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  • Filmjölk (yogurt)

    Filmjölk

    I've always had an interest in making yogurt and cheese but so far have been unable to make any progress towards those goals. So when the question was asked on Tas's Foods of the World forum, if anyone was interested in A Different Kind of Yogurt that requires no special equipment and can be made on the countertop, of course I showed interest. I ended up splitting an order with another user and received two starter cultures: Filmjölk and Viili.

    Both are strains of Finnish style yogurts that can be cultured at room temps of 70-77 degrees (F). This is right up my alley since I have no real equipment to hold the temps required to make 'American' style yogurt. The paperwork describes them as:
    * Viili: A Finnish yogurt variety, Viili is very mild and creamy, with a fairly thick consistency. It's a versatile favorite that's perfect on its own or in any yogurt recipe.
    * Filmjölk: Another Finnish variety, Filmjölk has a tangy flavor reminiscent of cheese and a custard-like texture. It's great with fresh fruit or over pie. Kids love it!


    The cultures come in a sealed foil pack, similar to single use bread yeast. While there is no label on the packets to indicate which strain is which, they do have numbers which correspond to the descriptions in the instructions so you have to cross reference which is which.


    For my first attempt I went with the filmjölk variety. The instructions for activating the starter couldn't be simpler. Put one to two cups of cold milk in a clean container, stir in the culture and let it sit in a warm place for 12 hours. Since I had whole milk on hand that's what I went with, and poured a scant two cups into a quart mason jar, closed it off with a clean paper towel and a canning ring. The big question was where to put it that stays between 70 and 77. Eventually I settled on placing it on the hopper of my pellet stove. It stays pretty warm there except for at night when everything is turned off.


    Nothing to do now but sit back and wait. The instructions say to check it after 12 hours to see if it has set and if not keep checking every couple hours, up to 48. Well at the 12 hour mark mine still had a consistency of milk, so I let it go. By bed time it still had not setup, so it stayed out overnight. In the morning, same thing, so I was starting to get a little worried. I had not checked the milk I'd used to make sure it was not ultra-pasteurized and wondered if that was why it was not working. Ultra-pasteurized milk has been heated to a very high temperature for just a couple seconds, but has basically been cooked which makes it no good for yogurt or cheese-making. The milk jug had already been thrown away so I couldn't check it at all. I decided to just let it ride and see what happens. While at work I did some more checking on the companies' website where they said the first couple batches may not set firmly, so I was a little relieved but still had some doubts in my mind. By the time I came home it still had the consistency of milk and looked like nothing had changed. A quick sniff didn't give any real results. It did not smell like sour milk and in fact didn't really smell like anything at all.

    I was still a little worried at this point, but again decided to let it ride to see what happened. The instructions say at the end of 48 hours, regardless if it has set or not, move the yogurt into a sealed container in the fridge. Well it had only been a little over 24 hours, so despite the worry I figured I still had time to let it go some more. At bed time, still no change in consistency. And again when waking up, nothing. At this point I was getting a bit more concerned, especially since I had to leave for work and by the time I got back it would be past the 48 hour mark. Feeling rather dejected I left the yogurt out and headed to work, expecting to come home and find the same results. Or worse, a jar of spoiled milk.

    Low and behold, upon returning from work, the yogurt had set! Mind you, not extremely firm but enough that if you tipped the jar it would pull away from the sides. Sorry about the crappy pic, but it's pretty hard to try to capture that in a picture.


    So now the instructions say to put it in the fridge in a covered container for at least 6 hours. The wait was killing me, I really wanted to see what this tasted like. Unfortunately 6 hours put it past my bed time, so I had to wait until morning to taste it.

    Morning finally came and it was time for the first taste. The texture was still rather loose. Custard would be a good description but a very soft one. It basically falls apart into liquid with a few chunks as soon as you touch it at this point. The flavor however is excellent. I don't get any cheese flavor that they mention in the description, but more of a light 'fresh' taste is the best I can describe it. There's a hint of vanilla to it also. It is not sour at all. Aside from the texture it's very good stuff. With a couple drops of vanilla to enhance the existing vanilla flavor and a bit of honey this could easily turn into one of my favorite breakfast items.

    I have the second batch going now, and will continue making batches to see if I can get the texture to firm up a little more. Making future batches is basically the same procedure as above, only instead of the yogurt culture you add 1 tablespoon of the existing yogurt for each cup of milk, up to a half gallon. Making batches beyond a half gallon is not recommended. They recommend making a new batch at least every 7 days to keep the cultures active.
    Last edited by PitRow; 02-01-2018, 05:10 PM.
    Mike
    Life In Pit Row

  • #2
    That's pretty cool Mike!
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    • #3
      That is pretty neat, might have to give it a go....

      I have to find a source for non-pasteurized milkl
      Mark
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      "Likes smokey old pool rooms, clear mountain mornins. Little warm puppies, children and girls of the night"?
      Smoked-Meat Certified Sausage Head!

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      • #4
        Originally posted by Fishawn View Post
        That's pretty cool Mike!
        Thanks!

        Originally posted by Mark R View Post
        That is pretty neat, might have to give it a go....

        I have to find a source for non-pasteurized milkl
        Pasteurized is good, keeps the nasty bugs at bay until the good stuff can take over. Just have to stay away from the Ultra-pasteurized stuff, which can also be labelled "UHT".
        Mike
        Life In Pit Row

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        • #5
          Originally posted by PitRow View Post
          Thanks!



          Pasteurized is good, keeps the nasty bugs at bay until the good stuff can take over. Just have to stay away from the Ultra-pasteurized stuff, which can also be labelled "UHT".
          The ultra is almost all they sell in Florida. I tried and failed several times making cheese because of this. Some silly state law.
          Mark
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          "Likes smokey old pool rooms, clear mountain mornins. Little warm puppies, children and girls of the night"?
          Smoked-Meat Certified Sausage Head!

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          • #6
            well damn, that sucks Mark. I hope you can find some locally eventually. Around here it seems to be mostly just pasteurized, not ultra. But it's illegal to sell 'raw' milk.
            Mike
            Life In Pit Row

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            • #7
              Very cool post

              Thinking "Outta the Box" for you....
              Island of Misfit Smokers Member #92

              How to heal the world. Love people and feed them tasty food.

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              • #8
                Wonder how this would work with Goat or other milk?
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                • #9
                  Originally posted by crusty ol salt View Post
                  Very cool post

                  Thinking "Outta the Box" for you....
                  Thank you, and thanks for the points!

                  Originally posted by Fishawn View Post
                  Wonder how this would work with Goat or other milk?
                  Great question, I might try making a couple batches with goat milk if I can find some. I think I'm going to do a couple more batches with just milk to try to get the bacteria going really good (and hopefully firm up some) then branch out with other things like cream or half-n-half and other types of milk if I can find any suitable.
                  Mike
                  Life In Pit Row

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