Grandma's Homemade Yogurt

During much of my early childhood I remember that my grandmother (my Dad's mother) lived for many years with my aunt and uncle (my Dad's sister and her husband) and their family in Palmdale, California.  My grandmother always had shelled almonds in the refrigerator.  When we would eat them she would remind us to always chew them 30 times before swallowing.  Have you ever tried to chew anything 30 times?  Have you ever tried to chew something 20 times?  By the time you have chew food 10 times there is nothing left to chew.

Anyway, one of the things my grandmother loved to make was her special homemade yogurt.  She had a special yogurt maker that she placed on top of the refrigerator so little hands could not touch it.  It had a white glass bowl that sat on top of a low temperature heating element.  I don't remember all of the special ingredients that she put into the bowl to get it started, but it included milk, sugar, and a bunch of other stuff.  As it started to "cook" it would bubble once in a while and the bubbles would pop.  You could hear the mixture bubbling on top of the refrigerator.  Any leftover items from the family meals were often added to the mixture, especially the last ounces of milk left behind in the kids glasses.  If by chance Grandma found that milk had gone bad in the refrigerator, it was quickly added to the mixture, even if it was separated and chunky.

I seem to remember as you walked past the refrigerator when the yogurt was bubbling, it was very important not to get any of the mixture on your clothes, if it spattered out of the bowl.  I remember that the mixture would burn a hole in your shirt or pants.  Powerful stuff that homemade yogurt was!

Well, as you can imagine, I never acquired a desire to eat yogurt after watching how it was made.  Even the kind they sold in the stores.  I thought all yogurt was made from fermented milk and table scraps.  After all, that would explain why real yogurt does not require refrigeration.  It can't go bad, because it already is bad.  Additional fermentation only made it better.

Of course there are lots of cheap imitation varieties of yogurt available in local stores.  They all require refrigeration and many have added fruit to make them taste better.

I have found one good use for yogurt as I have had to travel abroad for my job.  My first trips to France and the UK always left me sick for days, with stomach pain and diarrhea.  Before the next trip a guy at work told me to eat some local yogurt as soon as I arrived in any foreign country.  He said that the local bacteria would help digest the local food and items in the water.

Well, on my next trip to the UK I tried it and it worked!  I slowly acquired a taste for one variety of yogurt.  It is the Activia brand of vanilla flavored yogurt in the small dark green containers.  It has become one of my favorite snack foods now.

What I still do not understand, however, is why does store bought yogurt require refrigeration?  It must not be made the same way that my grandma always made her homemade yogurt.