It was exciting to unwrap the slow cooker after letting the warm milk set overnight. The layer on the top is whey which is full of protein. I can't wait to use it to cook my oatmeal.
After skimming off the nice whey, place the yogurt on cheesecloth that can be strained through a colander. After 4 hours of letting the whey come out of the yogurt, you will have a thicker yogurt consistency.
Here is homemade Greek yogurt from scratch!
This is the amount of whey that was removed to give the thicker yogurt consistency of Greek style yogurt.
Nice and thick, creamy and healthy!
The cooking process is long but the results are exciting! One gallon of non fat milk slow cooked in a slow cooker for about 4-5 hours until the temperature is at 180 degrees. Turn off cooker and wait until temperature is 110-115 degrees. With 1 cup of starter mix in some warm milk. Then add to the cooker and mix in the live culture. Cover with lid and wrap in towels to keep warm avoiding drafts, overnight. You will then see the milk set with a nice top layer of whey. ( This is full of protein and should be used for cooking.) Strain the yogurt by using cheesecloth and colander for approximately 5 hours, or until as much whey is removed. The straining time depends on the thickness you desire. This is FUN and relatively easy and economical. We eat a bowl of Greek yogurt daily with honey or organic strawberry jam. It is very YUMMY!
The slideshow below will show you the process of making your own Greek yogurt. A long process, but with patience you will feel empowered and accomplished! From start to finish, expect a 10 hour process. Time it right, start in the early afternoon. Let it rest and solidify overnight. First slow cook for about 5 hours to reach 180 degrees F. Then, cool down about 2 hours to reach 110-115 degrees. Then add live culture. Wrap up with towels to keep the milk warm overnight. Afterwards, strain the whey to create a more solid yogurt consistency. You could stop and not strain, then you will have regular yogurt, not thick like Greek yogurt. Another option is to further strain out the whey to make cheese yogurt.
