Rachel de Thample shares a simple and slow recipe for homemade yogurt that is part breakfast prep, part mindful activity. Sprinkle seeds on top, enjoy with fresh fruit or compote or drizzle over spicy main courses for dinner.
Making your own yogurt is incredibly easy, wildly satisfying and completely undeserving of its worthy tag. There are also no by-products. While there are bulky yogurt-making contraptions, you can get the same result by simply using a heavy pot or a Thermos. My favourite vessel is a lidded cast iron pot which you can get surprisingly cheap second-hand if you look online, or if you keep your eyes peeled in local vintage markets.
Makes 1 litre
You will need:
1 ltr whole milk
3 tbsp full-fat natural yogurt with live cultures
You will also need:
A thermometer
A Thermos or a heavy pot with a lid
How to make
1 Gently warm the milk until it reaches 45°C. Whisk in the yogurt and stir well to mix evenly. Incubate by placing the warmed, cultured milk into a cast iron pot with lid and placing it in an oven on its lowest setting (no higher than 45°C). Alternatively, pour into a Thermos and seal. Let it incubate for 10-12 hrs at which stage the yogurt should be set. The key during this period is to keep the temperature between 35°C to 45°C. Do not let the temperature go above 47°C or it could kill the live bacteria.
2 Once the yogurt is set, spoon into jars and transfer to the fridge. It’ll store nicely for a week and if you save a few spoons back, you can use it to make your next batch. You can also use this homemade yogurt to make labneh.
Things to stir into your yogurt
You can use your homemade yogurt any way you like but it’s excellent as breakfast, or a snack with tasty things stirred into it. Here are a few ideas…
Chopped dried apricots and almonds.
Honey and dried lavender.
Granola and syrup.
Mixed seeds and fresh raspberries.
Stewed rhubarb and pistachios.
Peanut butter and strawberries
Chia seeds and coconut flakes.
Spiced cooked pears.
Chopped apple, cinnamon and sugar.
Grated beetroot and toasted walnuts.
This is just one of the recipes from our ‘Home Economics’ feature, ‘Do-it-Yourself Dairy’ by Rachel de Thample, from our May issue. It also includes instructions for making Kefir Labneh, Ricotta, Paneer and Cultured Butter.
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