Make Yogurt In Your Crockpot

[kikoman]

My doctor suggested I eat Yogurt, I tried it and to my surprise I liked it.

I ran across an article about making my own yogurt in a Crockpot.

The following is the procedure I use.

*Turn your Crockpot to low and pour in a 1/2 gallon of milk.

* Heat it on low for 2 !/2 hours.

* Once your 2 1/2 hours have passed turn your Crockpot off and unplug it.

* Let the milk cool in the pot with the lid on for 3 hours.

* After 3 hours remove 2 cups of the warmed milk from the Crockpot and place it in a bowl.

add 1/2 cup of store brought yogurt with live active cultures and mix very well.

* Pour the yogurt-milk back into the milk in the pot and whisk thoroughly.

* Place the cover back on the Crockpot and wrap the entire Crockpot in a thick bath towel, (I used 3)

* Let it culture overnight 8 to 12 hours

* In the morning store the yogurt in a covered container of your choice

* For the best results refrigerate for at least 8 hours before using

So simple and easy to make. I paid 78 baht for a half gallon of milk and 10 baht for the plain yogurt at Macro.

I ended up with 1/2 gallon of homemade, delicious, inexpensive yogurt.

The yogurt will last in the fridge for up to 2 weeks.

You can make the firmer Greek yogurt by placing the yogurt in cheese cloth and allow it to drain for 8 hours in the fridge.

You also may add a sweetener and or your favorite fruit to the yogurt before eating it.

Cheers:

[Michaelaway]

Wow, that's really interesting; thanks for posting. I'm not generally a big yogurt fan, but there are a few recipes I like to make which include yogurt as an ingredient (tzatziki, in particular). Also, I know eating yogurt promotes good health so I might try making some in our crock pot one of these days, now that I've seen your recipe. So easy. Have any more recipes that can be successfully made with local ingredients? Ie: salsa verde, black bean & corn salsa, etc.? Gracias y bueno suerte, amigo!

[theseahorse]

I've been making my own yogurt here for years. It's really easy as you say but your method is rather long winded.

Just scald (heat, but not boil) 2 litres of milk, leave to cool to blood temperature. Add a small pot of live yogurt and leave over night. In the morning place in the fridge until its cold. Done.

Strain in muslin, if you prefer it thicker.

[kikoman]

Wow, that's really interesting; thanks for posting. I'm not generally a big yogurt fan, but there are a few recipes I like to make which include yogurt as an ingredient (tzatziki, in particular). Also, I know eating yogurt promotes good health so I might try making some in our crock pot one of these days, now that I've seen your recipe. So easy. Have any more recipes that can be successfully made with local ingredients? Ie: salsa verde, black bean & corn salsa, etc.? Gracias y bueno suerte, amigo!

Michaelway,

I do Mexican recipes, or substitute readily available local ingredients in making Mexican food for myself.

I do not make Tex-Mex or Cali-Mex American foods or am I knowledge able about making those foods.

If you are still interested in seeing if you can use my recipes, PM me and I will give you the ones I know, O.K.!

Cheers:

[kikoman]

I've been making my own yogurt here for years. It's really easy as you say but your method is rather long winded.

Just scald (heat, but not boil) 2 litres of milk, leave to cool to blood temperature. Add a small pot of live yogurt and leave over night. In the morning place in the fridge until its cold. Done.

Strain in muslin, if you prefer it thicker.

As you say you have been making yogurt for years, and you know that cooling to blood temperature,

means putting your finger in the heated milk till it feels only a slight warmness.

I did not know what heating to 180 degrees was (scald, not boil) without using the required candy thermometer

I knew about testing the 100 degrees by inserting ones finger into the heated milk..

I picked the recipe that worked for me, as I did not have a yogurt maker or candy thermometer

Until after I made my 1st batch of yogurt and saw that it was not boiling at the end of 2 1/2 hours.

I knew when to go to the next step simply by timing (Watching the clock).

My 1st attempt to make yogurt was a success, so easy, simple and inexpensive.

Keep on Making it for years to come.

Cheers:

[kennalder]

Yes, thanks for the idea. I have been wanting to get some yogurt without the artificial sweeteners. This looks like a great way to do it. Since I can't read Thai, how do you know if you are buying yogurt with live cultures? Just any old plain yogurt?

