Easiyo Real Yogurt Maker - the review

After a week of owning the Easiyo yogurt maker, I have to say I give it a 5/5!

I bought the starter kit which included the Easiyo maker (thermos), a plastic jar, and 2 easiyo yogurt mixes - Strawberry and natural (plain).

Shown in the pic is my first batch of yogurt - Strawberry, which was a semi failure =(

The box read "perfect yogurt everytime". I must say I totally agree!! Provided you do exactly as they state. I obviously did not hence the semi failed first attempt.

Instructions are easy peasy.
1. pour 500ml COLD drinking water into the plastic tub.
2. add in the mix and shake well, then add in more cold drinking water until the lined marked inside the plastic tub.
3. then in the thermos, pour in BOILING water until the top of the inner plastic tube.
4. place the plastic container into the thermos and cap the thermos.
5. leave for 8-12 hours (I left the first batch for 13 hours, and the second for 19 hours).
6. refrigerate yogurt at 4 degrees Celsius. It keeps for about 2 weeks.

So what went wrong with my first batch:
1. It didn't curdle. So it was more like strawberry yogurt smoothie, which was still great!! Cause we saved it by adding in some Buds strawberry ice cream, and giving it a whirl in our blender. Yum yum yum! It tasted AMAZING.
2. The problem was the boiling water. I thought water from my thermal pot would do the trick. Turns out it wasn't hot enough, hence didn't provide an ideal temperature for the good bacteria to populate, hence no curdling!

What I learned:
1. Use boiling water, fresh out of the kettle!
2. Use cold water from the fridge, cool water is not sufficient. How it works is that the cold water is balanced out by the hot water to achieve the perfect temperature for the bacteria to grow, too cold or too hot = failure.

Learned from my mistake and the second time, it was perfection! Easy peasy seriously! And the most interesting thing was that there was a distinct difference in taste with the Easiyo mix and the commercial store-bought yogurt. The only way hubby and I could describe it is that Easiyo tastes more organic.

I've made 2 batches, and went and got mixes for all the flavors Cold Storage had - peach, apricot, and boysenberry. As I type, I have my 3rd batch - boysenberry - sitting in the thermos. It should be ready tomorrow morning =)

The hubby prefers natural to strawberry because he can pretty much customize the taste according to his fancy. Seen above is my plain yogurt + mango puree. =) Try it with blueberries, apricot, peach etc. So far we've given Aly yogurt + nectarine puree and she loves it! 

Ohhh, do note, it's perfectly OK if you've forgot to take it out of the thermos into the fridge. It can last 24 hours in the thermos. The longer you leave it in the thermos, the firmer it will be. I like my yogurt firm, so 19-20 hours is more or less the way I like it =)

Feeling inspired??

Ooohh and I also found a recipe to make frozen yogurt! Will wait for the March holidays to try it out. I can't wait!!