anyone made soy or dairy yogurt?

[Rebel]

 I was given a yogurt maker and have looked around the internet and found some recipes. I want to make some soy yogurt and wondered if anyone has made it homemade? Any tips? Some recipes add agar agar, some don't.

 Anyway, I made one batch of dairy yogurt, it was ok. I'm going to tweak.

 

[Kaitlinnegan]

I've only made dairy yogurt, and I'm guessing you've got the basics down since your batch turned out, but here are a couple links I found useful:
Ceres & Bacchus blog - nice directions on how to turn a cooler into a yogurt maker
Making yogurt - good step-by-step process, with pictures
I used to use a cooler+hot pad setup, but I got a yogurt maker for Christmas.  I'll probably go back to the cooler now and again if I want larger batches for making yogurt cheese, frozen yogurt, etc.  I used skim milk (sometimes with some powdered milk added to thicken it), and plain Dannon yogurt for starter, but I read somewhere that higher fat content makes a milder tasting yogurt.  I never used any agar agar, but I would be interested to try it.  I like the thicker, creamier texture of store bought yogurt, and this is probably due to the stuff they add - carrageen, pectin, etc.

I've never tried soy yogurt, but from a quick google search it seems to work the same as dairy yogurt -- you just start it with a bit of commercial soy yogurt instead.  Verrry interesting. 

[Rebel]

 I used skim milk with the powdered. I like that it adds some creaminess. as soon as I finish eating this batch I'm going to try the soy. How many hours did you incubate yours? Mine turned out tart, with a little honey its really good but I think I'm going to incubate for less time.

 thanks for the advice and websites.

[crapbuster]

what a good idea

[Rachaol]

Sorry I can't help with any soy yougurt making ideas...but I do have a suggestion about creamier yogurt.

The new popularity of Greek-style yogurt came along with high prices. I admit I'm cheap, but I really refuse to spent $2plus on 2 cups of yogurt. Unless it makes my eyes roll back in my head, it isn't worth it. (I will spend $$$ on the occasional whole milk Brown Cow brand maple yogurt. It is so yummy it makes me do a happy dance).

So, I strain my regular plain store-bought non-fat yogurt instead. I line a seive or mesh strainer with a clean flour sack dish towel or coffee filters. Then I dump in the yogurt, place it over a bowl in the fridge and wait. In a couple of hours you have a much thicker and creamier yogurt. The whey that leaks out can be used to thin out smoothies or as the liquid in a bread recipe.

There is no reason this wouldn't work with homemade yogurt.

[chibilightangel]

I grew up on homemade yogurt and got my own yogurt maker a few years ago when I was away from home for university. The way I normally make yogurt is with purchasing a culture and 3 cans on evaporated milk, though it works just fine starting with some of the leftover yogurt (not that there's often any leftover for me to use...).

To thicken yogurt, you can do the draining method as mentioned. I'm too lazy for that, so I'm just careful when I scoop out my yogurt not to mix the parts I'm not eating, so next time I scoop out yogurt, I make sure to scoop out the accumulated whey from the depression I'd previously made. This slowly thickens it up, but I'm lazy so it works for me.

[rachael24]

Is there a big difference in taste and consistency between homemade and storemade.  I would imagine there is a big difference.

[Kaitlinnegan]

Homemade can be milder or more sour depending on how long you incubate it (longer=more sour).  If you've eaten plain, unsweetened yogurt, that is similar to homemade yogurt, but homemade is less tart.  Of course, you can add whatever sweetener or flavorings you want.