[theseahorse]

Yes, thanks for the idea. I have been wanting to get some yogurt without the artificial sweeteners. This looks like a great way to do it. Since I can't read Thai, how do you know if you are buying yogurt with live cultures? Just any old plain yogurt?

There are two main brands here that are live. I normally use Yolanda (??) for mine when I have to start a new batch they sell it in all Tops, Villa, Foodland etc. They have recently changed the packaging and the writing is now in English. There's also a Organic yogurt that comes in a pot with a red lid (sorry, don't rememeber the name). Both make very nice yogurt, but each has a slightly different flavour. Just see which you prefer.

I've always been told that all yogurt, even the crappy stuff from 7-11 will work, but I've never tested it out so not sure if thats true.

[theseahorse]

I've been making my own yogurt here for years. It's really easy as you say but your method is rather long winded.

Just scald (heat, but not boil) 2 litres of milk, leave to cool to blood temperature. Add a small pot of live yogurt and leave over night. In the morning place in the fridge until its cold. Done.

Strain in muslin, if you prefer it thicker.

As you say you have been making yogurt for years, and you know that cooling to blood temperature,

means putting your finger in the heated milk till it feels only a slight warmness.

I did not know what heating to 180 degrees was (scald, not boil) without using the required candy thermometer

I knew about testing the 100 degrees by inserting ones finger into the heated milk..

I picked the recipe that worked for me, as I did not have a yogurt maker or candy thermometer

Until after I made my 1st batch of yogurt and saw that it was not boiling at the end of 2 1/2 hours.

I knew when to go to the next step simply by timing (Watching the clock).

My 1st attempt to make yogurt was a success, so easy, simple and inexpensive.

Keep on Making it for years to come.

Cheers:

The crock pot method is usually used in cooler climates as it wouldn't be warm enough for the bacteria to breed, but the Thai climate is about perfect so it's not really needed here. Back in Europe I always put my yogurt in the airing cupboard over night to keep it warm enough.

I don't use a thermometer when making mine, just warm the milk until it's almost boiling but not quite, it won't make any difference if it's a few degrees one way or the other, just don't burn it. When heating the milk you are getting the proteins working and it will produce a thicker end result. It is possible to just add yogurt to unheated milk and leave it in a warm place and it will turn into yogurt, but it will be much thinner if the milk hasn't been heated.

But if the recipe you use works for you then great, enjoy your yogurt.

[kikoman]

Yes, thanks for the idea. I have been wanting to get some yogurt without the artificial sweeteners. This looks like a great way to do it. Since I can't read Thai, how do you know if you are buying yogurt with live cultures? Just any old plain yogurt?

I had that problem also, as all the writing was in Thai, I just purchased the only plain yogurt that was at Macro the day I went. It has a three letter Thai name and is in a light & dark blue,and white container. On the lower front side, it has a long Thai word and under that is printed (Dutchie*original yoghurt) and it worked for me.

Hope that was helpful.

Good luck in making your yogurt.

Cheers:

[paulchiangmai]

What milk do you use, full cream, half cream, no cream. I eat yogurt every morning and would like to give it a go.

[kikoman]

What milk do you use, full cream, half cream, no cream. I eat yogurt every morning and would like to give it a go.

I used the regular pasteurized milk (I think that is what you would call full cream) I read that you can use most milks except (ultra-pasteurized) but it suggested you should do your 1st batch with full cream milk.

I am satisfied with that, but if fat is a diet issue you can use 2% milk and I read that many people use powdered milk.

Maybe, Theseahorse could help you more in this area.

Good Luck.

Cheers:

[paulchiangmai]

What milk do you use, full cream, half cream, no cream. I eat yogurt every morning and would like to give it a go.

I used the regular pasteurized milk (I think that is what you would call full cream) I read that you can use most milks except (ultra-pasteurized) but it suggested you should do your 1st batch with full cream milk.

I am satisfied with that, but if fat is a diet issue you can use 2% milk and I read that many people use powdered milk.

Maybe, Theseahorse could help you more in this area.

Good Luck.

Cheers:

Thanks kikoman, will give it a shot.

[theseahorse]

What milk do you use, full cream, half cream, no cream. I eat yogurt every morning and would like to give it a go.

I used the regular pasteurized milk (I think that is what you would call full cream) I read that you can use most milks except (ultra-pasteurized) but it suggested you should do your 1st batch with full cream milk.

I am satisfied with that, but if fat is a diet issue you can use 2% milk and I read that many people use powdered milk.

