Is this a good “healthy” yogurt recipe?

lorib642

I want to make my own yogurt so I can put the ingredients I want in it. My friend gave me this recipe
https://www.wheatbellyblog.com/2019/07/how-to-make-l-reuteri-yogurt-step-by-step/

The dr makes a lot of claims. I am not too concerned with that, just wondering if this seems like a good idea to even try. It gives it more probiotic bacteria than store bought yogurt.

I am sure I can get other recipes this is just one that was recommended.

I was not sure where to post.

goal06082021

Do you have a reason to believe you need to take probiotics and regular-assed yogurt won't do?

autumnblade75

Made with half n' half, it will be highly caloric, compared to most store-bought yogurts. Seems like an awful lot of work, too.

ehju0901

Hmmm, looks like a lot of effort and some hard to find ingredients. Personally, I'd stick with store bought to save yourself the time.

If looking for extra probiotics you could always look into adding chia seeds to your yogurts.

If all else fails, try making the yogurt and see how it goes. No harm in trying it out.

cmriverside

Making homemade yogurt is pretty labor intensive, and easy to make mistakes. I had one of those temperature-controlled yogurt makers and that was [somewhere] easier, but still a pain. Yogurt is a reasonably priced food item if you stick to unflavored...I don't think it's worth the bother, honestly.

PopGoesTheCoyote

So there is a lot covered on the Wikipedia page. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Limosilactobacillus_reuteri

It's already present in a lot of dairy products, so you probably don't need to make the yogurt. It's also present in sourdough bread and it looked like there is a lot of pill forms available too. I'm getting into fermenting because I want to increase better gut flora in my system. This particular yogurt looks like high effort and I think I would just take a pill instead. It is generally already present in most people's digestive systems though there are some people without any of it. If you feel that you need it, maybe look for it in pill form first to see if that helps.

AnnPT77

I may be a minority here, but I don't think that recipe seems especially complicated (but I come from the olden days when most people cooked more things from scratch than is most common now, so my perceptions may be off).

It's more complicated than a basic yogurt recipe, though. Is it worth it? I don't know.

OP, why do you want to make your own yogurt? Is it an affordability/availability issue, or is the objective to increase the number and diversity of species in your gut microbiome? Is there something special, for you, about l. reuteri specifically, or lactobacilli generally, for a health condition or something like that?

I'm asking because my advice would differ depending on your goals.

As far as making yogurt, it's a thing I did routinely for several years, back when I was a low-budget college student. Someone gave me a "yogurt maker" as a gift, and my roommates and I made yogurt probably once a week or more. It was fairly simple (and I think it would be simpler these days, in the era of the microwave). The basic thing is to heat milk to a consistent temperature (I don't recall what the temp was, but it was just below a boil) while avoiding burning it. Then, one would add a yogurt culture, which could be a small amount of yogurt from the previous batch. (Back then, batch #1 was made with a commercial live-culture yogurt as a starter.)

You don't actually need a yogurt maker. As the article says, all you need is a way to keep the milk at the correct warm temperature for long enough to develop, roughly overnight, but longer develops it more. A yogurt maker just makes that a simple thing.

When we made yogurt, we used a combination of regular milk from the store (I don't remember what fat content, but probably 2% or nonfat) plus reconstituted nonfat dry milk, which was very cheap. Occasionally, we made it with just the reconstituted dry milk, which worked fine, too (flavor not as good, but only slightly). I suspect this author says 'never lowfat/nonfat" because he seems to be an advocate of relatively higher-fat eating generally. Nonfat milk makes perfectly reasonable yogurt, though some people prefer the taste or texture of higher fat.

I don't make yogurt anymore, haven't in years, because good-quality commercial yogurt is easily available to me at a price I can afford, with some choice about what cultures have been used if I cared (I don't, much, though I do seek out live-culture yogurt). It's easier to buy it than make it, even though I don't think making it is particularly time-consuming or difficult. There are lots of things I know how to make, but don't fuss with because good versions are easily available/affordable.

If your concern is cost or availability, making your own yogurt could be a good solution. If your concern is a diverse gut microbiome, then possibly eating a diversity of different types of live-culture fermented food would be a possible approach. If you believe l. reuteri is especially useful, there are commercial products (yogurt or kefir, typically) that contain it. If maximizing the quantity of l. reuteri specifically or probiotics generally is the goal, then it would probably be more helpful to research and use a high-quality supplement.

