I don’t know what my deal is lately, I’m completely obsessed with DIYing everything!
Actually, that’s not entirely true – I know what’s driving a lot of it. It’s certainly nice to be able to control the ingredients in the food we eat, but I’d be lying if I said that was my primary motivation to DIY. The truth? I’m seriously one of the cheapest people you’ll ever meet, and I’ve found it’s almost always more cost effective to make things myself than it is to buy them. And also? It’s just plain fun! I love the challenge of trying to replicate in my own kitchen something I’ve always had to buy in the past.
Until recently, I never would have imagined I could make my own Greek yogurt. It wasn’t even something I considered until I came across these step-by-step photos on America’s Test Kitchen’s Feed. I was pleasantly surprised by how very doable the recipe looked – only 3 ingredients, and minimal hands-on time. Given that I’ve been eating Greek yogurt for breakfast almost every day for about 9 months, I figured it was at least worth trying once.
So here’s a quick (and somewhat simplified) rundown of how it works: you heat milk and cool it, then add starter yogurt and place the mixture in a warm environment and wait for the cultures/bacteria to work their magic, transforming the milk to yogurt. Once strained, you’re left with yogurt that’s super thick and creamy in texture and has the characteristic tang you love. I never expected this to turn out as well as it did, it was amazing! I like to add vanilla extract and a little honey to mine, but at this point the world is your oyster – eat it plain or modify it to suit your tastes π Definitely one of my favorite DIY projects to date!
Homemade Greek Yogurt
from The America’s Test Kitchen Feed
{Note: you can find more details on the process as well as step-by-step photos over on The Feed. You may have to register to obtain access, but it’s free.}
4 cups (1 quart) 2% milk
1/4 cup (1 oz) non-fat dry milk
1/2 cup plain fat-free Greek yogurt
Add the milk to a medium saucepan and set over medium heat. Heat the milk, stirring occasionally, until it registers between 170 and 180 F on an instant-read thermometer – it will be steaming, but not yet simmering. Add the dry milk powder, whisking to incorporate. Transfer the milk mixture to a bowl set over an ice bath. Cool the milk, stirring frequently, until it registers about 110 F on an instant-read thermometer.
In a small bowl, combine the yogurt with some of the milk, whisking until smooth. Add back to the remaining milk mixture and whisk to incorporate.
Cover the bowl with plastic wrap; use a paring knife to cut a few small slits in the plastic wrap. Preheat your oven to 200 F for 2 minutes, then turn it off. Place the bowl in the oven and turn on the oven light. Allow the yogurt to ferment until thickened and set, about 7 hours. (Try to keep the oven between 90 and 100 F while the yogurt ferments. This was the most stressful part for me but I was totally overthinking it – I wound up turning the oven on every hour or hour and a half for a minute or two to warm it up and had no problems. Your yogurt may need more than 7 hours, just keep checking periodically until it sets up.) Whisk to incorporate any whey that may have separated.
Set a fine mesh sieve over a large bowl. Line the sieve with a double layer of cheesecloth (or a few coffee filters) and pour the yogurt in. Cover the strainer with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight (at least 8 hours) to allow the whey to drain. You should have about 2 cups of whey in the morning, which can be discarded.
Transfer the thickened yogurt to an airtight container and refrigerate. It will keep for one week. I add some vanilla extract to mine to replicate my favorite store-bought flavor (I do it a teaspoon at a time until the taste is to my liking), and I also drizzle with a little honey when I serve it.
Makes about 2 cups
I am usually for DIY π if it’s cheaper, tastes better and not very difficult to make I don’t see why not to DIY π
I failed last time I tried making yogurt :/
I’m totally obsessed with DIY stuff too! Ever since Jason made me the lowel ego lights, I want to DIY everything! I even found a DIY foam soap! Anyway, I digress. I totally need to add this homemade Greek yogurt to my DIY list. I spend way too much on fage!
I love that you made your own yogurt! I can only imagine how good it is!
I admire you for making yogurt, but I’ll continue to buy it. Ricotta on the other hand is truly easy to make. No oven on for hours.
That is *WAY* too much work for such a small amount of yogurt. We make ours in a crockpot… super easy! Plus, we make it a half-gallon at a time. We do something similar to this: http://www.onegoodthingbyjillee.com/2012/04/crockpot-greek-yogurt.html
But we don’t bother with the thermometer any more, now that we’ve got the timing down.
