With the onset of slight coolness, the atmosphere at home becomes cozier, but some kitchen processes, including making thick yogurt, can become more complicated. People who make yogurt at home often face difficulties during the cold season. Unlike the warm season, when yogurt easily sets after adding starter culture to milk, the drop in temperature complicates this process, sometimes resulting in a liquid or completely unset product in the morning.
If you are also having trouble achieving the correct yogurt setting in cold weather, Master Chef Pankaj Bhadauria has suggested a simple folk method that does not require special equipment or prolonged placement of the product in a warm place. With a regular household container, you can obtain thick yogurt even in cold weather.
The fermentation process of yogurt is highly dependent on temperature. In warm weather, the milk maintains an optimal temperature, allowing beneficial bacteria to work actively and turn milk into yogurt. However, as the temperature drops, this process slows down. This is why, as soon as a slight chill begins, the yogurt may set slowly, or if it sets at all, it may not reach the thickness and density characteristic of the summer period.
The method described by Master Chef Pankaj Bhadauria requires the use of glass or ceramic ware, warm milk, and a small amount of thick yogurt. The key point is placing the container in a spot where it will receive gentle warmth throughout the night.
- Master Chef Pankaj Bhadauria advises taking a glass or ceramic container and pouring warm milk into it. The temperature should be moderate—not too hot and not too cold—so that the starter culture can act effectively.
- Next, one tablespoon of good quality thick yogurt is added to the warm milk and thoroughly mixed so that the starter culture is evenly distributed throughout the volume of milk.
- After this, the container is covered with a lid. Instead of putting it in the refrigerator or in an open cold place, it should be placed inside a flour container. This is the most important part of this folk remedy: the flour helps protect the container from external cold, creating suitable conditions for the yogurt to set.
Leave the container inside the flour container overnight. In the morning, upon removing the container and opening the lid, you can find that thanks to the correct temperature and sufficient duration of the process, the yogurt has become thick and well-formed.
Thus, when the cold arrives, there is no longer a need to constantly look for a warm place for the yogurt; a regular flour container can solve this problem. If you are also experiencing difficulties making yogurt due to the change of season, you can try this simple trick: warm milk, one spoon of thick yogurt, and leaving the container in a flour container overnight.