When I first started to make yogurt, I purchased my Yogourmet
I now use an Excalibur dehydrator
I learned about making yogurt from several sources, so rather than pose as a self-proclaimed expert, here are sites I found helpful in this endeavor: Breaking the vicious cycle, Pecanbread, Cooking for celiac, colitis, crohns and ibs, Eating SCD, Weston Price, The New York Times, and 101 Cookbooks. Note These instructions are geared towards creating lactose-free yogurt (which is cultured for between 24-28 hours), but you don’t have to culture your yogurt for 24 hours. The longer you leave the yogurt culturing, the more sour it will be and the less lactose it will contain. Let it culture for at least 4 hours if you’re not concerned about lactose.
A word about yogurt starter…
I usually have some homemade yogurt or yogurt starter for a new batch of yogurt. As for commercial yogurt starters, my favorite starter is from GIProHealth, mostly because it creates a smooth tasting yogurt (not as tart or sour as others can be). GIProHealth also sells a dairy-free yogurt starter.
I avoid using commercial yogurt to bake, cook and use as starter because it tends to have gums and other fun additives. I like to see that the yogurt starter has certain bacterial strains that I know are beneficial: lactobacillus bulgaricus, Streptococcus thermophilus, and Lactobacillus acidophilus.
A word about non-dairy yogurt…
You can also make yogurt using nut milks instead of dairy milks. For more assistance, see Pecanbread and GIProHealth.
How to drip yogurt
To drip yogurt (also referred to as greek yogurt for it’s thickness), I place a strainer in a saucepan, then place a paper towel (or coffee filter) in the strainer, and finally place the yogurt in the paper towel. I put the saucepan top on and let it drip away, sometimes over night in the refrigerator. The longer you drip it, the more water drips out (I know that sounds obvious, but I thought I’d confirm that fact and encourage you to drip it as long as possible).
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Any tips for making yogurt without a yogurt maker? My grandmother used to make ours each night by heating up some milk & stirring in a teaspoon or so of starter taken from the yogurt she’d made the night before. She’d leave it, covered, on the kitchen counter and we had perfect, creamy yogurt for breakfast each morning. She made it look so easy. I’ve never tried it myself but am eager to because I know it tastes so much better than store-bought.
Yes, as long as you leave the yogurt overnight in a warm place it will culture (technically you need it to be at least 100 degrees F, but I think putting near a source of heat will be enough). Good luck!