Unlimited Freeze Dried Yogurt -- Will a Yogurt Culture Survive Freeze Drying?

[@serenity9633]

I have dairy goats and make a large 2 1/2 gallon batch of yogurt twice a week. Here is my recipe and tips for freeze drying and preserving live cultures: -11 quarts fresh whole raw milk -1 quart raw honey -1 tablespoon or more vanilla -3 pkgs plain gelatin Dissolve gelatin while milk is cold, warm all ingredients to 185F. Cool to 115f Mix in 1 cup starter culture of choice with some warm milk Add 8-10 drops rennet & mix well with warm milk mixture. I fill quart jars and incubate in my farm incubator 9 to 12 hours ( generally overnight) at 108F -111F. My large freeze dryer will easily hold a full 10 quarts so I get a full batch each run. My max temp on the HR unit is set at 110. I don't strain if I freeze dry the mix. But if you reserve some out to strain and eat, the honey sweet whey is absolutly amazing. The gelatin and rennet really thickens up the final product and whey separation is very pronounced in the jar. The honey gives the f/d product body, no bubbling issues with this ratio. I've made plain yogurt specifically for culture stock without the additions, but this sweetened thickened recipe makes killer culture stock that really works. I bag up 3/4 cup portions of powdered product in small long chamber vac bags & seal, then stuff about 10 of them into half gallon jars and seal those too so I can take a portion out and reseal the jar without having to expose the rest of the batch. www.webstaurantstore.com/vacpak-it-2-1-2-x-10-chamber-vacuum-packaging-pouches-bags-3-mil-case/186CVB2510.html $25. For a case of 2000. These are also handy for freezing fresh yogurt! A surplus of fresh milk is the reason I finally justified buying a HR last year, and it works so well for preserving the harvest and reducing my dependency on electricity for long term storage, I just bought another one.

[@patrickmassengale]

Great information, thank you!

[@michelebarnes4059]

Thank you for sharing. Brings back memories. In the 70's I raised Nubian Goats, and the high fat content was great for making yogurt, feta cheese, and , of course, ice cream. Wild berries with ice cream, treat I will never forget. 😋 Those days I lived like a Pioneer woman and was very happy. Still growing as much as I can and still happy. All this new way of persevering is fascinating 👍💕

[@brichter4669]

I've been making yogurt in my Instant Pot for about 6 years now. Homemade yogurt is so much tastier, healthier and cheaper than store bought yogurt. I use a gallon of organic whole milk. I like to use Stoneyfield organic whole milk yogurt for a starter. You must use a yogurt that contains live active cultures. I put the milk in the pot and do the boil function with the lid on, which takes about 40-45 minutes. The Instant Pot will automatically shut off when the milk temp reaches 180°. I then put the pot in an ice bath until it cools to 110°, add 3 tablespoons of starter and gently stir it through the milk. I never stir the bottom of the pot, because sometimes the milk will create sediment on the bottom after boiling. If you stir the bottom and mix that with the milk, the yogurt will become grainy. I put the pot back in the Instant Pot and let it ferment for 9 hours. When done, I scoop the yogurt into a Greek yogurt strainer, which is a game changer. Amazon sells them. My favorite brands are the Euro Cuisine GY60 - 2 quart strainer, and the Hatrigo 1 gallon strainer. I put the yogurt strainer in the fridge for about 8 hours. I like a thick Greek yogurt. You could do less time if you like a thinner yogurt. Cleanup is very easy and quick. I'll have to freeze dry some yogurt now that it seems to FD well. Didn't think I could FD yogurt due to the fat content in the whole milk. Thank you so much for the video!

[@michelebarnes4059]

Thanks for sharing 👍 😊 😀

[@BigBlock1717]

Thank You!! The fact that the enzyme culture doesn’t die during the freeze drying process is an absolutely awesome discovery and is a game changer. Thank You!!

[@shellic5166]

You have to lower the temp though. There have been a lot of people that had issues with doing them at the 125 temp. People have said you need to do the temp at 95-100 to make sure the cultures don't die. I am about to do kefir and yogurt and will be doing them at 98.

