Homemade Yogurt or Sour Cream and Stinging Nettle Rennet for Cheese Making

Read Gypsy's next article on how to make homemade yogurt and how to set cheese using stinging nettles as a natural rennet. Great for Vegetarians!

Simple things you may not Know

When ever buying dairy products like cultured butter milk, sour cream, and yogurt, you can use your own milk, or even store bought milk, so that you never have to buy these things again.

All you need to make Homemade Yogurt or Homemade Sour Cream

Make sure that what you buy is active culture. This is the most important thing. If the culture is not active, it will not work.

Have a thermos or a glass quart jar that you can keep at an even temperature. I have a gas oven so I place my jars into that. I also have a Yoga-therm which also works wonderfully. Its just a very large thermos actually.

Now, place your quart jars, or what ever you are using, in a warm area along with the milk or cream to be used. This should all be room temp. If it is to cold or to hot it will kill the active cultures.

Now, place a few spoonfuls of yogurt or sour cream or about 1/4 cup of butter milk into your jars and fill with goat or cows milk. You may even use whole milk from the store. Or half and half (or cream) for your sour cream. Wait about a day and poof... you have homemade yogurt and homemade sour cream! You now have more of what you started with.

You may use ice cube trays to freeze your cultures and use later. Just take from the trays and place cubes in freezer bags to store. Then defrost to room temp, before using.

Stinging Nettles as a Natural Rennet for Cheese Making

Another little trick is to use stinging nettles to set your cheese. Take a gallon of any kind of milk. Then take some herbs you like, and set them in some hot water, like you were making tea from them. Set that aside. Only use enough water to cover plus a tad bit more.

Now heat your milk to about 160°F and hold. Add the herbs and maintain the temp of 160°F. Let cool to 80°F add 1 cup cultured butter milk stir and wait a moment, then add a hand full or about 1/2 cup of stinging nettle. Your cheese will set.

Now just cut the curds (use only stainless steel when working with cheese aluminum will kill you) After your curds are cut, keep on the heat at 100°F a bit more for just a few minutes. Then hang over night in cheese cloth and enjoy.

This also can be made with any kind of milk. This cheese can also be pressed to make a hard cheese. It is a very versatile base that has limitless possibilities. It is soft or hard, spiced or not, it is what ever you want it to be.

By Gypsy, our resident homestead blogger from One Sky Ranch

Gypsy's Wanderings Homestead Blog

Add your own Comments on Homemade Yogurt, Sour Cream or Cheese Here!

We have lots of pages where you can contribute to throughout this homesteading website. We love hearing from our readers, and hope you will be one of those we hear from too. Look around our homesteading website. Add your comments here on either homemade yogurt, sour cream or cheese. We would love to hear from you!

Do you have anything that you would like to add after reading this page? We would love to hear your thoughts. If you can add additional information to what has been written here you will be adding value to the website! No need to have any special skills - just type and submit. We will do the rest!

Give your Comment a Title

Share your Comment[ ? ]

Upload 1-4 Pictures or Graphics (optional)[ ? ]

Add a Picture/Graphic Caption (optional)

Click here to upload more images (optional)

Author Information (optional)

To receive credit as the author, enter your information below.

Your Name	(first or full name)
Your Location	(ex. City, State, Country)

Submit Your Contribution

Check box to agree to these submission guidelines.

(You can preview and edit on the next page)

Click here to see the rest of the form and complete your submission.

Our Free Monthly Homesteading Newsletter

Please check back from time to time for new updates to our homesteading website or get our latest news via our free monthly homesteading newsletter. Sign up below. There is always new information being added, almost on a daily basis, just for you! We hope to see you again!

If you can't find what you are looking for, use the search engine bottom right, or click on our pictures that will link you to other sections of Countryfarm Lifestyles.