Mama Lilee's Bungo Yogurt

I don't consider myself particularly "granola" by nature, but living in Africa has thrust a certain green-ness on me out of necessity. Along with carrying all our produce from the market in a woven basket, and bringing things like margarine and eggs home in a piece of newspaper, where we then scoop them into a worn out old plastic tub or place them, feathers and all, in a beat up, well used carton... I also now make yogurt (and butter, and cheese.) I actually used to make yogurt in Sudan, but with fresh fruit a-PLENTY here, this time around the yogurt is certifiably delicious.

And easy!

Here's how:

Mama Lilee's Bungo* Yogurt

You will need to buy one small container of plain yogurt from the supermarket (but you will only need this ONCE, as long as you remember to cut a 1/2 cup from each batch to use as a starter for the batch to follow.)

ingredients:
1/2 cup plain yogurt
1/2 gallon milk
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup bungo (*or, here's the beautiful part, ANY type of concentrate you'd like to add, homemade or store bought)

Heat the milk to about 160 degrees F, then place in a large glass jar and allow to cool to about 110 degrees. You don't need to use a thermometer for this - just know that the milk has to go from hot to warm. Once the milk has cooled to about 110 degrees, add the plain yogurt. Now you need to keep the milk warm (at about 110 degrees) for the next 4 hours. I (thanks to my mom-in-law's recollecting that another lady she used to know did it this way...) use a thermos (the big kind for ice-water) and fill it with warm water. Place the jar of milk (lid off) into the water so that it is surrounded by, but not submerged in the water, then replace the thermos lid and let sit for four hours. Pop the lid, and there you have it. Yogurt.

It is a bit bitter to taste, but can be used in curries and marinades plain, or sweeten it by shaking in the sugar and concentrate as a treat. I've also blended up a banana to add as a puree, and would have done the same with strawberries or peaches or blueberries, if only... and imagine it would be delicious with the concentrate omitted and just a little sugar and vanilla to taste. Whatever it may be - it cuts down on the numerous containers we plough through when buying yogurt by the six-pack (which we can't get here anyhow) and it just feels good!

Note: This is "drinking yogurt" as it is called in Kenya. Probably much less thick than you're used to in the US. So, no - you didn't do it wrong - it's supposed to be that thin. Pin It Now!