Homemade Vegan Yogurt

[LukethePrettyGood]

Okay, so this is a little out there- I buy Visbiome for my cat, who's recovering from a health issue.

It's got the 8 most studied and beneficial strains for cats and humans alike.

I want to try making the Instant Pot version and wonder which type of vegan milk alternative is the most prebiotic to these strains, or more simply, what makes the best vegan yogurt?

This is completely uncharted territory for me, and I've heard all sorts of weird and strange-sounding recipes, including soaked cashews and coconut and guar gum..
-Maybe it's just me..

Does anyone have any experience making probiotic yogurt in an Instant Pot? Soymilk, oatmilk, coconut milk or rice dream?

One capsule has 225-billion strains, I'm guessing that's plenty..

I'll list the strains below for the science nerds, and in case it's useful in determining the proper substrate.

Will post updates, pictures and reviews!

Thank you so much for considering! Mods, if this is in the wrong place, can you move it? I appreciate it!


L. acidophilus DSM24735
L. plantarum DSM24730
L. paracasei DSM24733
L. delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus DSM24734
S. thermophilus DSM24731
B. longum DSM24736
B. breve DSM24732
B. infantis DSM24737

 

[silva]

I make a plain soy yogurt almost every week in the IP. These are some things I've learned:
A soy beverage/milk that is nothing but soy beans and water. I could not get my homemade to work, I buy Trader Joes shelf stable quart. Westsouy and Edensoy are also plain
Using a glass oven safe bowl or jars are much better than directly in the pot. I use a 7 cup pyrex, but really jars are even better. The first spoon you take out will begin the separation of the soy whey, so if you use jars it will keep it's consistency.
You can blend some cashews and mix in with the soy milk to start. I use yogurt for so many different things I'm ok with it getting thinner--I just strain after I intially take some out. A paper towel or coffee filter in a stainer over a bowl

I use one of these to about one liter soy milk. If I'm using the whole liter I'll add some to the bowl first then add the capsule contents and shake--this allows for the foam that shaking will create and make for better dispersion. (I say "about" because I often save a cup for making mayo or seitan)

Amazon.com

I take out after 12 hours.
(if you don't know, the low yogurt setting is perfect to raise yeast dough when house is cold)

I love to add yogurt to spicy foods at serving!
To mix with mayo and herbs for creamy dressing
To sub for milk in baking: breads, biscuits, cakes, some seitan
Gives a tang combined with nooch garlic and powdered mustard in cheeses and sauces
One of my favorite 'cheese' is this:

A Better Buffalo Mozzarella

www.copymethat.com

I remember looking up what specific cultures are needed and only these three sound familiar-
L. delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus DSM24734
S. thermophilus DSM24731
L. acidophilus DSM24735

 

[LukethePrettyGood]

I make a plain soy yogurt almost every week in the IP. These are some things I've learned:
A soy beverage/milk that is nothing but soy beans and water. I could not get my homemade to work, I buy Trader Joes shelf stable quart. Westsouy and Edensoy are also plain
Using a glass oven safe bowl or jars are much better than directly in the pot. I use a 7 cup pyrex, but really jars are even better. The first spoon you take out will begin the separation of the soy whey, so if you use jars it will keep it's consistency.
You can blend some cashews and mix in with the soy milk to start. I use yogurt for so many different things I'm ok with it getting thinner--I just strain after I intially take some out. A paper towel or coffee filter in a stainer over a bowl

I use one of these to about one liter soy milk. If I'm using the whole liter I'll add some to the bowl first then add the capsule contents and shake--this allows for the foam that shaking will create and make for better dispersion. (I say "about" because I often save a cup for making mayo or seitan)

Amazon.com

I take out after 12 hours.
(if you don't know, the low yogurt setting is perfect to raise yeast dough when house is cold)

I love to add yogurt to spicy foods at serving!
To mix with mayo and herbs for creamy dressing
To sub for milk in baking: breads, biscuits, cakes, some seitan
Gives a tang combined with nooch garlic and powdered mustard in cheeses and sauces
One of my favorite 'cheese' is this:

A Better Buffalo Mozzarella

www.copymethat.com

I remember looking up what specific cultures are needed and only these three sound familiar-
L. delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus DSM24734
S. thermophilus DSM24731
L. acidophilus DSM24735

Thank you, I remember reading about what kind of soy you use in another thread, but couldn't find it. This sounds like just the thing, my favorite so far has been Silk Unsweetened Organic, but let's just say it does funny things to me other soy brands don't..

