My New Yogurt Maker (and its 3 pages of warnings)

I have been interested in naturally fermented foods for about ten years...since the first time my sourdough starter seemingly and magically came to life; I was so inspired I built a small brick oven in the backyard of a previous home. Since then I've moved on to sauerkraut (and kim chi), pickled vegetables, and yogurt. What I enjoy about these foods is their ancientness (is that a word?) and also their health benefits. What I also like about them (besides consuming them) is "making" them, and I use quotes around the word making because we don't actually make them, we just provide the correct conditions...fermented foods almost make themselves.

Anyhow, I received my new yogurt maker in the mail yesterday (click here to see it), and it works great. It is basically an incubator (warmer) of sorts; meaning you heat the milk then add the starter and the yogurt maker keeps it warm all night, which allows the good bacteria to grow.

My first batch came out excellent...the flavor was tangy and nutty at the same time, and the yogurt was thick enough that a spoon would stand in it. So I have no problem with the appliance itself...it works fine. The problem I have is with it's over-cautious instructions.

There are 24 initial instructions (isn't this just heated milk inoculated with a starter?); it goes on for 3 pages. The first instruction (and the only one in bold letters) says: READ THESE INSTRUCTIONS. I have to admit I wasn't having a problem until I came to #11 (click on the image below if you have difficulty reading it). It was in the evening, and as is often the case I had a glass of red wine (another fermented food) in my hand while I was reading . Nonetheless, I managed to make the yogurt fine (heated the milk and added the starter) even though my reaction time and perception may have been altered. If you want to learn more about fermented foods click here.

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