[@enunya]

To help with the discoloration and possible flavor change with dairy, we adjust our heat setting lower than default, it just takes a little longer but not much. It's been a while since we've done any milk, but when we lowered it to 100/110 it came out almost as white as fresh and didn't have the classic "warm milk" flavor.

[@bruceberner883]

Sourdough works just fine. I’ve dried it several times. I make cheese and other dairy products and all the cultures I buy are freeze dried. Obviously it works.

[@Shria9]

So cool! I was really curious about this. Thanks for testing it out for us. My next challenge is oat milk yogurt. If I can make it, I'll see if it comes back from freeze drying and be productive.

[@OvcharkaShepherd]

Hmmm, has me wondering if you can freeze dry sourdough starter, package in a tiny Mylar bag, with a bottle of water and flour as a survival kit for making bread.

[@evelinebronsveld1559]

Yes you can

[@janecantrell7155]

I would like to know how you do it … I have an Amish Friendship Bread Starter going now. It would be awesome to freeze dry it!

[@realorfake4765]

@@janecantrell7155 real simple: FD until dry and then reconstitute when needed. Add some sugar to feed it.

[@janecantrell7155]

@@realorfake4765 Amazing! I’m adding that to my TO DO list now. Thank you.

[@realorfake4765]

@@janecantrell7155 do a test run and look for bubbles after you feed it, using warm water. Bubbles means gas, gas means you have sour dough

[@resourcefulgirl]

Very cool! Fage makes a blood orange yogurt that is my favorite. Sadly, I can't find it anymore. I think making my own will be the solution. Thanks!!

[@kathys9786]

Thanks for answering this question for us! Making my first batch of yogurt today!

[@richardstuart2591]

I'm having trouble rehydrating my yogurt. It's been sitting for 20 minutes with cold water and is still watery and clumpy. And suggestions?

[@lisanowakow3688]

I love watching your videos. You have neat ideas of how to use kitchen equipment.

[@bshone1]

So, am I understanding correctly? After freeze drying it would still contain live active cultures? If so this is a game changer. Love your videos.❤️

[@kayemoore]

Definitely gonna freeze dry the whey (which I mix in lemonade ice tea in summer) also! I make home made yogurt in my instant pot all the time; 9 hours fir me. 2 tablespoons of whey is a perfect starter for the yogurt also. Haven’t bought yogurt in over a year. My whole family likes my stuff better than any at the grocery store. It’s crazy good that the cultures last through a freeze dry cycle - I’m shocked and trying not to ask “do “bad bugs” last through a cycle too then?”. Thanks for this!

[@juliabrown5948]

Do you use only the whey for the starter or do you add yogurt starter/culture also?

[@annmeeks2698]

I have been using the whey for a starter for over 6 months and have never had a failure.

[@lizchilders4154]

How did FDing the whey turn out?

[@lookn4thesimplelife]

Make sure that you are using a live culture yogurt to begin with! Most yogurts on the market are not live culture. I have also found that if you lower the tray temperature to 115 it works better and does not kill the culture.

[@innerarmour8347]

Another gareat video 👏👏👏 what temperature did you set the freeze dryer at??

[@tamararobinson2069]

Yiiiippeeeee!!!💫 That was a Lot of effort for us to know!!! Thanks So Much!!!!

[@AcreWood-ns5gt]

Great video! I am excited to try.

[@charlotteparton8581]

I never have freeze-dried yogurt, but this is my recipe: Any ultra-pasteurized milk like Fairlife(I use 2%,) 1 can sweetened condensed milk, a couple of tablespoons of plain yogurt, and a splash of vanilla. Whisk together well. close the lid, and hit that yogurt button. 8 hours later, you will have the BEST yogurt! I need to try freeze-drying it. Thanks for the idea!

[@vernonmatthews3445]

It would probably work even better with non-ultra pasteurized milk, because the ULTRA actually does an ultra good job of pasteurizing. Raw milk works best by far, but can be difficult to find. 2% and 1% have all the fat removed to process, then chemically reintroduced. That limits its ability to work for things like Yogurt (and dieting). As well, Freeze-drying kills almost all bacteria. However, some survive will enough to thrive, so that's a big win for us (CDC has to play Mad Scientist to preserve Bad Bacteria cultures, while the Viruses go unharmed). But, don't let me stop you. Commercial scientific Freeze-driers have to meet different standards, so you might get different results. Example; his Yogurt should have failed, but didn't. And his drier didn't cost 10 thousand dollars + either... So a win-win all the way around.

