Easy Homemade Yogurt – Instant Pot or Crockpot (Video)
This easy homemade yogurt recipe can be made in the instant pot, crockpot, or on the stovetop. Three simple ways to make your own yogurt right at home with no preservatives or chemical ingredients added. This yogurt recipe calls for only two ingredients. Unless of course you make flavored yogurt, and then you’ll add simple flavorings like vanilla, jam or sweetener.
Yogurt is truly one of the easiest dairy products that you can make in your own home and at a fraction of the cost of store-bought yogurt. Once you eat fresh delicious homemade yogurt, you’ll never want to go back to eating yogurt from the grocery store. You don’t need any special equipment other than an instant pot, crockpot, or pan for your stovetop for this simple recipe that I’ve been making for over 15 years. And the best part is that the whole process only takes a few minutes to complete.
What Is Homemade Yogurt?
Yogurt is made from adding a culture to fresh milk and allowing that culture to turn the milk into yogurt over a few hours by incubating it at a certain temperature. Yogurt has been used in fresh eating, cooking and baking since 5,000 BC. It was likely discovered by accident when raw milk was left at room temperature and got reacted upon by beneficial bacteria that made it taste like yogurt. Yogurt is one of the oldest foods on the planet and contains lots of beneficial vitamins, minerals and antioxidants to help your body thrive. It is known to help aid the digestive, immune and cardiovascular systems of the body.
My experience
I’ve been milking dairy cows for the last fifteen years and in that time I’ve learned a lot. Like how to make all of our dairy products including hard cheeses. This has made a big difference in our grocery bill and has kept our family healthy and thriving. Having a family dairy cow is a lot of responsibility, but the rewards are so worth it! When learning about dairy cows, or any new homesteading skill, I suggest that you take it slow and learn one or two things at a time so it’s not so overwhelming. There’s lots to learn, but I’m here to help you and make it easier for you!
Yogurt is one of the first home dairy products that I made over 15 years ago. Making your own butter and yogurt is a great place to start when learning how to make dairy products. I like to make yogurt because if you turn a gallon of milk into yogurt, you get a full gallon of yogurt. When you make hard cheeses, you might only get a pound of cheese from a gallon of mlk because you’re separating the curds from the whey. Of course the whey can be used in cooking, baking or as plant fertilizer, but it always seems like making yogurt is a really good investment because you get such a high return.
Cultured Food
Anytime you eat a food that has been cultured or fermented with good bacteria before you eat it, you are improving your gut health. Cultured foods like sourdough or yogurt are much easier for your body to digest because a lot of the harmful enzymes in the food are broken down during the culturing process. That is why a lot of people that are lactose intolerant can consume cultured dairy products like yogurt or cheese, especially if it’s made with raw milk. Yogurt is very good for you, and should be eaten everyday if possible.
To learn how to make all of your own dairy products, find all of our favorite recipes here.
Ways To Enjoy Fresh Yogurt?
- We like plain yogurt with maple syrup and granola added to it.
- Vanilla yogurt makes a delicious breakfast or snack along with fresh berries.
- On waffles with peanut butter and fresh fruit.
- Plain yogurt can be used as a sour cream substitute.
- Add yogurt to any baked good in place of milk or water.
Tips For Making This Homemade Instant Pot Yogurt Recipe
- I like to use whole milk for making homemade yogurt, although I do skim some of the cream off of my raw milk to make homemade butter as the yogurt doesn’t need as much cream as my cows produce.
- If you don’t like a real tangy yogurt, don’t let it culture for too many hours. I like to culture mine for about 5 hours, and the easiest way to do that is in the instant pot because it will shut itself off after 5 hours. If you let your yogurt culture for a full 24 hours, it will be super thick and more sour.
- If you have a lot of milk you want to turn into yogurt, you can heat milk it in a large pot on the stove. After adding the culture you can either wrap up the pot with a towel to let it incubate. Or pour the milk into jars and place them in a cooler with towels or warm water. Just so long as the milk stays warm, it will turn into yogurt.
- For best results, stir in your sweetener and any flavorings like vanilla when you add the culture. This will give you the thickest, best-tasting yogurt.
- If you want to make fruit-flavored yogurt, the easiest way to do it is to put jam or fruit on the bottom of a jar. Pour in the cultured milk and allow it to culture in a warm place for a few hours. Then you’ll have yogurt cups with fruit on the bottom that is perfect for lunches or after school snacks.