Maybe, Theseahorse could help you more in this area.

Good Luck.

Cheers:

You're correct, any milk will work, but less fat in the milk will give you a thinner yogurt. If using skimmed (no fat) then you may want to strain the yogurt in muslin to thicken it afterwards.

Good luck.

[kennalder]

Yes, thanks for the idea. I have been wanting to get some yogurt without the artificial sweeteners. This looks like a great way to do it. Since I can't read Thai, how do you know if you are buying yogurt with live cultures? Just any old plain yogurt?

I had that problem also, as all the writing was in Thai, I just purchased the only plain yogurt that was at Macro the day I went. It has a three letter Thai name and is in a light & dark blue,and white container. On the lower front side, it has a long Thai word and under that is printed (Dutchie*original yoghurt) and it worked for me.

Hope that was helpful.

Good luck in making your yogurt.

Cheers:

Thank you, I plan to start the first batch today. Just another couple of questions. First, since the milk has been pasteurized already, is it necessary to "scald" it again? Second, does it matter what kind of container is used while the culture works? Is a metal saucepan okay?

Thanks

[theseahorse]

Yes, thanks for the idea. I have been wanting to get some yogurt without the artificial sweeteners. This looks like a great way to do it. Since I can't read Thai, how do you know if you are buying yogurt with live cultures? Just any old plain yogurt?

I had that problem also, as all the writing was in Thai, I just purchased the only plain yogurt that was at Macro the day I went. It has a three letter Thai name and is in a light & dark blue,and white container. On the lower front side, it has a long Thai word and under that is printed (Dutchie*original yoghurt) and it worked for me.

Hope that was helpful.

Good luck in making your yogurt.

Cheers:

Thank you, I plan to start the first batch today. Just another couple of questions. First, since the milk has been pasteurized already, is it necessary to "scald" it again? Second, does it matter what kind of container is used while the culture works? Is a metal saucepan okay?

Thanks

It's not essential to heat the milk, but you'll get a thicker yogurt if you do and if you plan to strain it you'll end up with more. When heating the milk you're not re-pasteurizing it, your just getting the proteins and bacteria in the milk working again, in cheese production it's called ripening (but it would contain a special starter culture too), it's not essential but I'd highly recommend it.

Any pan is fine apart from a cheap aluminium pot as it may react with the culture. I always use a thick based stainless steel pan and then transfer into small (500ml) plastic containers the next day once set and chilled.

[kennalder]

Yes, thanks for the idea. I have been wanting to get some yogurt without the artificial sweeteners. This looks like a great way to do it. Since I can't read Thai, how do you know if you are buying yogurt with live cultures? Just any old plain yogurt?

I had that problem also, as all the writing was in Thai, I just purchased the only plain yogurt that was at Macro the day I went. It has a three letter Thai name and is in a light & dark blue,and white container. On the lower front side, it has a long Thai word and under that is printed (Dutchie*original yoghurt) and it worked for me.

Hope that was helpful.

Good luck in making your yogurt.

Cheers:

Thank you, I plan to start the first batch today. Just another couple of questions. First, since the milk has been pasteurized already, is it necessary to "scald" it again? Second, does it matter what kind of container is used while the culture works? Is a metal saucepan okay?

Thanks

It's not essential to heat the milk, but you'll get a thicker yogurt if you do and if you plan to strain it you'll end up with more. When heating the milk you're not re-pasteurizing it, your just getting the proteins and bacteria in the milk working again, in cheese production it's called ripening (but it would contain a special starter culture too), it's not essential but I'd highly recommend it.

Any pan is fine apart from a cheap aluminium pot as it may react with the culture. I always use a thick based stainless steel pan and then transfer into small (500ml) plastic containers the next day once set and chilled.

Thank you.

[kikoman]

I would like to thank Theseahorse for his valuable input on this thread,

Also would like to wish Kennnalder & Paulchangmai success in their yogurt making!

Good luck and Thank you.

Cheers:

[talatnat]

I find Chok-Chai 100% pasteurized milk to have the highest fat content for making yogurt. I just heat the milk to a slight bubbling boil before turning off the heat. After it cools to slightly over blood warm temperature (110 F is supposedly around the ideal for Lactobacillus cultures), I pour the milk into an insulated plastic ice-cube container (the type restaurants use to serve ice cubes for drinks) to help retain the heat; if the milk gets too cold after a few hours, or anytime during yogurt formation, you can zap it a microwave for 30 seconds to heat it slightly. If you want a firmer yogurt, you can add about a cup of skimmed milk powder to a liter of milk (the texture is great, though I personally don't like the taste of the resulting yogurt).

