Question about homemade lacto /EM culture

I just made my first ever batch of lacto culture using the recipe from http://theunconventionalfarmer.com/recipes/lactobacillus-serum/

From anyone who has experience making this, I'm just curious what the final stabilized EM culture should smell/look like. I used plain white sugar to stabilize my serum (i just have so much of it from doing kombucha), but i know they generally recommend using molasses. My culture still smells like rotten milk, and some thicker white solution has formed on the top. I poured it through a strainer and all went through, so i'm not sure if this is just undissolved sugar that keeps floating to the top somehow, or if its some weird growth taken hold in the culture. The stabilized culture is about 20 days old.

So does the culture ALWAYS smell like rotten milk??

Thanks

Sorry, I do not know, but if it is just lacto bacillus, can't we just use yogurt?

Hi Joy. Well...this is a very different substance than yogurt! Yes yogurt has some lactobacillus culture in it, but you wouldn't want to go dumping yogurt in your garden bed or spraying it on your leaves!

The lacto serum here is super concentrated and has a huge diversity of lactic acid bacteria. Yogurt only has one or two strains...this serum will also remain unspoiled for up to 3 years without refrigeration. The culture is so strong that other bacteria simply can't get a foot hold, the lactos just eat them all up. Which is why this serum can actually be used as disinfectant and deordizer. Can't use yogurt for that!

But yogurt is good for the gut flora. I endorse eating it...even better is sauerkraut or kefir.

I understand their is a difference in jar size, amount with air ratio.  If their is a difference in original recipe than what you did perhaps this is a factor but I cannot recall this aspect 100% so I do not say as knowledge and more of what I think I recall.

As long as it smells more like cheese than the bottom of a whisky bottle it should be good.   Making sure the measures are accurate is better than just guessing amounts if that was also a factor.  

Keep refrigerated.  

Editing in:
Perhaps add some more sugar, I suspect fermentation started due to the curds forming again.

Hope if that helps any.

For natural farming information check out
http://www.cgnfindia.com/
  (Drakes videos on natural farming, will take a week to watch but I recommend highly.)

Caleb Gruber wrote:Hi Joy. Well...this is a very different substance than yogurt! Yes yogurt has some lactobacillus culture in it, but you wouldn't want to go dumping yogurt in your garden bed or spraying it on your leaves!

The lacto serum here is super concentrated and has a huge diversity of lactic acid bacteria. Yogurt only has one or two strains...this serum will also remain unspoiled for up to 3 years without refrigeration. The culture is so strong that other bacteria simply can't get a foot hold, the lactos just eat them all up. Which is why this serum can actually be used as disinfectant and deordizer. Can't use yogurt for that!

But yogurt is good for the gut flora. I endorse eating it...even better is sauerkraut or kefir.

I see. If it has more strains, then of course. As for amount, I could just keep making yogurt for longer (keeping in dehydrator at 100 degrees) until it is exploding with them.

Harry Soloman wrote:I understand their is a difference in jar size, amount with air ratio.  If their is a difference in original recipe than what you did perhaps this is a factor but I cannot recall this aspect 100% so I do not say as knowledge and more of what I think I recall.

As long as it smells more like cheese than the bottom of a whisky bottle it should be good.   Making sure the measures are accurate is better than just guessing amounts if that was also a factor.  

Keep refrigerated.  

Editing in:
Perhaps add some more sugar, I suspect fermentation started due to the curds forming again.

Hope if that helps any.

I don't think it needs more sugar. I added 1 kilogram white sugar per liter, actually even a little bit more. I don't think it is curds forming, because like i said it all passes through a fine mesh strainer....I was worried it was some kind of invasive bacteria, but i think it is just some part of the LAB culture.

Thanks for the video link! Definitely interested in learning more about this topic.