A healthy lifestyle combined with good nutrition is in fashion today. Those who monitor their appearance and well-being know what role dairy products play in the functioning of the body.
Unfortunately, store yogurt and yogurt, in addition to beneficial bacteria, often contain various dyes, preservatives and other harmful additives. When you buy a similar product, you are not always sure that it is of high quality. And if you get it for the first feeding of your child, then there simply should not be doubts about its useful properties.
Recently, more and more people prefer to make dairy products on their own, especially since it is very simple if you have a yogurt maker at home. How to choose the best model among the variety of offers?
Standard Yogurt Maker
The device for the preparation of fermented milk products is a small container with heat-resistant walls, a transparent lid and a set of glasses. Yogurt maker works from the electric network. Its main task is to ensure a constant temperature during the entire cooking process.
Depending on the model, the device is equipped with various additional functions. The capacity of the cups varies. If there are several, then each is designed for 120-150 ml. Glasses can be both plastic and glass. They also have covers.
Questions when choosing a yogurt maker
In order to make the right choice, you need to answer a few questions. For how many people will a yogurt maker be used ? How to choose the best capacity for making fermented milk products for children? Can you always keep track of cooking time? What, besides yogurt, would you like to cook in a yogurt maker? How to monitor the expiration date of a product? What amount to count on when purchasing equipment?
If you answer all these questions for yourself, there will not be many options to determine the best yogurt makers. In this case, the rating of devices can be compiled independently, identifying the best option.
Number of people
At one time in any yogurt maker you can prepare from 0.7 to 1 liter of yogurt. However, pay attention to the number of cups. An unpleasant situation may arise if you decide to prepare a dessert for 7 people, and the jar will be only 6. After all, cooking takes a fairly long period of time from 6 to 12 hours, so it will not be so easy to quickly fix the situation.
Material
There are plastic containers for dairy products and glass. Both options have their pros and cons. The undeniable advantage of plastic is that it is lighter than glass. Such a glass cannot be broken, which is very important when feeding small children. Nevertheless, glass is a more environmentally friendly material. And many prefer it because such glasses can be boiled.
Cooking time
Sour-milk products have different cooking times. On how accurately and correctly observed this paragraph depends on its taste and usefulness. For example, to prepare bifivitis or symbilact, it will take 6 hours. And for the preparation of acidophilus milk - 12 hours.
In order not to follow the ripening time, most modern yogurt makers are equipped with timers. After the set time has passed, it itself turns off and cools down. Many models have a beep that indicates that the product is ready.
What else is cooked in a yogurt maker
In addition to yogurt itself, you can cook a lot of dairy products. For example, acidophilus milk, bifivitis, and immunovitis are very useful for children. To maintain the immunity of an adult - symbilact, vitolact. Athletes - kefir and yogurt. Those wishing to lose weight are phyto-yogurt and kefir.
Without exception, a yogurt maker with the function of preparing cottage cheese is useful. There are also devices that combine the functions of a yogurt maker and an ice cream maker. Their advantages in the preparation of desserts are difficult to overestimate.
Shelf life
Homemade yogurt is stored in the refrigerator for 5 days. It is believed that on the third day of storage, lactic acid bacteria reach their maximum activity. If you do not want to boggle your head with numbers, buy a yogurt maker that has special markers on its cups. With their help, you can fix the date of preparation of the product.
More expensive - is it better or not?
Numerous reviews on the Internet help you choose the best yogurt makers. The rating of their popularity suggests that more expensive does not mean better. First of all, it is necessary to decide how much additional functions are necessary for you, which are equipped with more expensive models. For example, if you do not plan to prepare ice cream, then you do not need this function. Think about whether a timer is important to you. Not to mention all sorts of design and lighting options.
Pay attention to the company. Everyone knows that you have to pay extra for a popular brand, this does not mean at all that the quality of an untwisted company will be lower. Choose not by name, but based on the characteristics that a yogurt maker has. How to choose the best? It is enough to compare the parameters that are significant for you, discussed in this article.
Is it possible to do without a yogurt maker
In order to make yogurt at home, you need to take warm boiled milk (37-40 degrees), sourdough and a saucepan. Pour milk into a container, mix with sourdough, cover and wrap in a blanket for 8 hours. Then prepare homemade yogurt.
The disadvantage of this method is that it is impossible to keep the same temperature in the blanket during cooking. As a result, you may not get exactly what you are counting on. For example, whey will detach, or the product will peroxide. Fortunately, today there are devices that allow you to forget about such issues. How to choose the best yogurt makers? The rating of popular models, based on their characteristics and user reviews, will not make a mistake when planning a purchase. This device will become indispensable for those who care about proper nutrition.
The best yogurt makers. Rating of popular models
Mulinex and Tefal firms are recognized leaders in the manufacture of household appliances. Yogurt makers of these brands meet European quality standards, but are notable for their rather high price.
The first place in popularity among Russians is the Redmond yogurt maker. This appliance has gained customer confidence through its price-performance ratio. The set includes eight glass jars of 180 grams each (the amount may vary depending on the model) with lids on which the date of filling of the fermented milk product is set. Yogurt maker “Redmond” is equipped with an electronic control with a display, a countdown timer and automatic shutdown. The kit includes instructions with recipes.
If you need a model with one bowl, then the Ves VYM yogurt maker is what you need. This device has an intuitive control interface. A sound signal will notify you that the cooking process is complete. Yogurt maker will also allow you to cook children's cottage cheese for the first feeding.
And finally, Dex is from the “cheap and cheerful” series. The composition of the yogurt maker includes plastic cups. There are no timers and displays, but a variety of functions allows you to cook all kinds of dairy products. The owners of the model of this company claim that the product prepared in it is not inferior in quality to the yoghurts obtained in more expensive devices.
Cooking
In order to prepare a dairy product, you need to take super-pasteurized milk, sourdough and the yogurt maker itself. You can use homemade and pasteurized milk, but first you need to boil it and cool to 37-40 degrees. In addition to dry starter cultures (Vivo, Good Food, and others), you can use regular yogurt or kefir from the store.
Mix the super-pasteurized milk with the sourdough, pour them into cups (a separate container) and place them without lids in the yogurt maker. Install the desired program or set a specific amount of time. After the expiration date, cool the yogurt and refrigerate it. One starter culture can be used for 1-3 liters of milk.