Alternatives to Milk and
Pasteurization
So we have a big question that usually arises when seeking
alternatives to milk in the production of yogurt. What else can you use?
The bacteria that give yogurt it's probiotic benefits feed on the lactose (sugar) in milk. This rules out the use of lactose free milk. The good news is that the amount of lactose present in yogurt at the end of the culturing process is minimal due to the fact that the bacteria have essentially eaten it all in order to multiply.
How about soy, coconut, almond or hemp milk? Well, since there is not lactose in these milk products, the short answer is no. However, a suitable sugar replacement may be found and, in theory, yogurt can be made. I am not aware of any good recipes for dairy-free yogurt at this time as I have only used cow and goat's milk.
What about using unpasteurized milk? Unfortunately, the process of heating the milk to 180 degrees in the first step of the yogurt-making process essentially pasteurizes raw milk. Heating the milk will destroy most of the bacteria that it carries. The argument for pasteurization claims that the benefit of removing up to 90% of bacteria and enzymes reduces diseases like tuberculosis, Q fever, diphtheria, salmonella, listeria, S. aureus, and E. coli.
To maintain more of the natural bacteria, but reduce the quantity of potentially harmful organisms, heat the milk at a lower temperature for a longer period of time, or only heat the milk up to the 105 to 110 degrees necessary for bacterial growth.
There are at least four different strains of bacteria present in "live and active" cultures: L. acidophilus, Bifidus, L. bulgaricus, and S. thermophilus. As their Latin roots suggest, some of these bacteria are heat-loving, which means that they thrive in a warm environment. In a cool environment the rapid reproduction ceases, and the bacteria enter a constant state where they are simply maintaining their functions for living.
The bacteria that give yogurt it's probiotic benefits feed on the lactose (sugar) in milk. This rules out the use of lactose free milk. The good news is that the amount of lactose present in yogurt at the end of the culturing process is minimal due to the fact that the bacteria have essentially eaten it all in order to multiply.
How about soy, coconut, almond or hemp milk? Well, since there is not lactose in these milk products, the short answer is no. However, a suitable sugar replacement may be found and, in theory, yogurt can be made. I am not aware of any good recipes for dairy-free yogurt at this time as I have only used cow and goat's milk.
What about using unpasteurized milk? Unfortunately, the process of heating the milk to 180 degrees in the first step of the yogurt-making process essentially pasteurizes raw milk. Heating the milk will destroy most of the bacteria that it carries. The argument for pasteurization claims that the benefit of removing up to 90% of bacteria and enzymes reduces diseases like tuberculosis, Q fever, diphtheria, salmonella, listeria, S. aureus, and E. coli.
To maintain more of the natural bacteria, but reduce the quantity of potentially harmful organisms, heat the milk at a lower temperature for a longer period of time, or only heat the milk up to the 105 to 110 degrees necessary for bacterial growth.
There are at least four different strains of bacteria present in "live and active" cultures: L. acidophilus, Bifidus, L. bulgaricus, and S. thermophilus. As their Latin roots suggest, some of these bacteria are heat-loving, which means that they thrive in a warm environment. In a cool environment the rapid reproduction ceases, and the bacteria enter a constant state where they are simply maintaining their functions for living.
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