The Science of Yogurt: Why the Best Yogurt is Homemade | What's Eating Dan? 

It is not possible for me to enjoy Dan's content any more than I do. His presentations (with equal parts humor and science) are 10/10 every. single. time. We ❤ the way you explain food, Dan!

As a Bulgarian, yogurt is life here. My mum and grandma used to make homemade yogurt with no thermometer, just finger. 😀 And wrap it with a blanket to keep warm. Bulgarian yogurt is more acidic, pairing perfectly with a lot of dishes. I love using yogurt instead of milk in baking. Gives you a nice taste and texture, as well as working with the baking soda in the recipe. You can also try the Bulgarian summer cold soup - tarator. It's made of finely diced cucumber, yogurt, garlic, salt and a bit of water. It is very refreshing on a hot day or with a hot meal.

Hi Dan, Jackobaccilus here. Thank you for all you do to bring so much joy to life. I am always happy and smiling with each and every episode you make. Kudos to your entire and mostly invisible team. Bring them on someday. ❤️👍🏼

i don't like the implied audience rudeness that suggests i would ever tell Dan his stories are boring nor that i would ever tell him to get on with the show. This is why I'm here!

Homemade yogurt alone is 100% of the reason to get an Instant Pot. I swear. You can control the ingredients and fat/protein/carb amounts by using your own ratio of cream, half-and-half, high protein and varying fat milks.

After tasting home made yogurt in Croatia in 2017, I decided to start making my own. I bought an Instant Pot on sale and have made yogurt about once every 10 days ever since. The Instant Pot makes the process simpler than what Dan is describing. I use 2% milk, fermented for 10 hours, and then I put it through a Eurocuisine strainer because I like Greek style yogurt. I use the whey for baking and in soups. The yogurt is absolutely delicious unflavoured with fresh fruits, in baking, added to sauces, etc. it’s also significantly cheaper than store bought yogurt.

The info, the editing, Dan's energy, the jokes, Dan's smile, the shots, the quips, Dan eating, the set: all of these elements make it such a delight to watch!

I make my own yogurt, but I use an Instant Pot. Honestly, it's the best investment I've ever made and I always have the best yogurt in my fridge!

If only Dan had been our teacher in school, we all would have thrived. So interesting, so engaging, so funny, all the while never yelling, like so many videos on RU-vid. Much respect for this excellent presenter. What’s eating Dan? Probably incompetence.

I really enjoy your channel but find the background music very distracting. Some episodes are worse than others but I wish you would turn down the volume. Thanks

I used to make yoghurt in the office. I would fill up my unwashed yogurt jar with milk, warm it in the microwave and leave it on the counter wrapped up in a hoody. It was perfect in the morning.

Try subbing the whey for water when you make bread, too-the extra sugars and protein will give you the most gorgeously browned crust ever!

As I often say, I love this ATK series. Dan is always fun and I always learn something.

When a layer of whey forms on top of my yogurt during storage, I just pour it into my sourdough starter culture. This helps keep the lacto fermenting bacteria population high.

My F Rench yogurt is made with half and half which is ultra-pasteurized, so it needs NO HEATING at all! Stir in your sweetener if using, some yogurt of your choosing,, a couple of teaspoons of vanilla and incubate for 8 hours. It is the thickest, creamiest, most decadent yogurt you will ever eat. We like it for dessert with a little fruit added. Top anything with it, stir what yiu like into it. This is the way to make the best yogurt!

My grandmother made yougart at home. Now I know why she wrapped the pot in blankets and left it on the floor next to the radiator in the winter months.

I dump a heaping spoonful of plain yogurt into an instant pot full of ultra pasteurized milk. Press yogurt button set for 9-10 hours before bed. I wake up to yogurt. I dump it into a nut bag and drain a bit. Greek yogurt! Easy peasy.

There are many ways to make yogurt! ATK is right - key thing is their method of adding the culture to warm (110-115 deg F. milk), then keeping it warm for several hours. Ultra-pasteurized milk probably works, but I’ve been making yogurt for over a decade sometimes with raw milk (when I can get it), or with regular pasteurized milk. It is important to heat the milk to 175 deg F, then allow it to cool to 110-115 deg before adding the culture. For a long time, I poured my newly cultured milk into jars, set them in a cooler with several jars of boiling water. Then I got wiser & pre heat my oven on its lowest setting for 10 minutes, then I turn off the oven, put the whole pot in overnight. My oven has a “bread proofing” setting that is way too hot for bread, but any oven’s lowest setting should work, if you don’t overdo it. The goal is 115 deg F. We like thick yogurt, so I strain mine in a yogurt strainer. I freeze the whey and make bread and soup with it.

