Yogurt Starter Cultures - Pack of 3 Freeze-Dried Sachets for Lactobacillus Rhamnosus and L.Gasseri Yogurt (3 sachets Pack)

Simple to use and make a great tasting yoghurt

Absolutely delicious yogurt and a strong, active culture. Wow!! Firstly, if you want creamy/thick yogurt, you need to up your milk fat percentage - that is to say, skim/semiskim won't ever make thick yogurt (without straining). I tested the culture using full fat Guernsey milk (lush!) and then used that yogurt to culture a batch of ewe's (sheep) milk. Wow wow wow. Creamy perfection, no straining needed! I make mine in an InstantPot for ease. Here's what to do: clean and carefully rinse your InstantPot liner (metal inner pot). Pour in your milk and place directly on a burner; over medium-high heat, bring to 82 degrees Celsius, stirring periodically to keep it from sticking to the bottom. Remove from the heat. Cool to between 42 - 44 degrees Celsius - if you have a ThermoPen with a 'set temperature' feature, just set it to alert you :) otherwise keep an eye on it (if it falls too low, just gently warm it again). Once you're in the right temp range, add in your starter OR a spoonful of your old batch (made with this culture). Stir it in, then place the liner back in your InstantPot, cover with lid (I use the glass lid), no need to put it into 'sealing' position as it's not coming to pressure. Press the yogurt button, then select 'ferment'. If this is your FIRST time using this culture, let it go for 8 hours (test it after 6 though); afterwards, recurring batches only take about 6 hours (test at 4 hours and again at 5 hours). Move to a clean container, refrigerate, enjoy. Don't forget to save a spoonful to re-inoculate your next batch. This particular culture makes a very slightly lumpy yogurt (you won't feel it in your mouth, and you can stir it through fully to smooth it out) which is very mild with a gentle, creamy tang. Super pleasant and almost sweet (when made with ewe's milk). It's okay in savoury applications but the Balkan and Bulgarian cultures are better for that; this is best for eating plain, or in anything sweet, like Bircher muesli or similar. :)

I ordered this in Feb ‘23, and at time of writing this it’s August ‘23. I’ve been alternating this strain with Balkan strain I purchased from the same manufacturer in Dec ‘22 and I still have one sachet left. We eat approximately 1.25 batches a week, so you do the maths, it’s worth every penny.I make it in an Amazon basics yogurt maker and I seriously cut corners on the usual process. I turn the yogurt maker on before I start to warm the glasses up. I use full fat UHT milk, heat to 43 degrees, and before you object to my not boiling the milk, I figure UHT is already sterile, so why waste the time and electricity doing it again, and I’ve been using this method for 9 months or more without a problem.While it’s heating, I mix 50g of whole milk powder with 5 tblsp (proper ones not large serving spoons) of the last batch’s whey. That’s right, I don’t use yogurt as a starter, I use whey. That way I get to eat all the yogurt I make.Mix the whey and milk powder well and make sure you’ve got no dry bits or lumps. As the milk warms you can pour a bit into the whey mix to heat it up a little and help to mix it.Once the milk is at 43 degrees (I use this thermometer https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B09P72SKBM/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1) I pour more of the milk into the whey mix on whisk it. Then pour that mix back into the pan, making sure it’s no longer on the heat, and whisk again. I then our into the yogurt maker and leave it for 8 + hours, until when I gently shake a pot it’s not runny.I then empty each pot into a strainer ( there are plenty on this site) and leave for a couple of hours in the fridge to drip over a jug. Don’t panic if it looks runny and not good. After a couple of hours I turn it out into a bowl and whisk it by hand. It turns into the most heavenly creamy yogurt, which you store in the fridge until it’s gone. Also don’t panic if you forget about it all night and it’s like cream cheese! You have two options, mix it with herbs and garlic powder and make your own Boursin style cheese spread, or whisk some of the drained whey back into it until you get the consistency you like. Store your Whey in the fridge and use it in bread making or smoothies, if you make them. It’s full of probiotic goodness, so don’t throw it away, but remember to keep 5 tbsp for your next batch of yogurtSeriously the prep before it goes into the yogurt maker is all of 10 mins and the straining etc about the same, it’s so worth the effort.

I’ve tried this culture twice now and both times ended up with a very grainy sour liquid. I’m using the last one now, having mixed in some of the failed one to give it a prompt. If this fails, I’m going to go back to one of the ones that worked better. 🫤

Just thought I'd add a little update: After doing a bit of research on the bacteria used in this, it does cause gas and bloating. I have used it to make some more yogurt and have smaller portions to get used to it. If no change I will either try the other or go back to using store bought yoghurt for my starter.I purchased this because I make yoghurt in an instant pot. I'd used yoghurt bought from the supermarket and because I'd forgotten how to make it, I killed the bacteria and couldn't be bothered to go to the shop to get more so brought this instead.I make it with uht skimmed milk, but if you want a more thick and creamy yoghurt use semi skimmed or for absolute deviness whole milk, and I do strain my yoghurt regardless of the milk used because I like thick yoghurt almost like cream cheese. I don't add anything to sweeten it either, I do like a sharp tangy yoghurt. This gave me everything I desired. Have only made one batch but will use a bit of pre made to make the next batch.I would say the only downside I've found with this is it makes me a little gassy, probably a little tmi but I didn't have that issue with shop bought natural yoghurt. Perhaps it's different cultures or bacteria and I need to get used to it.

I’ve used this culture before and it’s works well. I use Inulin as a fibre feeder for the yogurt which aids thickness.

Worked fantastic! Made a lovely thick yogurt that had a lovely creamy flavour

tasty and has Rahmanous strain which is good for h pylori. next batches take only 3 hours. very satiated with the product