[@sassyherbgardener7154]

Whoa! The sweetened condensed milk just made it NON-healthy, LOL!! Bet it is delicious, though. (If you're gonna eat regular sugary ice cream, then this would be less bad for you, probably.)

[@skee6706]

great video If you hang your bag of yogurt over your bowl you will get more of the whey out and it will be thicker. love your videos

[@janecantrell7155]

Great tips!!!!! Thank you.

[@kathrynkabara9861]

Cool! That will be really handy!

[@robinm2457]

I do a cold start yogurt in my instant pot. Whole milk, fage 0 % starter. Yogurt setting for 8 hours and then in fridg over night. Never tried FD it but will now. If I put my starter in freezer it works perfect to start a new batch.

[@MarksOutdoorAdventures]

I’ve been making yogurt in my instant pot for along time I just pour the milk in cold add my spoon for yogurt mix it put the lid on hit yogurt button done in 10 hours. I’ve never heated and cooled the milk.

[@Benniesden]

Was looking for the cook book on the web site . but could not the the cookbook. Is the cookbook only online.

[@michelebarnes4059]

One of my favorites ❤️

[@jr-a-cat]

That would be great for people that get too much milk on the farm . If are able to get just expired milk from the store for free or at a very reduced price this would work great to stock up on .

[@andybonneau9209]

You can aslo do this with bread yeast and sourdough yeasts. Use flour and ferment a large batch of the yeast you want to preserve then freeze dry, powder and store. You'll need to use a bit more of it to make bread unless you use it to do another preferment.

[@Beauacadian]

You can remove your tray rack and pile jars in your freeze dryer chamber and turn on the vacuum pump. Vacuum a whole lot of jars in a few seconds.

[@wesleyhuseman2677]

Based on my research on freeze drying probiotics I think the cultures will likely only be viable for a month or two after being freeze dried and stored at room temperature. I would be interested to see if the culture would still be active enough after a couple months to start a new batch. I've really enjoyed many of your videos and appreciate your freeze drying tips. Thank you.

[@lindaharkness3223]

I freeze dried a batch of yogurt in the spring and have been using a few spoonfuls of it to start new batches. It's been six months, and that freeze dried mother batch is still making great yogurt.

[@wesleyhuseman2677]

That’s great to know. I’ll plan on trying it myself soon then. Thanks.

[@beeorganic]

I'm going to speculate that if you vacuum seal and/or refrigerate/freeze/root cellar temp. the culture that perhaps it would last longer. I believe that is how the cultures you can purchase from a health food store are packaged. "Cultures for Health" I believe is the source I used several years ago.

[@carolclarkson4859]

Amazing video.

[@joannechirigotis3040]

I do a Cold Start Yogurt: 52oz of Fair life. Whole milk(pour in instant pot) mix in 2 tablespoons of whole milk live culture yogurt. For Greek yogurt 10 hours medium yogurt setting.Strain 4-8 hours in refrigerator. For yummy yogurt add 1 -14 oz. Can of condensed milk to pot (with milk and culture)medium yogurt setting 8 hours. Do not strain put in refrigerator 4 -8 hours.

[@evelinebronsveld1559]

I live in Portugal and found a “robot de cozinha” a Tekno Cheff which has a yoghurt program in which I don’t have to do anything. It has 4 pint mason jars on the rack with a little water in the bottom. The program gives 360 min but mostly I increase it to 500-600 min. Each mason jar gets about half a table spoon of starter. I use goats milk. It freeze dries very good but I have not yet reconstituted it. If it is too thin to my liking I strain it.

[@cyndiburns7932]

I like my goat Kefir (yogurt) really thick. Haven't made it yet. Still paying high price because goat milk isn't always available.

[@evelinebronsveld1559]

@@cyndiburns7932 I have access to a goat farm in the next village. Next year I will have my own goats milk as I bought from them two does (female goats) next year they will be mated and then once they have given birth I will be able to milk them.