FAQ
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Ingredients
Tools
How To Make Easy Homemade Instant Pot Yogurt
Heat The Milk
Place milk into instant pot, crock pot or in a large pot on the stove. Heat until the milk is at 180 degrees. This will kill off any bacteria (good or bad) present in the milk that might interfere with the yogurt culture doing it’s work.
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To heat the milk in the instant pot, just push the yogurt button until the display says “boil”. Make sure the lid is on. The instant pot will automatically turn off when the milk gets to 180 degrees.
If you’re using a crock pot or a pan on the stovetop, turn it on medium heat and then check the temperature of the milk every so often until it gets to 180 degrees.
Cool The Milk
Once the milk reaches 180 degrees, shut off the heat. Remove the lids and allow the milk to cool to between 110 and 120 degrees. I use a thermometer for this part. If your milk is too hot, it can kill the yogurt culture. If it’s too cold, it won’t properly turn the milk into yogurt.
Culture The Yogurt
When the milk is cooled off to between 110 and 120 degrees, add your yogurt with active cultures in it to the milk and gently stir. If you’re adding in sweetener and a flavoring like vanilla extract, you can also stir it in at this point.
Incubate The Yogurt
Instant Pot Yogurt Method
If using the instant pot, put the lid back on and push the yogurt button again until it gives you a number like 08:00 or 24:00. This is the number of hours that it will culture the yogurt. I usually change the 08:00 setting to be 05:00 hours by pushing the “minus” button right after selecting the 08:00. It will remember your setting of 05:00 hours for the next time you make yogurt, and you can always adjust it as necessary. You can culture it longer or shorter, depending on your taste. When the culturing is done, it will say “yogt” on the display.
Crockpot Yogurt Method
For the crockpot or slow cooker method, once the milk has cooled down, stir in your yogurt culture and any sweeteners or flavorings. Put the lid back on and wrap the crockpot in a towel. Leave it on your counter to culture for 5 hours or up to overnight.
Stovetop Yogurt Method
The stovetop method is very similar. After heating to 180 degrees, let the milk cool down, stir in your yogurt culture and any sweeteners or flavorings. You can either wrap the pot in a towel and culture the yogurt in the pot, or pour it into a gallon jar (see video below) and wrap that in a towel for a few hours or overnight.
Individual Servings
To make individual sized yogurt cups, pour the cultured milk into pint jars, or other small container. Then wrap them up and let them culture in a warm place. You can also put a little bit of water in the bottom of your instant pot, and put the jars of yogurt in it. Turn on the instant pot using the “yogurt” function and allow it to culture for a few hours or overnight. One of our favorite things to do is put jam on the bottom of the individual servings of yogurt. Then we can just stir the jam into the yogurt while eating it. So delicious!
Chill Yogurt
Once the yogurt is set, you can put it into the refrigerator to chill.
If you want an even thicker yogurt, you can strain some of the whey off of it. You can do this by placing a fine cheesecloth in a colander and allowing the extra whey to drain off over two or three hours. You can stir gently to make sure that it continues to drain. If it gets too thick, you can always just blend some of that whey back in with a stick blender. I find that with pasteurizing the milk first, that I rarely have to drain off any whey. I typically just put the yogurt into the refrigerator and eat it from there.
Store the yogurt in your refrigerator for 2 to 3 weeks. You can use some of this batch of yogurt as a yogurt starter culture for your next batch of yogurt. Then you don’t ever have to buy storebought yogurt again.
If you try this recipe, let me know by leaving a comment. And if you like it? Give it a 5 star rating!
Easy Homemade Yogurt – Instant Pot, Crockpot Or Stovetop Methods
Ingredients
- 1 gallon milk – raw or pasteurized cows milk or any non-dairy milk
- 1/2 cup yogurt with live active cultures
- Optional Flavorings:
- 1 1/2 cups sugar maple syrup or honey
- 2 Tablespoons vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- Jam or fresh fruite
Instructions
Heat The Milk
- Place milk into instant pot, crock pot or in a large pot on the stove. Heat until the milk is at 180 degrees. This will kill off any bacteria (good or bad) present in the milk that might interfere with the yogurt culture doing it’s work.