I find Yolada plain yogurt (I get it at Tops) the best starter. Of late, I have been adding a 50:50 starter mix of Yolada and Bio, which has probiotic cultures. The resulting yogurt seems to last longer in the refrigerator for some reason. I freeze Yolada in ice cube trays since it isn't always available at Tops. Bio by itself works fine, too, when I'm out of Yolada, but like other sweetened yogurts tends to sweeten the final yogurt. Like Greek/Indian yogurt, I like my yogurt slightly sour, since that's great for making lassis.

The best thing is that even my three-year-old enjoys helping me make the yogurt, and even better, prefers it to the store-bought stuff!

Edited September 25, 2011 by talatnat

[theseahorse]

Good advice Talatnat.

I too prefer using the Chokchai milk as it has a higher fat content, although I've been using the Dairy Home milk for my past few batches as it's even better than the Chokchai. It's a little more expensive, but worth the extra few baht.

I usually use Yolinda too, but very rarely need to start from fresh as I always keep a small cup of the yogurt aside to use in the next batch.

[kennalder]

I would like to thank Theseahorse for his valuable input on this thread,

Also would like to wish Kennnalder & Paulchangmai success in their yogurt making!

Good luck and Thank you.

Cheers:

First batch was a hit. Hard to screw it up even though I tried. I didn't realize milk boiled so quickly. I walked out of the kitchen for 4-5 minutes and came back to an overflowing pot. I went ahead anyway using Bio and next morning it was ready. Great on mueslis with bananas. Thanks for getting it started kikoman.

[meithai]

I would like to thank Theseahorse for his valuable input on this thread,

Also would like to wish Kennnalder & Paulchangmai success in their yogurt making!

Good luck and Thank you.

Cheers:

Is it possible to freeze yoghurt?

First batch was a hit. Hard to screw it up even though I tried. I didn't realize milk boiled so quickly. I walked out of the kitchen for 4-5 minutes and came back to an overflowing pot. I went ahead anyway using Bio and next morning it was ready. Great on mueslis with bananas. Thanks for getting it started kikoman.

[kikoman]

Glad your Yogurt was a success,and may you have many more success in the future.

I do not know if you can freeze yogurt, as I placed a cup of yogurt in my freezer overnight

and it was not frozen in the morning.

We have some experienced yogurt maker on this thread and maybe one of them could answer your question.

Again good luck,

Cheers:

Edited September 26, 2011 by kikoman

[janverbeem]

Excuse me for my ignorance but you have a 25 hour process to save about 125 Baht, 1/2 gallon of Yolida yogurt costs about 200 Baht and is exellent of taste and sugar free,and that is if nothing goes wrong and you eat it all before expiry date.

I guess i just go to any supermarket and buy Yolida whenever I want to eat yogurt.

[meithai]

Excuse me for my ignorance but you have a 25 hour process to save about 125 Baht, 1/2 gallon of Yolida yogurt costs about 200 Baht and is exellent of taste and sugar free,and that is if nothing goes wrong and you eat it all before expiry date.

I guess i just go to any supermarket and buy Yolida whenever I want to eat yogurt.

To the OP, why did your doctor advise you to eat yoghurt?

I have a Thai friend that has been to see a doctor a couple of times because of stomach problems, mainly due to drinking beer on an empty stomach & living on rice soup. I tried to convince him to eat yoghurt, I couldn't convince him, any ideas? He is an intelligent guy if you have any ideas.

[meithai]

Excuse me for my ignorance but you have a 25 hour process to save about 125 Baht, 1/2 gallon of Yolida yogurt costs about 200 Baht and is exellent of taste and sugar free,and that is if nothing goes wrong and you eat it all before expiry date.

I guess i just go to any supermarket and buy Yolida whenever I want to eat yogurt.

To the OP, why did your doctor advise you to eat yoghurt?

I have a Thai friend that has been to see a doctor a couple of times because of stomach problems, mainly due to drinking beer on an empty stomach & living on rice soup. I tried to convince him to eat yoghurt, I couldn't convince him, any ideas? He is an intelligent guy if you have any ideas.

