This one’s for you, Sara! Yogurt is used a lot in Indian cooking. More importantly, yogurt is usually home made because it is easy to make . In southern India, no meal is complete without yogurt and rice. If you consider how much spice we toss into our cooking, is it any surprise that we’d need to cool down our insides with a bit of cooling yogurt? Making yogurt is one of the first things girls in India learn. No potential mother in law would want a new daughter in law who does not know how to fix yogurt. In Indian matrimonial terms, it is like being given a passing grade! I had a cousin who was so indulged as a child that she married into a family that expected her to cook gourmet meals from day one. When her total ineptness manifested in her inability to fix yogurt, her brownie points fell to mere single digits. In her ma-in-law’s eyes, it was a failing grade! The poor dear! Not to worry, she made out just fine. But it was a learning opportunity for all the other girls in the family whose mothers hastened to fix this deficiency in their daughters!

HOME MADE YOGURT
You will need:

2 Cups of whole milk
2 tbsp plain Greek yogurt (this is your culture)

In a stainless steel sauce pan , bring the milk to a full boil. Reduce heat and bring it to a second boil. Remove from the stove and set it aside until the milk is warm to the touch. At this point you can transfer the milk to another stainless steel bowl or leave it in the saucepan. Add the greek yogurt and cover. Let it set in an oven. If the oven is very colk, preheat until it is a little warm, turn off the oven and set the milk w/culture in the warm oven. The yogurt will set overnight. You can make fresh yogurt by using the old yogurt as a culture..
I will post a great recipe for savory yogurt rice this evening. It is very versatile and you will be surprised at the add ins that this dish allows that will simply wow your palate.

Enjoy