Easiest Thick Greek Yogurt

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This is the thickest homemade yogurt I’ve ever made and you can make it too!

I saw this yogurt marked down at the store and thought it would make a great starter.

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I measured out 3 quarts of milk into a large saucepan and heated it until it was boiling.  Actually it almost boiled over but I wasn’t paying attention very well.

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After it thoroughly boiled I removed it from the stove and poured it into 3 wide mouth glass quart canning jars.   I followed the suggestion on Easiest Yogurt Recipe Ever to cool the milk down quickly by placing the jars in cold water until I could test it by dipping in my finger.  She’s correct in that it cools very quickly this way!  If you feel like you need to ( I did on my first batch) you can make sure the temperature is down to 115 degrees.

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I dumped a small amout of milk into a bowl and then added 1/3 of the storebought yogurt and mixed it together. I then poured it back into the jar and stirred for 1 minute.  I did this to all three jars individually.  If you’re using your homemade yogurt or a larger container add 2-3 tablespoons of yogurt per quart jar.  Place a lid on each jar.  Place in a larger kettle and fill with warm water until it’s almost to the top of the jars. Put lid on kettle.  You can wrap it up and keep it warm with a towel or place in a cooler or I placed this in our wall oven because it was sealed and out of the way.   One friend places it on top of her fridge where it stays barely warm.

First time I made this I wasn’t sure what the correct incubation time would be.  With three jars you can experiment and pull them out one at at time.  I started this at noon and pulled out the first jar in 4 hours…. it was totally runny.  Second jar I pulled out right before I went to bed about 10 pm.  This batch was thicker but not super thick and had a very mild rich flavor.   The last jar I pulled out the next morning after breakfast.  At 9 am it was super thick and had very little whey ( clear watery liquid) and was a little more tart.   Total time on the best very thick yogurt was about 20 hours.  Cost for starter 59cents. Gallon of whole milk $1.89.  Cost per quart of Greek yogurt 83 cents!

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This is how thick it turned out!  I topped it with frozen blueberries and blueberry syrup.

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