Homemade Dahi or Indian Style Yogurt
Learn to make thick perfectly set creamy curd/Dahi or Indian yogurt that is never slimy or stringy.
Servings: 2
Equipment
- A vessel with a lid
- A couple of tea towels to keep the vessel warm
- A whisk (optional)
- A thermometer (optional)
- A saucepan or pateela to boil the milk
Ingredients
- 500 ml Full fat OR Milk with at least 2% Fat You can also mix equal amounts of low fat and full fat milk.
- 1 teaspoon Curd/ Yogurt/Jaman/ Jaag/ Khatta (homemade batch or store-bought; better still, ask a neighbourhood aunty for a starter)
- 1 pinch Sugar Optional
- 1 dried red chilli Optional
Instructions
Boiling the Milk
- In a saucepan or a pateela, heat the milk to a boil or till it is steaming hot. Keep the heat on medium high and monitor for any spill overs. If you are using sugar, you could add it now and stir it in. Alternatively, you can add it when you are introducing the starter.
Let the Milk Cool to the right temperature
- Let the milk cool for about 5-10 minutes. Till then prepare a clean vessel or jar/bowl with a lid for transferring the hot milk for setting the curd. I used a glass container with an air tight lid.
- In the clean vessel, place the teaspoon of jaag/starter and spread it to break any lumps. I do this to ensure even distribution throughout the milk. Sometimes when the milk is not too hot, the jaag or starter may not dissolve properly or evenly, so I recommend breaking it up using a spoon or whisk.
- After 7-10 minutes, with clean dry hands, test the temperature of the milk. It should be comfortably hot and definitely not less than your body temperature. If you use a thermometer in the kitchen then you can measure. Ideal temperature should be 38 to 47 degrees C.
Introducing the Starter/Jaamun/Khatta
- Pour the lukewarm milk in the vessel with the starter and stir it well. If you are using a whole dried red chilli, you can just carefully place it on the milk and it will float. Red chilli contains enzymes that help in the curdling of the milk. Now cover the vessel with a lid and place it on an open tea towel that you can flip over it to cover. If you’re putting this in an air-conditioned room or if you live in a cold country you can place this in an oven.
- You should keep it in a place where it will be undisturbed. I keep it on a table next to a large sunny window in the house and because we run the air conditioner all the time (We live in a desert!) I even cover the vessel with a throw to keep it warm.
Let the Dahi set undisturbed
- Leave the vessel/jar undisturbed for 5-6 hours. This may vary for you depending on the your weather conditions. You could place it a slightly preheated oven to ensure it stays warm. See notes below.
- In 5 hours, uncover the vessel and gently tap the sides to check if the contents jiggle. If they do, then maybe then need some more time. If you’re confident it is set, you can place it the fridge to let it cool and finish setting.
- Enjoy this Perfect homemade Dahi in your meals as a side or in a nice cooling sweet or salty lassi.I use it in this super easy Curd Rice, smoothies and it is also mandatory on the side of a loaded Aloo Paratha or Gobhi Ka Paratha in our house. And if you’re feeling confident about setting mishti doi, you can try that too.
Video
Notes
How much time does it take for Dahi to set: For me, most batches take 4 and a half to 5 hours to set in the Dubai summers. Our room temperature is usually around 24-25 degrees C. The dahi finishes setting in the fridge. I do not use it right away. Setting the Dahi in a warm Oven: If you live in a cold area or like me live in a place where Air conditioners run all the time, use a warm oven to set the dahi. For this, I run the oven on the lowest temperature setting (50C) for a minute or two with the convection fan on. Once warm, I let my milk and dahi mixture set for 3 and half to 4 hours. The oven timer helps here. I check when the timer buzzes and sometimes let it sit for another half an hour to 45 minutes. Again, the dahi finishes setting in the fridge, which takes another 2-3 hours. If you used a dried red chilli, you could either remove it and use it along with a teaspoon of starter to make another batch or you could let it sit in the dahi. It does not change the flavour. Important tips to remember when making Dahi:
- Introducing the bacteria when the milk is too hot results in sour curd that has a lot of whey (dahi ka paani).
- Not heating the milk enough results in lacey/gooey/stringy Dahi.
- Using Low fat milk or skim milk may result in Dahi that’s not firm enough.
- Use starter from a good quality Greek Yogurt that contains good bacteria strains. Be wary on ingredients like thickeners or any other additives.
- Keeping the milk in a cool place or not covering it doesn’t allow favourable ambient temperature for the bacteria to thrive.
- Adding a pinch of sugar sometimes helps to introduce something for the bacteria to feed on and thrive. This is optional of course!
- Adding a whole dried red chilli (sookhi laal mirch) also works like a charm and helps to set better yogurt. It does not alter the taste and you can also use it to set the next batch along with the starter.
- Room temperature is also something that plays a role in making perfect Dahi. In cold weather or air-conditioned rooms, you may need to place extra tea towels or a warm scarf or throw to keep the vessel warm. Where as, if it’s hot where you live, you may not need to use any towels at all.
- Keep the jar/vessel in a place where it stays UNDISTURBED for 5-6 hours.
- Always make a batch when you are in the house to monitor it. If you’re not around or keep it overnight, it may result in delay in refrigeration of the Dahi. Refrigeration is an important part as it helps to make the Dahi slightly firmer.