆ ฟรีแล็กโทสนมยังจะสนับสนุนวัฒนธรรมโยเกิร์ตเนื่องจากจะต้องย่อยแลคโตส (น้ำตาลนม) นมประเภทอื่น ๆ สามารถทำเป็นโยเกิร์ต นมถั่วเหลือง น้ำนมข้าว น้ำนมอัลมอนด์ กะทิ นมแพะ นมแกะ นมควาย... (ในกรณีที่คุณเกิดขึ้นจะเป็นควายในสนามหลังบ้านของคุณ)3.โยเกิร์ตจะหนาวเกินไปในระหว่างการหมักมีวิธีการมากของการทำโยเกิร์ตที่ทำงานดีขึ้น มันคือกระบวนการเรียบง่าย แต่ถ้าอยู่ในอากาศหนาวเย็นมาก คุณอาจพบว่า บางวิธีการไม่ให้การอบอุ่นพอในระหว่างการบ่มโยเกิร์ต โยเกิร์ตโดยทั่วไปจะต้องถูกเก็บไว้ที่ประมาณ 100 องศา แต่ถ้าหนาวเล็กน้อย เพียงใช้เวลานานสำหรับโยเกิร์ตเพื่อ thickenถ้าเย็นเกินไปอย่างไรก็ตาม มันจะไม่ thicken4. วัฒนธรรมโยเกิร์ตจะเพิ่มเร็วเกินไปหลังจากนมร้อนนมลวกต้องเย็นก่อนที่จะเพิ่มคุณเสี่ยงต่อการฆ่าวัฒนธรรมอื่น ๆ วัฒนธรรมน้อย 110 องศา5. มีการใช้ภาชนะบรรจุและอุปกรณ์อโยธยาฉันจะเริ่มต้น ด้วยวิธีชัดเจน และง่ายที่สุดฟักโยเกิร์ต วิธีของฉัน ของหลักสูตร1.เตาอบทั่วไปเตาอบของฉันสีแดงตั้งเตาอบถึง 100 องศา F ถ้าเป็นไปได้ ไม่ต้องห่อ ด้วยผ้าขนหนู (Yikes กรุณาละเว้นเตาอบสกปรก)ความร้อน และเย็นนม nonfat ใน Pyrex แป้ง 2 ควอร์ตชาม มันเป็นขนาดเหมาะสม และเก็บความร้อนดีกว่าพลาสติกหรือโลหะฉันกำลังอวยพรให้เตาอบกับขนมปังที่ตรวจวงจร ตั้งค่าเป็น 100 องศา F และไปนอน ไม่จำเป็นต้องใช้ผ้าขนหนู ไม่เลี้ยงต้องการ สมบูรณ์แบบโยเกิร์ตตอนเช้าเตาอบของฉันก่อนหน้านี้ไม่สามารถกำหนดที่ต่ำเพื่อที่จะเปิดมันสั้น ๆ ความร้อน 100 องศา และปิดปิด ฉันผลิตชุดประสบความสำเร็จมากมายในที่เตาอบด้วยไฟบนและขวดนมครอบคลุมที่ห่อในผ้าขนหนูดังที่แสดงในบทความต้นฉบับN2ition commented about her own oven that also can’t be set on a low temperature. “Robert, I just saw your post and wanted to let you know that I make about 3 gallons a week. My oven is about the same age as yours and has the same problem (only goes to 200). I always preheat the oven about 1 minute and then turn it off and put the yogurt in. Yesterday’s batch took nearly 13 hours to set up…and at hour 11 it still looked like milk. Next time you try it, make it at night and just pop it in the oven over night. (I have good luck making it about dinner time or right after I put my kids to bed and it’s perfect by the next morning).Preheating and then leaving the door closed usually will maintain the temp for 12-15 hours but if I am really impatient and open the oven a lot to check I have had to turn it back on for about 30 seconds to get the temp back up enough to keep the yogurt around 110. Good luck!”2. A crockpotcrock potTry a crockpot with a Warm setting.I tried this for myself last night and it worked. After heating the crock-pot long enough to bring the temperature of the milk to 115 degrees, I unplugged it. Then I wrapped the milk container inside the crock-pot with a towel and wrapped the covered crock-pot with a couple of big bath towelsOthers have similar experiences. Whitney said, “Just tried your recipe today! After a few tries of finding a place where the temp stayed the most consistent my crock-pot won out. On warm with a water bath surrounding a smaller bowl (I only tried a half batch to see if I would like it or not) it stayed a consistent 103ish.”Stephanie had beginner’s luck. “Success on the very first try! But I want to try to find a better way of incubating, as the process is long and ties up the oven. Think I will find a crock-pot with a “warm” setting and donate my old one to my parish kitchen (we always seem to need them for nachos, puzzle, etc.).”3. A heating pad and towelsheating pad redA lot of people like to use a heating pad. Be sure to place a towel between the bowl and the pad--unlike what you see here.I’ve tried this too but it takes a little experimenting. The Errant Cook writes, “Hi! I’ve made yogurt 4 or 5 times now thanks to your instructions, and it’s fantastic. I set the covered bowl on top of a heating pad on low, check it frequently with an infrared thermometer (a lovely gadget from my husband), and after about 11 