make yogurt aminimalist approach no specialized equipment.
it's easy to make multiple quarts of yogurt.
without using "yogurt makers", slow cookers, etc.
equipment needed to make a US gallon (~4L) of yogurt (plus a large cooler).
HALF fill two clean 1 gallon jugs with cold water.
carefully top up each jug with boiling water.
place both warm jugs into the cooler and close the lid.
this is the incubator.
thoroughly clean four sealable 1 quart (~1L) jars plus a sealable 1 cup jar.
fill a pot with one gallon of milk and place on a high heat.
stir constantly while heating.
hold at 185F (85C) for 15 to 30 minutes (longer cooking makes a firmer yogurt).
shut off the heat and let it cool to 110F (~43C).
meanwhile, let 1 cup of plain yogurt warm to room temperature.
this is the seed yourt.
it MUST contain live and cultures.
store bought yogurt is needed only once thereafter we use our prior bath as seed.
once the milk has cooled to 110F add the cup of seed yogurt.
(our supermarket was sold out of small plain yourts, hence this large one).
stir the mix thoroughly.
start by ladling the mix into the 1 cup jar.
next fill the 1 quart jars with the mix.
ready for the incubator-which now should be warm.
place the filled jars into the cooler and close the lid.
let incubate for maybe nine hours (say overnight).
after nine hours or so, remove the jars from the cooler.
the finished product: four quarts and one cupbof yogurt!
the cup contains the seed for the next gallon of yogurt.
one delicious dessert is a mix of this yogurt and homemade jam.
it's so yummy-and we know what's in it!