[kennalder]

Excuse me for my ignorance but you have a 25 hour process to save about 125 Baht, 1/2 gallon of Yolida yogurt costs about 200 Baht and is exellent of taste and sugar free,and that is if nothing goes wrong and you eat it all before expiry date.

I guess i just go to any supermarket and buy Yolida whenever I want to eat yogurt.

You are right, I am not doing this to save money. With store bought sugar free is only part of the story. Aspertame or some other artificial sweetener is probably in most sugar free products that taste too good to be true. I know many consider aspertame to be safe, but many don't and my unscientific guess is most food and drug controversies ultimately resolve to the negative side. For my money the fewer man made chemicals you ingest, the better off you will be. Just one of the many reasons I also cook most of my own food. I know there is no MSG in it and I can control how much sugar is used. Obviously I am not doing that to save money either.

[kikoman]

I came down with a severe case of gout, and had a reaction to the medication to combat the gout. I was having stomach pain and heart burn. I notice a great change after eating yogurt for less than a week. No more heart burn and the pain in my stomach has deceased greatly.

while I was told gout attack only last for a short time, mine has been lingering on for 3 months, and is on the bottom of my feet that makes walking painful, the yogurt worked great in my case as it counter acted my side effects to taking gout medication.

It was helpful to me.

Cheers:

[kikoman]

Excuse me for my ignorance but you have a 25 hour process to save about 125 Baht, 1/2 gallon of Yolida yogurt costs about 200 Baht and is exellent of taste and sugar free,and that is if nothing goes wrong and you eat it all before expiry date.

I guess i just go to any supermarket and buy Yolida whenever I want to eat yogurt.

Every one marches to a different drummer, if buying your yogurt is great for you then by all means buy it!

I make mine because I like to be in charge of what I put into my body, On the hand I save money, I never purchased a half gallon of yogurt, but what I do save is great for me and my family, adding that money to the money I save in making whole wheat bread, my own DIY pickles, my ham /bacon,my own DIY corn beef, home made pizza, home made Mexican food , etc.

I do it mainly because of the self satisfaction in producing my own food, that is great for me as it helps me spend my golden years doing some thing helpful for myself and my family.

Cheers:

Edited September 27, 2011 by kikoman

[BuckarooBanzai]

Excuse me for my ignorance but you have a 25 hour process to save about 125 Baht, 1/2 gallon of Yolida yogurt costs about 200 Baht and is exellent of taste and sugar free,and that is if nothing goes wrong and you eat it all before expiry date.

I guess i just go to any supermarket and buy Yolida whenever I want to eat yogurt.

Every one marches to a different drummer, if buying your yogurt is great for you then by all means buy it!

I make mine because I like to be in charge of what I put into my body, On the hand I save money, I never purchased a half gallon of yogurt, but what I do save is great for me and my family, adding that money to the money I save in making whole wheat bread, my own DIY pickles, my ham /bacon,my own DIY corn beef, home made pizza, home made Mexican food , etc.

I do it mainly because of the self satisfaction in producing my own food, that is great for me as it helps me spend my golden years doing some thing helpful for myself and my family.

Cheers:

Good response kikoman

Just ran across this and looked interesting as many of us out-country do not have ovens. How to make bread in your rice cooker. Have not tried it yet though. http://www.wikihow.com/Make-Rice-Cooker-Bread

Edit - many more using rice cookers for making bread on the web - just google.

Edited September 27, 2011 by BuckarooBanzai

[theseahorse]

Excuse me for my ignorance but you have a 25 hour process to save about 125 Baht, 1/2 gallon of Yolida yogurt costs about 200 Baht and is exellent of taste and sugar free,and that is if nothing goes wrong and you eat it all before expiry date.

I guess i just go to any supermarket and buy Yolida whenever I want to eat yogurt.

I make my own yogurt for lots of reasons; partly so I can control what goes into it (and then into my daughter), partly the fun and satisafaction of making it, but mainly for the fact it tastes so much better than any bought yogurt avaliable here. Yolinda is ok, but it's not a great yogurt, I certainly wouldn't describe it as excellent. By using better quality milk than Yolinda uses I make a much better product for less than half the price.

It also doesn't take 25 hours. It takes me 10 minutes in the evening to boil the milk and then another 30 seconds before I go to bed to add the yogurt starter. In the morning it goes into the fridge before I head to work. Done.