In any scenario where your goal is to increase the number or diversity of beneficial microbes in your body, remember that a healthy diet in other respects (especially prebiotic foods) will also be helpful, as well as avoiding some things (excessive alcohol is one, with a variable definition of "excessive"). High fat and sugar also have effects on gut microbiome, but with less clarity IMU that those things have as meaningful an impact as alcohol, about what effect there is exactly, and at what thresholds. This science is pretty young, preliminary . . . but the gee-whiz blogosphere is running with it, and trying to sell us stuff (perhaps only advertising eyeballs, but sometimes more).

The wiki article above seems generally good, and there's also a summary of research evidence here, with links to relevant studies:

https://examine.com/supplements/lactobacillus-reuteri/

Examine is an evidence-based site, generally regarded as neutral, that doesn't sell supplements or advertising. (They sell access to more in-depth research reports, primarily on nutritional topics, but also provide some good information for free on the web.)

lorib642

Thank you. I am interested in introducing healthy bacteria. I don’t have any reason to believe I am deficient. I could add more fermented foods to my diet. I rarely eat them. I very rarely drink alcohol. If I do make it, I will log it as half and half and probably only have a few oz at a time

AnnPT77

lorib642 wrote: »

Thank you. I am interested in introducing healthy bacteria. I don’t have any reason to believe I am deficient. I could add more fermented foods to my diet. I rarely eat them. I very rarely drink alcohol. If I do make it, I will log it as half and half and probably only have a few oz at a time

If you want microbiome effects via food, consider increasing the diversity of fermented foods: Raw/unpasteurized sauerkraut (easy to make) or kim chi, live-culture miso, raw/unpasteurized vinegar (doesn't have to be ACV), kombucha, live-culture yogurt and kefir, raw naturally-pickled veggies (not just vinegar ones), etc., etc. There are lots of options. It takes a bit of attention to make sure the food contains live cultures (if purchased commercially, i.e., heating/cooking for canning and such usually kills the bugs).

Eat prebiotics, too: Basically, those are foods rich in the fiber types that typical gut microflora like to eat.

If you make the yogurt, rather than log it as half and half, just do an MFP recipe. It may be a little bit off calorically because of the fermentation effects, I'm not sure, but it should be closer than logging it as half and half.

lorib642

Thank you

MsCzar

cmriverside wrote: »

Making homemade yogurt is pretty labor intensive, and easy to make mistakes. I had one of those temperature-controlled yogurt makers and that was [somewhere] easier, but still a pain. Yogurt is a reasonably priced food item if you stick to unflavored...I don't think it's worth the bother, honestly.

I disagree. I make my own yogurt every other day and it couldn't be simpler. I don't even bother measuring; I just do it by eye and it always turns out perfectly.

1. On the stovetop, slowly bring about 1.5 pints of whole milk up to 185 °F-85°C, stirring often.
2. Allow milk to cool to 110°F-43°C
3. In a clean bowl, add a small amount of the warm milk to 3-4 Tablespoons of plain whole milk yogurt and gently incorporate, then add the remainder of the milk and gently stir.
4. I use a lidded glass Pyrex bowl and offset the lid to allow air flow. I place the dish in my pilot-lit oven (OFF) which remains at a constant 95°F-35°C for ~6-8 hours.

Done! Chill in the fridge to set. You can strain off some or all of the whey for the consistency you prefer.

I buy a small store bought full fat plain yogurt as a starter and make batch after batch for weeks on end. I usually eat the first serving 'as is' and strain the 2nd day's portion. The rest becomes the starter for the next batch.

As for adding the extra probiotics, without some sort of diagnosed issue, I don't really see the need; nor do I believe the wondrous claims in the article. Seems to be a slight whiff of snake oil there.

AnnPT77

MsCzar wrote: »

cmriverside wrote: »

Making homemade yogurt is pretty labor intensive, and easy to make mistakes. I had one of those temperature-controlled yogurt makers and that was [somewhere] easier, but still a pain. Yogurt is a reasonably priced food item if you stick to unflavored...I don't think it's worth the bother, honestly.

I disagree. I make my own yogurt every other day and it couldn't be simpler. I don't even bother measuring; I just do it by eye and it always turns out perfectly.

1. On the stovetop, slowly bring about 1.5 pints of whole milk up to 185 °F-85°C, stirring often.
2. Allow milk to cool to 110°F-43°C
3. In a clean bowl, add a small amount of the warm milk to 3-4 Tablespoons of plain whole milk yogurt and gently incorporate, then add the remainder of the milk and gently stir.
4. I use a lidded glass Pyrex bowl and offset the lid to allow air flow. I place the dish in my pilot-lit oven (OFF) which remains at a constant 95°F-35°C for ~6-8 hours.

Done! Chill in the fridge to set. You can strain off some or all of the whey for the consistency you prefer.

