Greek Culture?

Even Oprah Likes Greek Yogurt

In case you haven’t noticed, people have recently become pretty crazed over Greek yogurt. Once difficult to procure here in the states, this thick, tangy delight now lines the shelves of virtually every grocery store in our fine city. The health benefits of its high protein content and active cultures have been touted by a host of health and fitness mags, the American Heart Association, and even Oprah. I suspect, however, that you did not visit Food Babies to hear about health food, so let’s get down to business. This stuff is freakin’ delicious. Drizzle a little honey over the top and I can put down a whole 16 oz carton of this creamy, yumminess and still come back for more. It’s so good on its own that I can hardly bear to use it for cooking, but check out any recipe website and you’ll surely find an endless list
of sweet and savory applications for this beloved
Mediterranean concoction.

Yoplait Greek Yogurt - Too Many Ingredients I Can't Pronounce

The problem: it’s pricey. Like, quadruple the price of regular yogurt. And the stuff that isn’t pricey is not worth buying. Case in point: Yoplait Greek yogurt, although reasonably priced, is really not Greek yogurt at all. It contains something called “milk protein concentrate”- presumably for nutritional enhancement- and gelatin for thickening. Oh, and it tastes gross.

 

So, after several months of spending a third of my food budget on cartons of Fage, some dear friends (thanks Maggie and Firas) helped me find a solution. I had to start making my own yogurt.  Luckily, this part-science-project-part-culinary-adventure is surprisingly simple and really fun (in a nerdy way).

The first step is to make plain old yogurt.

Based on my own attempts, I’ll add a few bits of wisdom to the tutorial linked above. You can use any milk you like, but most people find that organic milk tastes better. Whole or 2% milk make for a more decadent treat, but I swear it’s delicious even with skim. Each brand of commercially available yogurt uses its own combination of cultures, so if you have a favorite variety you should use it as your starter. 

The instructions in the above link are pretty technical, so if you’re into precision (i.e. enjoy baking) then by all means follow along. Truth be told, you don’t really need a double boiler or a thermometer. Just stir continuously to avoid scorching the milk, heat until it froths, then let it cool until you can comfortably hold your finger in it for 10 seconds before stirring in the starter. I’ve found that 9 hours is just about an ideal culturing time for optimal tanginess.

Now that you’ve made yogurt, it’s time to make it Greek!

• Line a mesh strainer with a paper towel.
• Pour in the yogurt
• Drain for 1-2 hours

You’ll find delicious Greek yogurt in the strainer and liquid whey below. I just toss the whey, but I hear that it is very high in calcium so go ahead and drink it if you like. Finally, to achieve the perfect creamy texture, you need stir vigorously. I find that using a handheld immersion blender gives the best results, but a fork and some elbow grease will get the job done.

Amy's Homemade Yogurt + Honey

That’s it folks! For a few hours of your time and the price of a couple quarts of milk, you’ve grown your very own tasty, living food. Whip up some tzaziki, make a fabulous dessert, or just grab a spoon. Save a little for your next batch, and you’ll never again pay $2.89 for a tiny cup of milk and bacteria. Feel free to post any questions/comments about making your own Greek yogurt in the comments section below.

- Amy