"Yogurt is an incredibly important staple in *cultures* across the globe." This man oozes wordplay!

I make mine in the Instant Pot. Delicious & couldn’t be easier! Also, I add a bit of sweetened condensed milk. YUM!

Has anybody gone down the rabbit hole on Dan? What a great couple of hours on this cutie guy....from working in a graveyard to having his mouth wired shut and stand up comic. Look him up, I enjoyed it ALLL, the backstory. ❣😋

I’m so happy to see a new episode. It’s always such great fun to see Dan being an awesome teacher we love to watch ♥️

Love it. I have been making yogurt in an instant pot for several years using filtered milk. I do it for 6 hours for the right balance. I can barely eat store bought yogurt. Happy to see that you're not telling people to heat up ultra pasteurized to 185. Not needed. Gotta try that frozen yogurt! Thanks again!

What a crack up! Knowledgeable and personable.

I like all of ATC's content. However, Dan's content rocks! Its entertaining, informative, and interesting.

Highly entertaining and informative! Thanks Dan!

...Dan's cook videos are educational and humorous...love them

Made yogurt using this method for the second time. It is outstanding! So easy I don’t need a yogurt machine any more and can make multiple jars at once. Thank you Dan!

Excellent video. Thank you so much!

Use whey in cooked cereals, cupcakes, breads, anything that calls for water, lemonade, etc. Love your tutorials. I make my yogurt in the Food Dehydrator. Aunt Duddicus Borelliosis.

You can use your oven or an Instant Pot.

Somehow, impossible though it may seem, I love you even more Dan!! Keep rockin'.

I love your intelligent presentation. I simply subscribed. I'll binge watch the rest of your videos. THANK YOU 🙏

You are so smart, so witty, so muchfun. I love your show!

One of the best-ever WEDs to date! Love from your JP neighbors…

Thank you for sharing your talent! You didn't know it, but you helped me start a difficult day with a bit more grit and bravery today.

The yogurt I make at home IS better than any store bought. I make it once a week. I make it in my InstantPot. Fermentation of 10 hours is my favorite. Sometimes I do 12 hours. Sooooo thick too.

I'm glad that I recently subscribed and didn't miss this enlightening episode. I haven't made yogurt for 30 yrs. Why did I stop? Time to give it another try. I'm going to check out the ginger video now.

Coolest series on youtube, thanks dan and ATK. Love you guys.

For more than a year now, I've been having great success making my own yogurt from regular store-bought milk and a much simpler process. Fermentation proceeds just fine at room temperature (the same is true with sour-dough bread proofing) -- it just takes longer. I prefer the outcome of this longer and cooler fermentation because it results in yogurt that is thick and tart, but never bitter. My equipment: 1. 8" straight-sided sauce pan (tall enough that the 2L of milk goes about halfway up the side) 2. Instant-read thermometer 3. Stainless-steel bowl for icewater bath 4. Canning funnel 5. Gravy whisk Here's what I do: 1. Heat 2kg (2L) of store-bought milk to 180 deg F. Don't go hotter, and whisk the bottom of the pan frequently to prevent scorching. On my electric stove with my pan, this takes a bit less than 10 minutes. 2. Transfer the pan with the hot milk to an ice-water bath and whisk vigorously to cool to 115 deg F. 3. Stir in 150 g of starter (from the previous batch) and whisk thoroughly 4. Pour off into jars, and close the jars (I use Mason jars and plastic lids) 5. Place the closed jars into a soft-sided insulated carrier or bag, wrapped in a towel 6. Let stand for 24 hours. I leave mine in our kitchen, where it is typically 60-70 deg F. I love the result. Be sure to reserve 150 g from each batch as starter for the next batch. I used "Sidehill Farms plain whole-milk organic yogurt", from Whole Foods Market, for my first starter. That was at least six months ago, maybe longer. I make at least a batch a week, so the process is self-sustaining.

I loved this! Thank you!

That was ALOT of fun to watch, nice job!

Another awesome video, Dan. As a fermenter of many things for over 40 years I can't believe I haven't made yogurt yet although my wife has. Maybe its time to give it a try.

L. acidophilus Ioannes here - big fan of Greek yogurt (which as we all now know is really just yogurt with some of the whey removed and a really good marketing team.) You just gave me another excellent reason to invest in a sous vide contraption. Thank you!!!

I’ve been making yogurt for years and own a food company….and that was an excellent video! I learned so much.

Streptococcus marlivarius here. Thanks for the science, Dan. Please keep it coming, and if anyone else has other uses for whey, please let me know!

Thanks Dan! Great content right here....