- To heat the milk in the instant pot, just push the yogurt button until the display says “boil”. Make sure the lid is on. The instant pot will automatically turn off when the milk gets to 180 degrees.
- If you’re using a crock pot or a pan on the stovetop, turn it on medium heat and then check the temperature of the milk every so often until it gets to 180 degrees.
Cool The Milk
- Once the milk reaches 180 degrees, shut off the heat, remove the lids and allow the milk to cool to between 110 and 120 degrees. I use a thermometer for this part. If your milk is too hot, it can kill the yogurt culture, and if it’s too cold, it won’t properly turn the milk into yogurt.
Culture The Yogurt
- When the milk is cooled off to between 110 and 120 degrees, add your yogurt with active cultures in it to the milk and gently stir. If you’re adding in sweetener and a flavoring like vanilla extract, you can also stir it in at this point.
Incubate The Yogurt
Instant Pot Yogurt Method
- If using the instant pot, put the lid back on and push the yogurt button again until it gives you a number like 08:00 or 24:00. This is the number of hours that it will culture the yogurt. I usually change the 08:00 setting to be 05:00 hours by pushing the “minus” button right after selecting the 08:00. It will remember your setting of 05:00 hours for the next time you make yogurt, and you can always adjust it as necessary. You can culture it longer or shorter, depending on your taste. When the culturing is done, it will say "yogt" on the display.
Crockpot Yogurt Method
- For the crockpot or slow cooker method, once the milk has cooled down, stir in your yogurt culture and any sweeteners or flavorings. Put the lid back on and wrap the crockpot in a towel. Leave it on your counter to culture for 5 hours or up to overnight.
Stovetop Yogurt Method
- The stovetop method is very similar. After heating to 180 degrees, let the milk cool down, stir in your yogurt culture and any sweeteners or flavorings. You can either wrap the pot in a towel and culture the yogurt in the pot, or pour it into a gallon jar (see video below) and wrap that in a towel for a few hours or overnight.
Individual Servings
- To make individual sized yogurt cups, pour the cultured milk into pint jars, or other small container, and then wrap them up and let them culture in a warm place. You can also put a little bit of water in the bottom of your instant pot, and put the jars of yogurt in it. Turn on the instant pot using the “yogurt” function and allow it to culture for a few hours or overnight. One of our favorite things to do is put jam on the bottom of the individual servings of yogurt. Then we can just stir the jam into the yogurt while eating it. So delicious!
Chill Yogurt
- Once the yogurt is set, you can put it into the refrigerator to chill.
- If you want an even thicker yogurt, you can strain some of the whey off of it by placing a fine cheesecloth in a colander and allowing the extra whey to drain off over two or three hours. You can stir gently to make sure that it continues to drain. If it gets too thick, you can always just blend some of that whey back in with a stick blender. I find that with pasteurizing the milk first, that I rarely have to drain off any whey. I typically just put the yogurt into the refrigerator and eat it from there.
- Store the yogurt in your refrigerator for 2 to 3 weeks. You can use some of this batch of yogurt as a yogurt starter culture for your next batch of yogurt. Then you don’t ever have to buy storebought yogurt again.
Notes
Tips For Making This Homemade Instant Pot Yogurt Recipe
- I like to use whole milk for making homemade yogurt, although I do skim some of the cream off of my raw milk to make homemade butter as the yogurt doesn’t need as much cream as my cows produce.
- If you don’t like a real tangy yogurt, don’t let it culture for too many hours. I like to culture mine for about 5 hours, and the easiest way to do that is in the instant pot because it will shut itself off after 5 hours. If you let your yogurt culture for a full 24 hours, it will be super thick and more sour.
- If you have a lot of milk you want to turn into yogurt, you can heat milk it in a large pot on the stove. After adding the culture you can either wrap up the pot with a towel to let it incubate. Or pour the milk into jars and place them in a cooler with towels or warm water. Just so long as the milk stays warm, it will turn into yogurt.
- For best results, stir in your sweetener and any flavorings like vanilla when you add the culture. This will give you the thickest, best-tasting yogurt.
- If you want to make fruit-flavored yogurt, the easiest way to do it is to put jam or fruit on the bottom of a jar. Pour in the cultured milk and allow it to culture in a warm place for a few hours. Then you’ll have yogurt cups with fruit on the bottom that is perfect for lunches or after school snacks.
