NW Ferments Bulgarian Yogurt Starter

Make your own rich & mildly flavored Bulgarian Yogurt. This heirloom variety is a thermophilic (heat-loving ) culture that requires a yogurt maker or alternate heating method. Reusable- by reserving a bit from each batch, you can continue to make Bulgarian yogurt indefinitely!

Do you love Yogurt and its probiotic benefits?  Why not make your own?  It’s easy, fun, will save you money, and help keep your gut healthy!  You also can control what goes into it- commercial yogurts often contain sweeteners, thickeners, and other unwanted additives.

Pro-bacteria found: Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsps. bulgaricus and Streptococcus salivarius subsp. termophilus.

• 1 box contains 2 packets of Bulgarian Yogurt starter culture.
• Non-GMO
• Gluten Free
• Refrigeration recommended

Thermophilic Yogurts are heat loving, meaning they require a yogurt maker or other means of maintaining a 110 degree Fahrenheit temperature for several hours. The milk is heated on the stove to 160 degrees, then allowed to cool to 110 degrees.  Next, your powdered starter is added and thoroughly mixed in.  Once transferred to the yogurt maker, it is incubated for 5 to 8 hours.  Our thermophilic varieties include Greek and Bulgarian.

Both Mesophilic and Thermophilic yogurts are heirloom varieties, and come with two packets per order.  This means that by reserving a bit back from each batch (called back-slopping) as your next starter, you can continue to make repeated batches, and even share with your friends.  Save your second packet for later use.  The heirloom varieties make wonderful cow or goat milk yogurts.

NW Ferments provides quality starter cultures for home production. Our goal is to enable people to improve their own health while saving them money. By making our own healthy foods, we help ourselves as well as our planet. While we are from the Pacific NW, we know that we have many kindred spirits worldwide.

For troubleshooting questions please reach out to NW Ferments at info@nwferments.com or by phone at 844-558-2752.

Ingredients

organic whole milk, live active cultures. Contains Milk. Made in a facility that also processes wheat, soy and dairy products.

Directions

You will need:

Saucepan to heat the milk, wooden or plastic spoon, yogurt thermometer, yogurt maker, 1 quart milk, 1 packet Yogurt starter culture (save 2nd packet in freezer for future use).

Activate your starter culture:

1. Stirring frequently, heat 1 quart milk to 160 degrees.  Clip yogurt thermometer to side of saucepan to monitor temperature.  Once heated to 160, allow to cool to 110 degrees.
2. Pour the cooled milk into yogurt maker insert.  Add starter culture packet and mix thoroughly.  Cover and incubate in yogurt maker for 5-12 hours.  Check after 5 hours to see if it has set (when set, it will move away from the side of the container in a solid mass, instead of running up the side of the container).  If not set, allow to culture for up to 7 more hours, checking every 30-60 minutes.  Once set, allow to cool a bit, then cover and refrigerate for at least 6 hours.  Your cultured yogurt can now be eaten.  Be sure to reserve some back for your next batch.

Making the next batch:

1. Heat 1 quart milk to 160 degrees.  Cool to 110 degrees.
2. Pour cooled milk into yogurt maker insert.  Add 1/4 cup finished yogurt and mix well.  Cover & incubate in yogurt maker for 5-8 hours (this batch will culture faster).  After 5 hours, check every 30-60 minutes until set.  Once set, allow to cool a bit, then cover & refrigerate for 6 hours.

Always remember to reserve back at least 1/4 cup of finished yogurt for the next batch.  Try to make a new batch at least every 7 days to keep your culture strong.  Always use the freshest batch as your starter.

For thicker yogurt, use 1 part heavy cream to 3 parts whole milk, or strain through a yogurt bag or layered cheesecloth to remove some of the whey (save the whey for other uses!).