I have a yogurt maker & love making my own. Will definitely be swapping out some milk for cream & adding some dry milk powder next batch! Can't wait! Thanks!

I've been making my own yogurt in an Instant Pot for about five years, and have it down to an efficient process. In terms of elapsed time it take me about two days to make about 30 ounces of yogurt. In terms of actual time spent, maybe 30 minutes, and that includes cleaning up. That said, I appreciate this video, which gives me new ideas about consuming my yogurt, which tastes much better than anything I've ever bought from a commercial producer.

I love making yogurt at home. Love your presentations. Thank you!

Dan, you make food science fun and graspable! I am going to try this out.

Thank you for this video! Very informative and I appreciate your sense of humor! I've been making my own yogurt for years. Here's my 2¢: I use heavy cream only and let it incubate for a full 24 hours in small canning jars with plastic lids. To keep the temperature right around 115°, I use a shop light/work light/trouble light in my oven with a 75-watt incandescent bulb. In the winter, I turn on the oven light, too. Perfect yogurt each and every time!

Adding 1 or 2 Tablespoons of potato starch or inulin can provide more prebiotic benefits for your buck, too. The temperature can vary with the strain of bacteria, for example, lactobacillus reuteri should be grown at 95° F and incubated for 44 hours. Kefir should be 80° to 85°F. Also if using the sous vide, culture up a batch of cream to make cultured butter, in a separate jar, while making the yogurt. Enjoyed watching you enjoy your yoghurt.

I've discovered that I can use my Instant Pot instead of the oven. I fill and cap the jars, then put them into the Instant Pot liner. I fill the Instant Pot pan with hottest tap water (mine is about 105 degrees) to within about an inch from the top. The jars are a little taller than my 6 qt Instant Pot pan, but that doesn't matter. I cover the pot with a folded dish towel to help retain the heat, then use the Yogurt button to start an 8-hour cycle. At the end, the yogurt is ready the refrigerate. I find this method easier than filling two pans with water for the oven. I added cream and instant milk as you suggested and love the result!

You Ginger Froyo sounds good, but did you ever taste gingered rhubarb? Gingered Rhubarb would make your yogurt taste amazing. I dice the rhubarb very fine, 1/4" pieces. I finely diced crystalized ginger into 1/8" pieces and add those to simple syrup in a medium saucepan. When it is a fairly thick syrup, where a finger track on the back of a spoon. Add the diced rhubarb and cook for just a couple of minutes. Turn off the heat and let the pan sit and cool. You can add just a drop or two of red food color. This makes a nice jam on toast, but a great ice cream topping, flan topping, stir in to creme brulee, oatmeal, etc. I am sure it would be great in yogurt or Froyo. Love your channel!

I use a small cooler filled with the warm water when fermenting yogurt. Fill with water at warmer end of the fermenting range and I can leave it there the whole day.

what's eating Dan is my favorite series in American's Test Kitchen

Great video, as always! Just had the best yogurt I've ever had literally this morning from "White Mustache." Highly recommend if you're in NYC or LA. I suppose I need to make my own now!

I love you, Dan... to bits!

Thanks! First time watching you ❤️

I love this! Great info!

I have been making yogurt since the 1960s but your method beats mine! Love the variables you shared with us. By the way, I don't have an oven with a light (I live in a motorhome!) and don't have a souvide (I wish I did) so as always, will be using my cooler with warm water, it works.

Love the very easy recipe for yogurt!

Thanks that was interesting, I've been making my yoghurt for years. The froyo recipe looks yum.

Thanks for the recipe

This video was amazing!

I haven't done anything with yogurt yet, but I've been taking relatively cheap skim milk in gallon jugs and turning it into relatively expensive kefir, all from one small bottle I bought several months ago. I go through a lot of kefir, and it's also terrific in pancakes.

The best yoghurt I’ve ever had is Noosa Yoghurt. That stuff is amazing. It’s actually one of the overall best tasting foods I’ve ever put in my mouth.

We make great yogurt in our InstantPot every week. We use Chobani yogurt as the starter. We don’t preheat the milk.

I’d been making homemade yogurt with Dan’s method for a while until I came across RU-vid videos on how to do it using a crock pot/slow cooker. No constant temperature taking, which gets tedious! With the slow cooker, you go by time, not temperature…2 1/2 hours on low, turn off and let sit for 3 hours, whisk in yogurt, cover entire cooker with a towel and leave on counter for several hours/overnight. Strain if desired. It really works! Next time I will try Dan’s suggestions of adding heavy cream and powdered milk. Search RU-vid, there are lots of videos on it.

I haven’t made yogurt since college…the pilot light in the oven was the heat source. I’m not sure pilot lights even exist, anymore. Bacteria name would be, Streptocockeye the Sailor!

