Ask Allie!

Ask Allie logo.jpeg

Ask Allie is our advice column, where you can ask all your food-related questions to get digestible answers! No question is off limits!

To have your question answered in Ask Allie posts, please use the form on our website. If you prefer to be anonymous, just say so in the form and we’ll leave your name out when we answer it in the blog! Note that some submissions may be edited for clarity.

For the mesophylic Skyr, there were days in between them, maybe it was the reason I lost it. I did not understand the back-to-back was meaning to do it straight. For the FJallfil, I think I got it right, but now that you explained that Funky is reminiscent of dirty socks, I got the meaning. I want to make a suggestion. Is it possible to add in the webpage some notes on the bottom of the page using plain language for these `expressions`? It would help people like me that has English as second language and are not used to some words in the webpage.

Anyway, I bought several other types of yogurt from Positively Probiotics. I am activating them slowly and then store them to back to the refrigarator for later usage. Until now I liked most the thermophylic types, mesophylic not so much.

— Tiago

The activation instructions are now rewritten! They did seem to be written in a manner that confusing to a lot of people, native speakers and 2nd+ lately, I assume due to pandemic stress and also for many for whom English is not their native language (due to slang and idioms making the instructions very unclear for non-native speakers of English). 

Ahhhhhh I’m sorry you had the same experience as me with the fjallfil! It makes the very best mashed potatoes. The only time I make it is when I want mashed potatoes, though it’s also good in other baked goods that want a bit of “dirty sock” to them, but I’ve never met someone or talked to someone who loved this yogurt for anything other than potatoes and baking unless they had health conditions that minimized their sense of taste and smell (so kind of like the covid symptom, but can taste particularly strong flavors, unlike with covid) OR who grew up eating it.  

Mesos require a really different set of attentions than thermophils do, but make sure you do each of the 3 activation batches one right after the other. Once your first 3 batches are done in rapid succession (I start the next batch as soon as the first batch is done and cooled, where the cooling is relevant), THEN you can freeze 2 portions (1 tablespoon minimum per portions) to use if something bad happens to the culture that isn’t stored in the freezer. Those can (I feel “should”) be frozen wet, not dry, because then you can culture milk with them as though they were fresh cultures you’d never frozen.

It’s after you’ve done all THAT that you can go up to 7 days without culturing the new batch. Once you’ve done the first 3 activation batches, that 4th batch is when you can start doing larger batches. Note that a single container you’re culturing shouldn’t have more than 2L in it. So you could do a 4L at a time, but it’d need to be done in at least 2 separate jars (I generally never do a container larger than 1L, but if I want more than 1L I make multiple litres of yogurt at the same time; just not in the same jar. 

The cultures you haven’t used yet ideally will go in the freezer. They also last longer that way, and by a lot.

Hello! I’m from Paraguay. I bought Greek yogurt (thermophilic) and want to know if I can prepare it without a machine. Thanks!

— Liz

Sure can! Here are the details on how to do that.

Hello! Just made my 1st batch of Jun. The small 4c batch. Need to go out for supplies. Tea. Jars. But I put my original scoby and new baby in a jar with about 2c of the bouch I made. Do I need to feed them? I intend on making more and using them this weekend. Totally newbie. Also... do I have to do a 2nd ferment or is this good to drink? Tastes great.

— Gina

If the lid is closed tightly, it will not continue fermenting and can be kept like that until you have your new supplies. But yes, you need to make a new batch of tea to add to the scobies and the starter tea you put in with them.

No, second ferments are only needed if you want to add flavors to the bottles. Many, many people drink it as is once the first ferment is done.

Allie Faden

Allie is, at heart, a generalist. Formally trained in Western herbalism, 18th-Century Irish Studies, Mathematics, and Cooking, there just isn’t much out there she isn’t seeking to learn about! 

https://positivelyprobiotic.com/
Previous
Previous

Let's Talk About SCOBYs

Next
Next

Bavarian Sourdough Starter-Yeasted Ale