Homemade Yogurt!

Over all these years in the US, I tried to make Yogurt many times. Because everyone makes yogurt back home. I had never done it back home myself because my father is the yogurt-maker there. So I tried here, it didn't work. I ended up with slimy milk in the bowl. It wasn't as bad as it sounds, but it obviously wasn't what I had expected. When you make yogurt, you should end up with a solid mass, with little water. If it has too much water on top of the solid mass, it means you left it outside longer than it should have been and has gone sour. If it is not solid, then obviously it didn't finish setting and needs more time, or something went wrong.

So when my parents came here recently, my father tried to make yogurt his way. That didn't work either. We came to the realization that the culture we were using (grocery store yogurt, organic and otherwise) wasn't good. Meaning it didn't have enough active bacteria. I got the culture from an Indian friend and have been successful at it each time since then.

So, the procedure.

1. Obtain active culture from someone. You can get it from a neighbor who makes yogurt, or an Indian restaurant. I've heard whole foods stores sell it as well.
2. Boil the milk. Let it cool but not completely. It shouldn't be too hot but it should be more than just warm. It should be bearable to dip your finger into it for 5 seconds but not more. If it's lukewarm, microwave to heat.
3. In a casserole dish, spread the culture in the bottom. Not necessary on the sides.
4. Add the milk. Stir to spread the culture evenly.
5. Keep it overnight in the oven. DO NOT turn the oven on. DO NOT stir in-between or even try to look. LOL!
6. Refrigerate for up to a week.