[@SazzuHope]

This is great news! I am guessing the same will be true for vegan yogurt and having unlimited culture especially since it's hard to find where I live, it's amazing.

[@thefreezedryingcommunity]

Yep, vegan yogurt also works!

[@27athomp]

You mentioned that the Premier will sometimes create a mist in the room like an 80s rock concert. Is that just misted water vapor/moisture or is that misted oil?

[@kellyleavitt1676]

How long do I think the sour cream and cream cheese have as a shelf life? Would u store in jar and vacuum seal?

[@micheletanis9973]

Please talk about what can be put together in the freeze drier. Such as meats, vegs, fruits, drairy, etc

[@TheMachiningman]

My freeze dried yogurt once rehydrated tasted terrible but when I used it to make a new batch it turned out fine, anyone had a similar experience?

[@Eyes0penNoFear]

Instead of removing the whey, could you freeze dry it all together, then use less water when reconstituting?

[@diannenutt5891]

Can you freeze dry cheese

[@thefreezedryingcommunity]

Yes. Most cheeses that are low in oil will freeze dry well.

[@geraldcronin9700]

Can you use freeze dried milk to put the freeze dried culture in?

[@imbonnie]

you can also order dried yogurt culture from Natren. i have a bottle in my fridge.

[@lindalevrio3319]

I put 2 Tbls of yogurt in Molds and freeze dried the pucks..it did not make yogurt on the next batch using it..looking forward to your second making of yogurt from the freeze dried yogurt..

[@egomaniac8510]

Can any of this be done using reconstituted whole milk powder?

[@susanlinginyourbackyard1163]

I make yogurt a lot.. just got a freeze dryer and I was wondering if you think it would be beneficial to cut the dry temperature down to protect the cultures? 125 degrees seems like it could be borderline ? protecting the cultures?? Your thoughts…?

[@MatoNupai]

Brother about 1 1/2 teaspoon of the freeze dried powder will make a quart of yoghurt with no need to rehydrate the powder into yoghurt first. Sprinkle the powder on the milk wait a minute for powder to rehydrate then stir the powder in

[@jenniferolsen8826]

What scale do you use?

[@jeffrichards2011]

STRONGLY recommend if you are considering a FD'r, that you very definitely visit the MeWe group and read through the posts, before you make that decision. FD food is awesome and is waaaaaaaay better than the stuff you buy commercially.. however, FYI.. not everything is perfect.. and you may have to do so repairs/upgrades to your brand new FD'r right out of the box. Definitely go read the posts.

[@babsoneverything3060]

Store bought yogurt only typically gives you 2-3 generations. After that, you need to buy fresh yogurt.

[@ginaskitchencreations1125]

I have a lot of freeze dried milk. Can I reconstitute and use to make yogurt?

[@flyertim1]

I thought you guys swithed a Stay Fresh freeze dryer. Do your supplies fit those machines?

[@thefreezedryingcommunity]

The dividers might be able to be modified. You would have to compare measurements.

[@pamelamerfeld7997]

QUESTION. 12/13/22. I can’t find the vacuum sealer you have there. It’s clear. Where did you get that ??

[@thefreezedryingcommunity]

I use an avid armor usv32 or euro series es41

[@vginnmusa3128]

I FD'd some yogurt to have some starter for later. My first batch made up fine but subsequent batches did not. I had to go buy a new starter. FD starter was stored in a sealed jar with absorber. Any ideas? Similar experience?

[@GlobalHealthSI]

Can you make another batch of yogurt using the FD yogurt? Thanks

[@evelinebronsveld1559]

Yes

[@surveyguyor8958]

he did, and showed the results at the end of this video

[@stephaniavanvolkenburg5424]

I’m wanting to know if it could be freeze dried and go on to be used as culture That being said, whenever I used to freeze dried yogurt to eat, I learned long ago to let it sit overnight

[@fdabill1]

I’ve been wanting to know if this can be done or not.

[@papasmurf9146]

If you save some of the whey, you can use that as your starter for the next batch.

[@dartagnantaft5918]

What was your drying temperature on the freeze dryer?

