Do you know how to make greek yogurt?
Arabs have been doing this for centuries but have never been given credit as their culture is not as chic as using the word "Greek." Arabs have "labneh," a thick yogurt made by adding a little salt to plain yogurt and letting it strain overnight in tightly woven linen which essentially does the same thing as straining as previously noted. Labneh is also called "kefir cheese," a term in my opinion which is incorrect as kefir is another subject, The labneh can also be made into a beautiful cheese called "shanklish," endemic to Tartous, a city on the Mediterranean coast of Syria.
So how do you make "Greek yogurt?" Simple, buy some plain yogurt without added pectin, an additive used to stabilize yogurt to prevent it from separating into whey and solids during shipping, let it sit in the fridge for a week to 10 days without use, open it up and you will see the whey has separated at the top and the rest solidify at the bottom. Voila!--"Greek yogurt." Or, you can make it by straining it trough cheesecloth which is a pain the butt. Or, lastly, make some labneh by adding a little salt and straining overnight. Enjoy on a little flat bread with a dab of extra virgin olive oil on top. Vundabar!!!
"Greek yogurt" is actually a misnomer. It is no more different in production than any yogurt. Yogurt is milk boiled and inoculated with two species of bacteria, Lactobacillus bulgaricus, and Strepotococus thermophilus, all other added varieties are superfluous. The milk, either whole or non-fat (the fat content is also superfluous as the bacteria feed on the sugar --carbohydrate-- in the milk) is heated to just before its boiling point, allowed to rest to around 110 degrees Fahrenheit, then a culture of the previous two bacteria at room temperature are added, mixed, and the mixture is allowed to rest at this temperature for at least six hours but most often overnight when made at home. Greek yogurt is simply a thickened yogurt, one made by straining the yogurt to remove the whey, then packaged.
Arabs have been doing this for centuries but have never been given credit as their culture is not as chic as using the word "Greek." Arabs have "labneh,' a thick yogurt made by adding a little salt to plain yogurt and letting it strain overnight in tightly woven linen which essentially does the same thing as straining as previously noted. Labneh is also called 'kefir cheese,"†a term in my opinion which is incorrect as kefir is another subject, The labneh can also be made into a beautiful cheese called 'shanklish," endemic to Tartous, a city on the Mediterranean coast of Syria.
So how do you make "Greek yogurt?" Simple, buy some plain yogurt without added pectin, an additive used to stabilize yogurt to prevent it from separating into whey and solids during shipping, let it sit in the fridge for a week to 10 days without use, open it up and you will see the whey has separated at the top and the rest solidify at the bottom. Voila! --"Greek yogurt." Or, you can make it by straining it trough cheesecloth which is a pain the butt. Or, lastly, make some labneh by adding a little salt and straining. Enjoy on a little flat bread with a dab of extra virgin olive oil on top. Vundabar!!!