Home-made is better because you have control of what goes into your product. With home-made yoghurt, you add the fruit or sugar or nuts or nothing if you so choose.
I like making yoghurt because I like the complexity, and yet the simplicity, of what happens in a kitchen when a few basic ingredients are thrown together in one pot or bowl. That to me is the "magic" of cooking. When I made my Mosbolletjies a couple of weeks ago, I couldn't stop wondering whoever came up with the ingenious plan to use fermented grapes as yeast? With making yoghurt, it is exactly the same: milk, a little yoghurt that act as the "culture" and a little patience, that is all it takes to make your own yoghurt.
• Yoghurt digests more easily than milk
• Yoghurt is rich in calcium
• Yoghurt is a good source of protein
• Yoghurt can boost your immunity
• Yoghurt is extremely good for your colon
• You control the ingredients that go into yoghurt
I think that we owe it to our children to revert back to "home-made". I saw how my mum made yoghurt in an old "Hart" pot on the stove and clearly that has inspired me to try it, but sadly these days our children witness how we shop for convenience food and the easy way out. We will end up with a generation of people who do not have a cooking clue about the origin of food, how to prepare it and how to enjoy it most of all. Scary thought, I must say.
Home-made yoghurt (Makes 1 litre)
Ingredients:
• 1 litre full-cream milk
• 4T Bulgarian yoghurt with live cultures
Pour the milk into a large stainless steel pot and, over low heat, cook the milk until it reaches 180C. Stir continuously so that the milk does not "catch" at the bottom of the pot. Once it reaches that temperature, let it cool to 115C. It is easy if you have a thermometer, but if you don't, use your finger. If you can keep your finger in the milk for longer than 10 seconds without burning your finger, it is okay!
Mix the yoghurt with a little extra milk (the yoghurt and milk must be at room temperature) and stir into the milk in the pot. Transfer the milk to a glass jar or bowl, wrap in a blanket or towels and place in a warm place for at least four to five hours. Refrigerate uncovered for about 40 minutes and then close the yoghurt and use when needed.
