Fermentation Window

I forgot to let you all know that I pulled out the yogurt from it's cozy sleeping bag this morning and it turned out great. The best way to get consistent results is to use a kitchen thermometer when heating and cooling the milk, but we don't have one yet, so the result is always just a little different, which is fun too.






Because I've been been on the topic of fermentation, I thought I'd post a photo of our wild kitchen windowsill full of various fermenting and sprouting things. Some people are a little freaked out by it, but we like this kind of hippie shit. On the left we have some kind of sun tea brewing, the next three jars are various kinds of sprouts, then we have a jar of rejuvelac (a fermented drink made from wheat berries), next to that is one of the jars we make sauerkraut in, and lastly we have two jars of kombucha brewing away.

Yogurt

Here is Katz's yogurt recipe; I think it's the best:















Timeframe: 8-24 hours

Equipment:
Quart/liter jar
Insulated cooler (or sleeping bag/warm blankets--this is what we use!)
Ingredients (for 1 quart):
1 quart/1 liter whole milk (or any kind of milk including soy, coconut, rice, etc.)
1 tablespoon/15 milliliters fresh live-culture plain yogurt for starter culture

Process:
1. Preheat the jar and insulated cooler (I put a sleeping bag in the drier to get it warm, but this is not necessary) with hot water so they will not drain heat from the yogurt and it can stay warm to ferment.
2. Heat the milk until bubbles begin to form. If you use a thermometer, heat milk to 180 degrees F. Use gentle heat, and stir frequently, to avoid burning the milk. If does not need to come to a full boil. The heating is not absolutely necessary, but it results in a thicker yogurt.
3. Cool the mild to 110 degrees F, or the point where it feels hot, but it is not hard to keep you (clean!) finger in it. You can speed the cooling process by setting the pot with the hot milk into a bowl or pot of cold water. Don't let the milk get too cool; the yogurt cultures are most active in the above-body-temperature range.
4. Mix starter yogurt into the milk. Use just 1 tablespoon (15 milliliters) per quart. I used to use more starter, assuming that more is better, until I consulted my number one kitchen reference book, The Joy of Cooking (1964 edition), known affectionately as "Joy" in our kitchen. "You may wonder why so little starter is used and think that a little more will produce a better result. It won't. The bacillus, if crowded, gives a sour, watery product. But if the culture has sufficient Lebensraum (German for 'room to live'), it will be rich, mild and creamy." Mix the starter thoroughly into the milk, and pour the mixture into the preheated jar.
5. Cap the jar and place it in the preheated insulated cooler (or sleeping bag). If much space remains in the cooler, fill it will bottles of hot water (not too hot to touch) and/or towels. Close the cooler. Place the cooler in a warm spot where it will not be disturbed. "Yogurt has the added idiosyncrasy that it doesn't care to be jostled while growing," notes Joy.
6. Check the yogurt after 8 to 12 hours. It should have a tangy flavor and some thickness. If it isn't thick (hasn't "yoged"), warm it up by filling the insulated cooler with hot water around the jar of yogurt, adding more starter, and leaving it 4 to 8 hours. You can leave it to ferment longer if you wish. It will become more sour, as more of the milk's lactose is converted into lactic acid. A longer fermentation period can often make yogurt digestible even for lactose-intolerant individuals.
7. Yogurt can store in the refrigerator for weeks, though its flavor will become more sour over time. Save some of you yogurt to use as a starter for the next batch.



















****Please don't be intimidated by the length of this recipe! Once you do it the first time, you get it and it takes no time/effort at all. I included this detailed recipe because I want ya'll to have great results the first time and become life-long yogurt makers, ok?!















Happy yogurt making.

Fermentation

I briefly mentioned our shared passion for fermentation, that we Preston Co-op house members have, in my profile, but I thought I would elaborate on the wonders of wild fermentation in today's post.

We have various fermentation projects going on continuously under our roof and many more which we have hopes and dreams about experimenting with in the future. Our current and previous projects include, yogurt making (which I plan to post about in detail tonight), sauerkraut and kimchis, mead, sourdough breads, kombucha, rejuvelac, and pickles of all kinds. We also have a tempeh starter on the way in the mail!

If you have any interest in getting into fermentation I highly recommend the book "Wild Fermentation" by Sandor Ellix Katz. If you are at all into things homemade, fermenting can be a very exciting and rewarding experience for many reasons but some that have jumped out at me recently are:

1. Most fermentation projects are super easy and super cheap. (I was at a local health food store the other day where they were selling tiny jars of sauerkraut for $17 each and we have literally gallons of it in our house that we have been giving away and trying to come up with new creative uses for!)
2. Going through the process of fermenting foods is exciting, kind of like watching a child develop and age. Fermented foods are literally a product of their environment; a sourdough starter or sauerkraut will taste totally different depending on the weather, location, season, and year in which it's made.
3. They are easily digestible, delicious, and nutritious.
4. Fermentation is an ideal way to preserve foods, especially if you have a garden--you can live off of your bounty all year long.















I leave you with a picture of our humble kitchen.

If you are interested in making your own yogurt, check out tonight's post. It's unbelievably easy and takes no special equipment; yogurt makers are totally STUPID and make your own is as cheap as buying milk. At our house we make about 2 half gallon jars a week; it has definitely become a staple (we tend to flip if the yogurt has run out).

Happy February everyone!