Dan speaks, I listen, hes a fabulous orator and is interesting.

We've been making our own for some years, but never tried the mason jar idea. Will have to give that a try. We made a similar ginger (lemon) frozen yogurt that was awesome. Keep them coming.

We use a crock pot for yogurt made in the oven. We don't use another pan of boiling water, just tip the door open and leave the oven at 175., 6-8 hours. We make it when we make Sarma, Armenian styled stuffed grape leaf.

I really love Dan!

I'll be making this week

I love this video!

Very interesting thank you!

Ok. I’m convinced. Will give it a go.

Loved all of it....

That ginger frozen recipe might be a keeper. Home yogurt is delicious and so easy. If you haven't, do it today!

I watched an elderly woman make yogurt from her goat's milk. She started by digging up an ant's nest. She took the eggs, rinsed the dirt off them and put them in a cloth over a pot, and poured her warm goat's milk over the eggs. The eggs were disposed of, and the milk was left to ferment. The bacteria one needs for yogurt are in the ground. and ants concentrate them because they protect the ants from bad fungi and bacteria.

Thank you Dan!!!! 😊

Great info & very entertaining.

Lyle’s Golden Syrup is such a great ingredient! I put it on top of my Cream of Wheat, use it for baking, and find it to be a better addition than corn syrup. Such a fan!

Great one Dan! I've made our yogurt weekly since homesteading in the 70s. I LOL at your references and bad jokes.

When you said it's the best yogurt ill ever have and never buy yogurt again i thought "hmmm... really?!" and OMG you tell NO LIES. i made it yesterday ( 1st time making yogurt ever) and just tasted it and i must say it's beyond amazing! ty for this for i will never buy yogurt again 😊

Pretty correct description of the process. I'm impressed. High protein milks (Lactaid Protein, Fairlife) are excellent and correctly heat treated to denature protein. No need to add skim milk powder (needs re-hydration for proper functionality of protein). Inoculate with 3% plain yogurt (2 spoonfuls per 1 q jar). Stonyfield probiotic YoBaby is a good choice. Sous vide at 109F (43C) for 6-7 hours. Straining of less volume can be done in a coffee filter (in a strainer), overnight, in a refrigerator.

Love Dan!

THANK YOU.

Very interesting and entertaining video. I ferment a lot of my own foods including yogurt, kefir, kombucha, sauerkraut, dua chua (Vietnamese mustard greens), beet kvass, etc. so this was great to me.

Whatever v that soup is at 6:38 seems really appealing. And the ginger I've ice-cream is something I'd eat way too much of, I'm sure! Thanks for this. And I'm about to hit the "subscribe" button.

Great episode! Agree with other commenters that we would love to know how to make non-dairy yogurt for those with dairy intolerances/allergies!

Living in a tropical country, I just put the yogurt outside covered with kitchen cloth in front of the AC outdoor unit. Done in 12 hours!

Tip: I once made non-dairy yogurt (to reduce cholesterol) with cashews and used probiotic capsules for my bacteria, and it worked perfectly. I then tried it with milk and it worked just as well. My probiotic was 5bil CFUs of 5 bacteria (incl. the 2 you mentioned), just break open 1 capsule and stir into the goop. 8 hrs later, perfect yogurt. (For the cashew version, I also added some herbs and tapioca flour which thickened it nicely, then dried this thicker mixture in my food drier to make cheese. Whey cool! (Well, no whey, actually.)

Awesome video Dan! I've made homemade yogurt before, but I wasn't very happy with the outcome. Can't wait to try this recipe/tips. I made your ginger Froyo recipe, and it was a hit. Best Froyo I ever had! Kindly, Lanactobacillus lawrencies ;P

If you heat the milk a tad extra it gives your yogurt a smoke flavor which is awsome. We're originally from the middle east. My family would make yogurt cheese and other dairy products at home. Really isn't hard and tastes better than off the shelf stuff.

Thank you

I have a Donvier yogurt maker that I have used for decades. I heat the milk in the microwave and have learned how long it takes in mine and check with the thermometer. Mix in a few teaspoons of previous yogurt and pour it into the containers. I make it weekly and it’s just routine. I make overnight oatmeal with milk and add yogurt and fruit to it. It’s creamy and not tart and I don’t add any sweetener to it. Even without fruit I love it. I’m in my 60’s and discovered store bought yogurt as a teenager and bought a yogurt maker decades ago and it’s still working fine.

I could be Dan's Grandmother, but in my heart, I'm 22, tall brunette with violet eyes and deeply in love...with him🥰 oh sorry, Dan can you post that Hot yogurt soup with the chili oil at the end of this video? Thank you