I buy a small store bought full fat plain yogurt as a starter and make batch after batch for weeks on end. I usually eat the first serving 'as is' and strain the 2nd day's portion. The rest becomes the starter for the next batch.

As for adding the extra probiotics, without some sort of diagnosed issue, I don't really see the need; nor do I believe the wondrous claims in the article. Seems to be a slight whiff of snake oil there.

Yeah. I know OP discounted the article's claims (which I think is right).

As I said, I think the science is young, and limited. It's starting to seem like a diverse microbiome, of a positive sort, is a beneficial thing for health . . . but it's not definitive what a "diverse, positive" microbiome is, exactly; nor how to get it. (It's one of the current exploited ideas for blogosphere hype and marketing, though, obviously.)

At this point, I consider it a good bet-hedge for health to eat a well-rounded range of traditional probiotic and prebiotic foods. Since they're also tasty and satiating IMO, that's not a hard thing to do.

But I'd pretty much guarantee, at this point, that some of the claimed benefits in the article are imaginative, to put the kindest possible spin on it.

Whether the amped up L. reuteri via prebiotics in the yogurt is real, or beneficial - dunno . . . let alone what the benefit of any amped up L. reuteri is. 🤷‍♀️

P.S. L. reuteri at some intake seems like it might be good. How much? Dunno. It's in my kefir. Calling that OK, for now, until we have more evidence.

lynn_glenmont

lorib642 wrote: »

Thank you. I am interested in introducing healthy bacteria. I don’t have any reason to believe I am deficient. I could add more fermented foods to my diet. I rarely eat them. I very rarely drink alcohol. If I do make it, I will log it as half and half and probably only have a few oz at a time

You lose water/whey in making yogurt, so if all the dairy in this recipe is half and half, logging the weight or volume of the finished yogurt as half and half will be undercounting the calories.

lorib642

lynn_glenmont wrote: »

lorib642 wrote: »

Thank you. I am interested in introducing healthy bacteria. I don’t have any reason to believe I am deficient. I could add more fermented foods to my diet. I rarely eat them. I very rarely drink alcohol. If I do make it, I will log it as half and half and probably only have a few oz at a time

You lose water/whey in making yogurt, so if all the dairy in this recipe is half and half, logging the weight or volume of the finished yogurt as half and half will be undercounting the calories.

Thank you. I am splitting into containers before making. How would you log it?

MsCzar

Other than for the extra creamy taste, which is yummy, I'm not sure why you'd want to use h&h over whole milk. The process necessary to bind yogurt bacteria involves the milk proteins - not the extra fat of the cream.

I'm sure there is a way to split hairs about the calorie count, but I simply log the first day's unstrained yogurt as 'whole milk plain yogurt' and the second day's strained version as 'whole milk Greek yogurt.' Most of the whey separates after breaking the set and taking that initial portion.

springlering62

I used to have a yogurt maker with lovely little individual glass serving jars. Making the yogurt was easy as pie. Cleaning the jars was a PITA.

You can make it in a large bowl in the oven as @MsCzar says.

My Ninja Foodi has a yogurt setting. I haven’t tried making it yet, however, the dehydrator setting is amazing. I made some killer beef jerky in it several times, and it took half the time of my giant old Presto dehydrator that took an hour to scrub all the racks.

I prefer Greek yogurt, and am too lazy to make the extra step.

kshama2001

I eat a lot of store bought yogurt, but not for the probiotics. I supplement with:

Jarrow Formulas Saccharomyces Boulardii + MOS - 5 Billion Organisms Per Serving - 90 Delayed Release Veggie Caps - Probiotic + Prebiotic

(I have to avoid probiotics with lactobacilli, which limits my options.)

If I couldn't get my favorite brand of yogurt anymore or had an excess of milk I would give yogurt making a shot. I made ricotta from scratch once and was very underwhelmed.

lorib642

I gave it a shot. It is in the water bath now. I will post how it turns out. Thanks everyone. As far as why half and half, I think it may just be for texture.

lorib642

It turned out pretty good. It looks like store bought and has a tangy flavor. The recipe is simpler than some others. You don't heat the milk first. Thanks for the input

MsCzar

Glad it turned out well and you like it.

On a side note, I went to make yogurt this morning with the last of my whole milk whilst multi-tasking in the kitchen (bad idea). I didn't notice until it was too late that I had bumped the button on the digital thermometer from Fahrenheit to Celsius.

I now have six lovely little dishes of banana pudding chilling in the fridge.

cmriverside

I now have six lovely little dishes of banana pudding chilling in the fridge.

My little electric yogurt "machine" with the six cups and the heated base seemed like a such a good idea to me when I bought it, too.