I have wanted to try to make yogurt for awhile, but was always too scared to for some reason. And now seeing recipes for homemade greek yogurt?? I need to get on the ball.
whoa, i had no idea that making greek yogurt at home was even possible! so cool. i also love to DIY things that most people buy, both for the cost factor AND the awesomeness factor. must give this a try!
This sounds so interesting. I’m indecisive when it comes to greek yogurt. Sometimes I really really like it and then others I’m like eh. I love how creamy Greek Yogurt can be though π
Your bowl of yogurt look fantastic and so delicious!
I definitely need to do this! Greek yogurt is way too expensive for me to buy frequently but I love it so much. Can’t wait to try it!
You go, girl! Who knew you could make your own yogurt with just 3 ingredients???
I have been waiting to see this recipe. I love it! I have been using so much Greek yogurt in my cooking and baking lately.
I do love Greek yogurt and have never made my own. But I’ve tasted homemade and it was quite incredible!
this is so awesome! i would love to make a huge batch of this and have it sit in the fridge to eat whenever. and i can imagine this costing SO MUCH less!! awesome!
I give you a lot of credit for making your own yogurt! Impressive!
I give you a lot of credit for making your own yogurt! Impressive!
I give you a lot of credit for making your own yogurt! Impressive!
I also love DIY projects and I will try anything at least once. I recently started making my own yogurt and it’s so much better than the store bought kind. You know you can save the whey and use it in your baking substituting it for buttermilk or even milk or water.
ps: I LOVE your blog, especially the sweet recipes!
I had no idea it was that easy to do at home. I completely hear you on the cheap part – I am horrible!
I have a yogurt maker and used to make it all the time, but then I got lazy. I eat a ton of yogurt and they just raised the price at my grocery store, so I may need to fight back and start making my own again! Yours looks really fantastic!
I have been paying nearly $5 for a container of Greek Yogurt — I am so tempted to give this a try. Your pictures look awesome! Thanks! Catherine http://www.praycookblog.com
Hey! Do you by any chance know what the difference is (in the making process) between Greek yogurt and regular yogurt? Greek yogurt is hard to come by where I’m from and I’m wondering if I can just use the regular variety as a starter and tweak it a bit… Whaddaya think?
Thanks for a great post!
@Anon – If you click over to the step by step pictures, there’s a little note about making sure the starter yogurt contains two specific cultures (Str. thermophilus (ST) and Lb. bulgaricus (LB)). It should say on the yogurt container which cultures are present – if your regular yogurt contains those, you should be good to go! Good luck π
Looks awesome!
Thanks a lot for sharing π
Yogurt is on my to-do list, one of these days. One suggestion that your frugal self might like–don’t discard the whey. King Arthur has a bunch of recipes on their site that you could use it in:
http://search.kingarthurflour.com/search?p=Q&asug=&af=type%3Arecipes&w=whey
FINALLY catching up on your blog and it feels oh so good π definitely need to try this sometime–we love greek yogurt but I’m too cheap to buy it every week! this might be a good solution!
I’ve been wanting to make yogurt for a while, and I think this post was the inspiration I need! Yum!
I’d love to challenge you to try my favorite recipe once and see how it compares.
3 1/2 c whole milk
1 full size can evaporated milk
4-6 oz plain quality yogurt as starter
I microwave the whole milk for 8 minutes until it boils & climbs sides of steep glass bowl. Then add evap milk and cool to 110 degrees. Once cool stir in (stirred until creamy) yogurt and pour into 7 6 oz jars or one 42 oz container. Keep warm for 6+ hours. With no straining, the yogurt is thick and creamy!
Your own version of Greek yogurt looks yummy! I think that recipe will look and taste even better if youβll sprinkle some chocolate chips on it. Now that makes me drool here in my couch! Hehehe. Time to go out and buy those ingredients!
I just tried the recipe and feel like I did something wrong. Followed all instruction with milk products that are less than a week old and found that I did not have a thickened mixture. I will be letting it further ferment, but will have done so in the oven between 90-100 degrees for 24 hours! Has anyone had this issue? Do you think I got some bum yogurt (Greek God Plain Yogurt) perhaps? Also, do you think there is any food issue with this?
This is great.=)