I will look for the kind you recommend, I'm guessing since the jars must be sterilized before fermenting, they must be Pyrex or another tempered glass?

Good to know about the separation, I wonder if using a sterilized spoon to serve into smaller jars would help prevent it? I really don't mind about the consistency, I'm perfectly happy to drink mine.

Since you use soy for yours, do you have any thoughts on using a soft or firm tofu with it? I'm not sure how I would blend it and maintain a germ-free environment, but I wonder if you only used tofu in the first, if the bacteria would modify the consistency.

I'll try to follow your method to the letter for the first time though, except for the cashews.

Thank you for the information!

 

[silva]

Thank you, I remember reading about what kind of soy you use in another thread, but couldn't find it. This sounds like just the thing, my favorite so far has been Silk Unsweetened Organic, but let's just say it does funny things to me other soy brands don't..

I will look for the kind you recommend, I'm guessing since the jars must be sterilized before fermenting, they must be Pyrex or another tempered glass?

Good to know about the separation, I wonder if using a sterilized spoon to serve into smaller jars would help prevent the separation? I really don't mind about the consistency, I'm perfectly happy to drink mine.

Since you use soy for yours, do you have any thoughts on using a soft or firm tofu with it? I'm not sure how I would blend it and maintain a germ-free environment, but I wonder if you only used tofu in the first, if the bacteria would modify the consistency.

I'll try to follow you method to the letter for the first time though, except for the cashews.

Thank you for the information!

I used to be more careful about sterilizing the jars in boiling water, but I haven't for so long, and it doesn't seem to matter.
I've used glass jars that I saved from jams, I mostly use a 7 cup pyrex. It doesn't matter for the yogurt setting as it's only like 110 F, 115F.

Now I'm curious about using tofu! I wonder if blending silken with the probiotic would create a greek type consistency?
I don't know that I've used blended cashews in the making of yogurt, only afterwards

 

[LukethePrettyGood]

I used to be more careful about sterilizing the jars in boiling water, but I haven't for so long, and it doesn't seem to matter.
I've used glass jars that I saved from jams, I mostly use a 7 cup pyrex. It doesn't matter for the yogurt setting as it's only like 110 F, 115F.

Now I'm curious about using tofu! I wonder if blending silken with the probiotic would create a greek type consistency?
I don't know that I've used blended cashews in the making of yogurt, only afterwards

I imagine the good bacteria simply overwhelm the bad, we've made yogurt for centuries, so probably take more care than we need to for a home batch. I will be using mine mindfully, to reverse gut health, so may just sterilize a sturdy whisk when I sterilize the pot and blend the tofu smooth, before folding the starter thoroughly and setting to yogurt.

I've read a lot of conflicting information online, as you may imagine. Do you know if the good bacteria feed on sugar, or if it helps the process? If not, I may just sweeten it mildly, with monk fruit and maple. Also, do you happen to know if there are more favorable fruits for yogurt? I remember banana is one good one, due to the inulin, but wonder about other things, like raspberries or lemon juice?

I apologize if I seem to be getting all of my information from you, but you seem like an expert, and I'd just assume get a set of complete information from one source, rather then trying to piece it together from across the web.

Thank you for your help, by the way!

 

[LukethePrettyGood]

Banana-Lemon Yogurt:


Okay, well anyway, I used three pounds of silken tofu, which has 'less than 2%' of calcium sulfate and magnesium chloride, listed in that order, but no listed Glucono delta-lactone (GDL), so I decided to treat it as near neutral/slightly alkaline. I averaged the bananas at around 4.7 ounces each, with a glucose of about 4.7 per banana, and an estimated alkalinity of 7.25, for 13 bananas, containing roughly 61.1 glucose molecules.