hours, it’s ready to go.”Nancy shared a word of caution. “We used a heating pad on the first round which had an automatic shutoff (something we didn’t realize before starting the process)–the yogurt did not get thick overnight! We added more starter (from a small container of nonfat Fage plain Greek yogurt) and found another pad in the house (lucky!) which didn’t shut off at all. We have had a great experience with this yogurt and will make it often!”Julie likes the heating pad too, ” I have a glass casserole bowl with a cover that holds about 3/4 of a gal. I heat the milk in the microwave to 160 -180 degrees ( about 20 min in my microwave) then let it cool to 110 -115 degrees. Stir in about 2 tsp of my starter yogurt and put the lid on. I set it on a heating pad (mine is not adjustable it only has off and on) with 2 layers of a bath towel under it and I cover the rest of the bowl with the remaining towel. It keeps it at 105 – 110 degrees. I make it before going to bed, I check on it if I wake up for some reason, but in the morning before work I have a nice big batch of yogurt”4. A microwave oventowelsTowels help even out and preserve heat.From Tamara, a self-professed Greek yogurt addict, “A couple of tips that have worked for me — I’ve put foil over the top of the bowl to help retain heat and then double wrapped in dish towels. I incubate mine in the microwave, because it’s smaller than the oven. I also heat up a microwavable hot pad that will stay warm for hours. That provides the right amount of heat in the small space. I usually put it to bed about 11pm and it’s ready by 7am.”
Tony from Australia shared this idea,” ….Next, how to keep warm! Saw another reader’s microwave and pad idea. No pads, so used wheat bags we regularly use for muscle strain/pain. Heated the bags and wrapped around the bowl which was covered in foil. Then covered in two small towels making sure door side of microwave was well insulated with toweling. 8.5 hours later the microwave was still nice and warm and lo and behold I had lovely yogurt with no strong tang. Just very yummy.”
5. A camping cooler or ice chest
ice chest red
A camping cooler or ice chest reportedly makes a good incubator.
I have not personally tried this one but several have.
Yogurt man wrote, “I set up a regular camping cooler, and I put one plastic container in it which I fill with 2 kettle fulls of boiling water, then seal container/cooler right away. When yogurt is ready I put all the containers inside the cooler (where the boiling water makes it the perfect sauna and maintains the temperature you need) and let it sit for 7-8 hours and then it’s ready. ”
From Lynette, “This was so fun!! It is so easy. My gas oven did not stay hot enough with the pilot light on. I got our cooler out of the garage and put a heating pad in the bottom. I set it at medium heat. Wrapped the bowl in a beach towel, and set it in the cooler with the lid on. Next morning (12 hours) I have the most yummy stuff ever.”
Deanna said, “LOVE the tips here. I love making yogurt and used a yogurt maker with about 8 oz cups until now. A friend of ours makes his yogurt in quart jars and wraps the warm jar in towels and then puts it in an ice chest. Using commercial starter this method only takes about 4 to 5 hours.”
6. Miscellaneous ideas
Lenore uses a dehydrator and reports, ” I’ve got yogurt!! Straining now! Woo hoo! I followed the temperature instructions to a tee, but may have put too much yogurt in as a starter. I popped in a dehydrator at 100 degrees overnight and in the morning I had warm milk and a skin. Hmmm…pulled off the skin, added some probiotics and popped it back in the dehydrator again for the day. Got home late and..yes! I have yogurt.”
Janet
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