Viili (Scandinavian Yogurt) Starter Culture
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Introducing viili, a traditional Scandinavian yogurt that is mild in taste with a velvety texture. Make your own with this viili yogurt starter culture!
This versatile yogurt can be enjoyed plain, with syrup, with fruits or any other delicious ingredients. Its amusing texture will charm you!
Viili, being part of a family of yogurts called mesophilic yogurts, ferments at room temperature. They are very easy to make - you won't even need a yogurt maker!
Simply add the viili starter to milk in a clean container, mix, and let it rest at room temperature for 24 hours. As simple as that! (See the full mesophilic yogurt recipe).
Do not forget to keep a little bit of viili yogurt aside in a cool place to use to start your next batch. The viili culture reproduces very easily for an economical and durable option!
What is Viili?
Viili is a kind of mesophilic yogurt native to Scandinavia. It has a gelatinous consistency and a pleasantly mild taste resulting from lactic acid.
This dairy product is fermented under the microbial action of lactic bacteria and yeast-like mold (Geotrichum candidum) which forms a velvety surface on the viili.
The following lactic acid bacteria have been identified in viili:
- Lactococcus lactis subsp. Cremoris (produces viilian, similar to the kefiran produced by milk kefir grains)
- Lactococcus lactis subsp. biovar lactis. diacetylactis
- Leuconostoc mesenteroides subsp. Cremoris
Specifications
- Ingredients: powdered cow's milk, dehydrated live active cultures
- Contains 3 capsules to be used whole (each can ferment up to 2 litres of milk)
- GMO-free
- Keeps for 18 months in the freezer in original packaging
To rehydrate, see how to activate a dehydrated viili starter.
Customer Reviews
Hi. I'm Finnish and grew up eating viili. Since my Mom passed away I have had no way to get a starter. I have been making and eating the viili made from this starter for about a month now. It started up quickly and has continued to make wonderful viili. As a matter of fact, this is one of the best viili I have had! Go ahead and order it.. you won't be disappointed.
Second time round it set up nicely, thicker than Matsoni and better flavour. The stickiness and stringiness was weird but got used to it right away. Order arrived quickly!
My grandmother was born in Finland and came to Canada in 1927. I remember her getting the magic spoonful of starter from a friend and making Viili. I loved it as a young boy. She passed a long time ago. A few years ago I got into fermentation, starting with Kombucha and then water Kefir. I tried a number of starters for Viili but was never successful but your starter produced the taste and texture that I remember from my childhood. Bravo!
I wish I had known earlier that you could make the best-tasting yogurt so easily on your counter. I have never had anything like this texture before, but I absolutely love it! This is definitely my favorite yogurt now!
I'm so happy with my viili. It's perfect. Brings back childhood memories of home, and visiting my family in Finland. It's so easy to make, so I recommend trying it. It's so much better than kefir.