The tofu used had a total of 60 grams of protein. Because protein metabolization is much slower than glucose, and there was no way to definitively determine the quantity of, nor the speed of digestibility of inulin, I determined to put about 1 cup of table sugar with it as a safeguard (half glucose/half sucrose), rather than then the 1/4 cup, that would have brought it up to what was needed, to ensure it doesn't starve and that the number of bacteria I incorporated, still had sufficient nutrients. I plan to ferment 22.5 hours, so perhaps it will remain sweeter.

I wanted to ensure that the acidity hovered around +/- 6 pH, as this is a range that each bacteria added can survive at, 'though some prefer slightly lower or slightly higher. For this, I added 64 ounces of lemon juice, with a 4.5 pH, which was insufficient to bring it below neutral, but as I was out of space to add more, I eyeballed 1.5 - 2 Tbsp ascorbic acid into the mix (no fresh citric acid), hoping for a range of 5.5 - 6.5. It was a guessing game at this point- No other additives or flavorings were added, prior to fermentation.

My hope is that the bacteria themselves will work out their acidic environment, provided the current acidity is sufficient for at least some from each tribe to survive.

As to the process, it involved draining, but not rinsing the 3 pounds of tofu, blending smooth in the sterilized container, then blending the banana and sugar into the mix, before incorporating the lemon juice & ascorbic acid, and folding in the 225 CFU of bacteria.

I do not have individual strain percentages or numbers, but where I listed them above is in order, for a general indication.

It is fermenting as we speak (we're having a convo over here) and I will update y'all about the results sometime tomorrow, when it has been completed. It smells, looks and 'feels' like it will be absolutely wonderful and very probiotic dense.

Thank you for the help and advice!

 

[LukethePrettyGood]

Promised an update today, took the yogurt off after 20.5 hours.

It was a little bit liquidy, but very well established and consistent. I am leaving it in the fridge overnight to firm up and expect that in the morning, it will be ready to eat with a spoon, without straining or combining with additives. Already, it was like a thick, watery yogurt shake, so I have complete hope.

Will pick up some strawberries in the morning and update with pic.

 

[silva]

Promised an update today, took the yogurt off after 20.5 hours.

It was a little bit liquidy, but very well established and consistent. I am leaving it in the fridge overnight to firm up and expect that in the morning, it will be ready to eat with a spoon, without straining or combining with additives. Already, it was like a thick, watery yogurt shake, so I have complete hope.

Will pick up some strawberries in the morning and update with pic.

Love your researched experiment!
You didn't add any starter - no probiotic or yogurt? Just fermentation?

Ever experiment with cheeses?

 

[LukethePrettyGood]

Love your researched experiment!
You didn't add any starter - no probiotic or yogurt? Just fermentation?

Ever experiment with cheeses?

No, I used the 250-billion CFU of the strains listed above (?).

 

[LukethePrettyGood]

WELL, HERE IT IS EVERYONE! WRITING IN ALL CAPS BECAUSE I'M EXCITED, AND I KNOW IT BOTHERS SOME! BONUS!!

I WOULD SAY MY FIRST VENTURE INTO HOMEADE YOGURT WAS A WILD, WILD SUCCESS, IT'S THICK, CREAMY, SWEET, TANGY AND SO GOOD, I CAN'T STOP EATING IT!! I'D BETTER THOUGH, BEFORE I GET A DIE-OFF BELLY ACHE!

HERE'S A PICTURE:

 

[shyvas]

WELL, HERE IT IS EVERYONE! WRITING IN ALL CAPS BECAUSE I'M EXCITED, AND I KNOW IT BOTHERS SOME! BONUS!!

I WOULD SAY MY FIRST VENTURE INTO HOMEADE YOGURT WAS A WILD, WILD SUCCESS, IT'S THICK, CREAMY, SWEET, TANGY AND SO GOOD, I CAN'T STOP EATING IT!! I'D BETTER THOUGH, BEFORE I GET A DIE-OFF BELLY ACHE!

HERE'S A PICTURE:

View attachment 28927

That`s right. We do prefer small letters. Thanks!

 

[LukethePrettyGood]

That`s right. We do prefer small letters. Thanks!

WONDERFUL TO KNOW! IT'S SOOOOO GOOD!