Ask Allie
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.
I use the IKEA weck type jars, I think it wasn't "dead" but very weak, tried to get it going but didn't seem to get a nice rise. There are so many other elements in the equation so I just thought perhaps another culture got into it...Kombucha, fermenting cabbage, kefir, homemade cheeses, yogurts and breads , beer and wine....you name it we do it in our 1000 sq foot house!
— Sophie
If that happens again, split it down to a smaller amount (I just make pancakes with the rest, or waffles, or flatbread, or whatever), and then rebuild it. A weakened SD generally still will bounce back, and I’d expect the Bavarian to do that because it IS so vigorous. Hahahaha I haven’t started abusing my Bavarian yet, so I don’t know it’s full limits. Other than kombucha, it’s the same in my house. Lots and lots of different styles of ferments all over! But yeah, if the jar hermetically seals, nothing else should be getting into it once you’ve closed it up.
Note: I have started experimenting on the Bavarian since this email was written. I’m having a hard time doing this to that particular starter because it’s such a joy to work with!
I think I lost the mesophilic Skyr. Third batch did not become yogurt. It is a milk consistency with a taste of sour milk.
After the meso Skyr, I managed to activate properly the Caspian Sea. It tastes good.
I am in the 1st batch to activate the Fjallfil. It became curd + whey (before 48 h). Taste is not nice. I will go now for second batch. I hope it will recover.
I am finding very tricky to activate mesophylic yogurt and I am following the instructions properly.
— Tiago
Don’t give them more than 24h unless they’re not set by then, and then still check every 4 or so hours. They’re way more likely to over-ferment if you give them two days. Did you do the skyr back-to-back, or were there days in between them? With skyr (and Euro) in particular, those two are so fussy that you really can’t delay on the second or third activation batch. The fjall should recover, but know that it is a FUNKY yogurt that is reminiscent of dirty socks in some capacity always. So the weird flavor may actually be its flavor + over-fermentation additions of omg yuck. Fjallfil I only make to use as an ingredient in things rather than a yogurt to eat, because I did not grow up on that mountain so the funk of that yogurt is just not okay with me. Child Tester agrees and won’t touch the fjall.
Basically all you need to do is put your culture in the milk (I use milk straight from the fridge), add a lid or soft, breathable cover (your choice), then let it sit for 24h undisturbed. Don’t mess with them while they’re in that period, because it can easily break them if they’re ropey. The ropey cultures for some reason all get mad if they’re disturbed while culturing. Does that help to strip down the instructions some into the most important parts?
Can I use regular or non-fat milk with the Crème Fraîche Culture? I'm hoping to get a product similar to yogurt but with the flavor of creme fraiche.
— Margaret
Yes, but before you do that, make 3 batches (one right after the other) with cream or half-and-half to activate it, then freeze two samples from the last batch as backups in the event something goes wrong.