[@beeorganic]

If you purchase pasteurized milk there's no reason/need to pasteurize it again. Just bring the milk up to 110 F and add your starter culture and run your batch.

[@babsoneverything3060]

Why does the fat in milk and cheese not go rancid when freeze dried, but the fat from meat, does?

[@surveyguyor8958]

fat from meat goes rancid? sounds like there's a problem with that. it should last 25 years without going bad. Now nuts are a different story.

[@Imjetta7]

Awesome news!

[@davidreddick3016]

So why does freeze dried yogurt have a rated 25 year shelf life (when it has a lot of milk fats) according to multiple sites but freeze dried whole milk only lasts a few years (compared to freeze dried skim milk at 25 years)?

[@heatheringram2976]

So can you make a large batch of yogurt, like your 1 gallon batch with some of the reconstituted yogurt you freeze dried? So you don’t have to mix a small amount every day.

[@thefreezedryingcommunity]

You only need the small amount as a starter for the next batch.

[@briannajohnson7515]

You can’t use the leftover yogurt to culture the next batch indefinitely. You can do it a few times, but it will stop working. The only exception is if you are using an heirloom starter. I honestly don’t how the science of all of it, I just know what I’ve read and experienced.

[@victoriaschell2225]

Im lactose intolerant. Can I use nut milk and coconut yogurt and get similiar results?

[@thefreezedryingcommunity]

I have done almond milk with the same recipe and results! Just make sure your starter has an active culture

[@wisgardener]

Unrelated question. I am running the v23 version with candy mode. One of the settings is "Dry Mode", normal or fast. I haven't been able to find out what exactly it does. Do you know? And would you let us know what it is.

[@splashluvallover]

I wonder if you could just add the freeze dried yogurt directly to the warm milk in the instant pot instead of reconstituting it first.

[@lindalevrio3319]

My instant pot recipe says to use 1/2 half gallon of milk and 2Tbls yogurt starter..you used 1 gallon so it should have been 4 TBLS of starter..

[@noplacelikehome9116]

Chickens love whey and so do pigs. Mix it with grain for mash. They will go crazy for it!

[@richardstuart2591]

I'm having trouble rehydrating my yogurt. It's been sitting for 20 minutes with cold water and is still watery and clumpy. And suggestions?

[@jenniferolsen8826]

For some reason i can’t search within Facebook group !!!

[@hawks9142]

Since the culture remains alive it makes me wonder if you could make some sort of homemade probiotics pill! I bet if you used saurkraut juice youd get a really dense culture since its mostly water and that would get removed.

[@sassyherbgardener7154]

I would only use fermented sauerkraut, not canned. The heat of canning destroys the cultures. You probably know that, but some new people may not. What a great idea, though!

[@hmarc417]

This is so AWESOME but can you take it one step further, and make the yogurt with a gal of your freeze dried -recon milk... that would be the real off gridders dream??????? To make the complete yogurt from the two completely dry products. in the wilderness when you only have the two dry products and water. you dont care about the milk you gotta have your yogurt. ????????

[@seankemp5131]

If my vacuum freeze time goes over 12 hours, is that an indication something is wrong with my system??

[@surveyguyor8958]

well i know that for this yogurt, he went 60 hours. hope that helps answer your question.

[@Kargarbo]

I used a jar in my avid armor and it broke. Any tips on how to avoid this

[@danachauvin9056]

Always love your videos . I'm just getting started. Ordered from you already. Next time your book and ?? Temp tbing for phone. Thank you

[@Bama_J]

Morning

[@dibutler9151]

Jessica over at 3 Rivers Farms freeze dried her scobie.

[@cm22454]

Darlene O'Keeffe

[@lynneelf]

2% milk - yes that will work. You can even use skim. Just don’t try using cream to make yogurt. trust me it doesn’t work; all I ended up with was warm cream. 🤨☹️🤣

[@highflyer13131]

It's pronounced fleer. It stands for forward looking infra red.

[@jdhiv4]

In the video you never mentioned anything about what active cultures were in the yogurt and that is what is important because if you had yogurt with no cultures then you'd never be able to make new yogurt. And yes the longer you let it go the more tart it will be!

[@coloradokid8321]

FLIR is pronounced like… FLEAR