The Instant Pot makes the easiest and creamiest homemade yogurt and will save you money. You will also love having control over the quality of the ingredients you choose to use! This has become a staple in our home and if your family enjoys yogurt, this is sure to become a staple for you as well!
Versatility for the Win!
Enjoy your yogurt with any meal or as a snack to include beneficial probiotics into your diet. This yogurt is plain, which is ideal! This way you can personalize it any way you want.
Adding jam, honey, fruit, or granola are a few of our favorites. Myself and my 3 year-old also love to spread it on our sourdough pancakes, add a layer of applesauce and sprinkle hemp seeds on the top. Yum!
It works great as a sour cream substitute, to use for baking, or add to smoothies. So many options!
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You will need:
- Instant Pot
- Milk – I use whole milk, which makes the yogurt thicker and creamier. You can use raw or any cow milk from the store. My sister has also had success with raw goat milk.
- Thermometer
- Vanilla – This is completely optional and I never use it, but many like to add it.
- Yogurt starter – I use full-fat yogurt from the store and try to look for one with as many live active cultures as possible or yogurt from a previous batch of homemade yogurt. The more live active cultures, the better it is for your gut!
- Whisk
- Rubber spatula
- Greek yogurt maker – optional, but completely worth it, in my opinion. You can also use cheesecloth or nut milk bags.
- Airtight container
Instant Pot Yogurt Step-by-Step Instructions:
1. Boil the Milk in the Instant Pot
- Pour milk into your Instant Pot and lock on the lid or tempered glass lid. It doesn’t matter if the vent is open or closed and you do not need to use the sealing ring.
- Press the yogurt button until it is set to BOIL (with some Instant Pot models, you may need to press Yogurt and then the Adjust button until it is set to BOIL.)
- This process will heat the milk to around 180 degrees F and kill off any unwanted microorganisms. It will take approx. 30 min and will beep and show YOGT on the screen once complete.
2. Cool the Milk
- Take off the lid and use your rubber spatula to stir and get any milk off of the bottom of the pot.
- Let milk sit until temperature is between 100 -115 degrees F.
3. Temper the Starter
- Put yogurt starter in a bowl and mix in about 1 cup of the cooled milk.
- Whisk together and then whisk that mixture into the rest of the milk in the pot. This is also the step when you will add your vanilla, if using.
4. Incubate the Yogurt
- Place lid back on Instant Pot and set yogurt function to 8:00.
- The Instant Pot will say YOGT once the 8 hours are complete and will automatically switch off.
5. Strain Yogurt
- If you like your yogurt to be on the thinner side, you just whisk and then place in an airtight container and store in the refrigerator.
- If you prefer Greek yogurt, (this is what we prefer!) pour your yogurt into a Greek yogurt maker and let sit in the refrigerator overnight or until the yogurt is the consistency you prefer.
- If using cheesecloth or nut milk bags, pour yogurt in and tie whichever you are using up somewhere where it can be hanging above a bowl. Let strain for approximately 30 minutes to an hour depending on the thickness you want.
6. Store Yogurt
- Put yogurt in an airtight container and place in the refrigerator for up to about 2 weeks (although, I have had it last 3 weeks just fine).
7. Whey
- Pour whey into a container and place in the refrigerator for use in other recipes, smoothies, etc. or freeze in ice cube trays for future use.
Why You Should Make Homemade Yogurt
- Knowing what ingredients are in your yogurt and can control the amount and type of sweetener.
- IT’S A MONEY SAVER! We really enjoy yogurt, but even low-quality yogurt can be expensive and it’s easy to quickly plow through a tub of it, especially if there are kids eating it.
- You can flavor it any way you want, which is one of my favorite parts of preparing food from scratch. I love having options!
- The feeling of accomplishment after you make something homemade is awesome! (I know it is for me!)
Homemade Yogurt in Instant Pot
Prep Time:
5 minutes
Cook Time:
9 hours
Additional Time:
1 hour
Total Time:
10 hours 5 minutes
Easy and delicious Instant Pot homemade yogurt
Ingredients
- 1 Gallon Whole Milk
- 1/4 - 1/2 cups Full Fat Yogurt with live active cultures
- 1 tsp Vanilla (optional)
Instructions
- Pour milk into Instant Pot.
- Place lid on Instant Pot and set your yogurt function to boil.
- Once you hear the beep and your IP reads YOGT, take off lid and stir the milk with a rubber spatula, scraping the bottom as you stir.
- Let the milk sit until it cools to between 100-115 degrees.
- Put about a cup of cooled milk into a bowl and whisk in your yogurt starter* and then pour that into the milk in the IP while whisking to fully incorporate. This is also when you would add the vanilla.
- Place lid back on Instant Pot and set yogurt function to 8:00.
- Once the 8 hours are complete, remove the lid and whisk your yogurt.
- For thinner yogurt, pour yogurt into an airtight container and let cool and set up a little more in the refrigerator.
- For Greek yogurt, pour the yogurt into a Greek yogurt maker (4-10 hrs) or cheesecloth (30 - 60 min) and let strain to your desired consistency.
- Dump strained yogurt into a bowl and whisk before placing into an airtight container for 2-3 weeks.
- Store your whey in the refrigerator for 2-3 weeks or freeze it for future use.
Notes
*Find a yogurt with full fat that has at least 4 live active cultures listed.