I love my Instant Pot! I use it weekly but I recently discovered it has no yogurt setting. This has never bothered me before but that was before I wanted to learn how to make homemade yogurt in the instant pot. Homemade yogurt recipes that I’ve found are made in an instant pot with a yogurt setting. To the internet I went in search of a way to make yogurt without that setting and I’m happy to report it is definitely possible.
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How to make homemade yogurt in an instant pot without a yogurt button:
Ingredients:
1/2 gallon milk
1 can sweet & condensed milk like Eagle Brand (you can skip this addition to yield plain yogurt)
3-4 TBSP Greek Yogurt with active cultures (very important!)
Instructions:
Pour milk into a clean instant pot canister. Insert canister into instant pot. Turn on the Keep Warm setting and allow milk to warm for 45 mins. This is actually a time you can pick up your phone or go wash some dishes. Just set a timer for 45 minutes.
Next you will whisk your warm milk then turn on the sauté setting and allow the milk to reach 180 degrees. This IS where you leave your phone alone and use a candy thermometer to measure the temperature often. It takes just a few minutes to reach this heat.
Caveat: I have overheated every batch of yogurt I have made by accident (I can be a little ADHD in the kitchen) up to 210 degrees one time! It still turned out to be great yogurt. Does that temperature kill some of the good bacteria in raw milk? It’s possible.
Once the milk reaches 180 degrees, turn off the instant pot and carefully remove the canister from the instant pot. Allow the milk to cool down to 110 degrees. Use the candy thermometer. Drops about 1 degree per minute, I’ve found in the cooler months.
Now add in the active cultures tablespoons of yogurt and sweet & condensed milk then whisk well. Add the Instant Pot canister back into the IP, replace the IP lid, and wrap the lid in a towel. Allow the yogurt to rest for 8 hours.
After 8 hours, remove the towel and lid. Stir the yogurt (or whisk/blend if lumpy). Then add to quart jars and store in the refrigerator.
**Save about 1/8 cup of yogurt for your next batch. The cultures in it are needed to get your next pot of yogurt setting up properly.
Tips:
- If you find there are lumps in your yogurt, whisk them out or use an immersion blender. My kids do NOT love the lumps to this is a step I need.
- Before adding yogurt to jars, add 1 TBSP homemade vanilla extract to yogurt and mix well for vanilla flavor without the sweeteners. This is a measurement you’ll want to play around with for your flavor preference.
Homemade Yogurt Toppings
Add healthy granola or crumble some sourdough graham crackers on top for a delicious crunch! Drizzle on some local raw honey, too.
My husband is fond of spooning in a dollop of fresh strawberry jam.
Why make your own yogurt?
This recipe can be used with regular pasteurized milk, I hear, but I’ll be honest… I’ve not tried it. My family has started consuming raw milk and so that’s what I’ve experimented with so far.
Here’s the thing: I budget for full fat, organic vanilla Greek yogurt and it’s not cheap in the store. For almost what I pay for grocery store yogurt made with organic but pasteurized milk, I can make almost 2 quarts of really organic and raw milk yogurt. That’s a budget win for us!
Also, gut healthy probiotics are NEVER a bad thing to add to your diet! See more recipes under Fermented Foods on my blog, too. A LOT goes on in the gut. The better care we can take of it, the better off our overall health will be. Quite literally every thing we eat or drink goes in the gut. Much inflammation occurs there too from terrible foods we consume.
Does it take a lot of time to make homemade yogurt?
Some more good news is it doesn’t take a lot of time to make but the time that it does take needs your full attention…
Ask me how I know.
Okay, don’t. I’ll tell you! Waiting on the temperatures to get to certain levels calls for a “quick” check of my phone which ALWAYS equals forgotten tasks and something scorching. So, take it from me— put your phone away in the 1 hour of prep time you need for this homemade yogurt recipe.
USE A KITCHEN TIMER!
Does homemade yogurt taste good?
Oh yes! Especially now that I know to add a can of sweet and condensed milk to the recipe. Tastes just like vanilla yogurt.
What’s the texture like for homemade yogurt?
The texture is not the same as Greek yogurt. At least not what I’ve been able to make so far but I will continue to test this recipe and bring back findings to this article. Go ahead and pin it now so you’ll have it always.
This yogurt is more like regular yogurt. A little thin, not super thick like Greek yogurt.
How do I store homemade yogurt?
Quart jars are the best because I have lots available. I use reusable jar lids to the kids can easily make their own yogurt and replace the lid securely.
Alternatively, you could use Pyrex containers or any old container with a lid you’ve got around that’s easily to put in the refrigerator.
How long will homemade yogurt last?
Good luck making it through the week with almost 2 quarts! But if you do, know that it can last in the refrigerator up to 2 weeks if pasteurized and longer if raw milk.
Always use a clean utensil like a spoon or scoop to get out the yogurt from its original container.
SHOP THIS POST
Instant Pot (this one has the yogurt setting, my IP is apparently an outdated version)
Jar Lids– 8 wide mouth, 8 regular mouth
If you enjoyed this recipe,
Leave a comment below on this post and check out these other recipes:
The BEST and EASY Alfredo Sauce
Two Ingredient Non-Toxic Hand Soap
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Homemade Instant Pot Yogurt
Ingredients
- 1/2 gallon milk
- 1 can sweet & condensed milk like Eagle Brand you can skip this addition to yield plain yogurt
- 3-4 TBSP Greek Yogurt with active cultures (very important!)
Instructions
- Pour milk into a clean instant pot canister.
- Insert canister into instant pot.
- Turn on the Keep Warm setting and allow milk to warm for 45 mins.
- Next you will whisk your warm milk then turn on the sauté setting and allow the milk to reach 180 degrees.
- Once the milk reaches 180 degrees, turn off the instant pot and carefully remove the canister from the instant pot.
- Allow the milk to cool down to 110 degrees. Use the thermometer.
- Whisk in active cultures yogurt and sweet & condensed milk.
- Add Instant Pot lid and wrap top with a towel and allow yogurt to rest for 8 hours.
- After 8 hours, remove towel and lid. Stir yogurt (or whisk/blend to smooth lumps).
- Now add yogurt to containers and store in the refrigerator.
- Save about 1/8 cup of yogurt for your next batch. The cultures in it are needed to get your next pot of yogurt setting up properly.
Notes
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