Making Greek yogurt at home in your Instant Pot is an easy and fun way to save money in the kitchen! You can tailor homemade yogurt to your families preferences!
Why would I want to make yogurt at home?
Personally, I love being able to control all of the ingredients in my families food. Common brands of yogurt, even organic yogurt, have preservatives and thickeners. I enjoy cutting those things out when and where I can. In this case, it is super simple and the hands on time is minimal. As an added bonus, I can use grass fed milk to make my yogurt. I don’t know about your area, but in my area finding grass fed yogurt is not an option. The last major benefit of making your own yogurt is the nutritional value! This is a fermented food with live bacteria cultures that are good for your gut!
Why is my Greek yogurt runny?
There are a couple of issues you could run into when making yogurt:
- Your starter culture was too weak. You either didn’t use enough starter or your starter was too old. Either way, the bacteria colony was smaller than expected and was not able to culture the amount of milk provided. Remember, with a live culture the bacteria must have enough time and a big enough “army” of bacteria to effectively culture the yogurt. You really only want to use starter that is a week or less old to ensure it is healthy and strong.
- You have not finished the process! The yogurt when it comes out of the instant pot is not thick Greek yogurt. It is runny and more like American yogurt, AKA it is smooth but thin. To get thick Greek yogurt you need to strain off the whey!
- You tried to use a store bought yogurt that does not contain live cultures. In this case unfortunately you would just have warm milk that sat at 115 degrees for 10 hours. You must ensure that the yogurt you’re using contains live cultures.
My yogurt is too sour, what do I do?
With the batch that is too sour, add a little extra honey and top with lots of berries. You could also add it to a smoothie to get the protein and probiotic benefits, while cutting the strong flavor. For next time, ferment it for less time. I personally like the tang of yogurt so I will ferment for a minimum 10 hours, sometimes even 12! But this is customizable! Drop it down an hour to 9 and see if the flavor is more to your liking. The other factor I would check is the flavor of your starter culture. If you are using a store bought yogurt make sure you like the flavor!
How do I get a starter culture for Greek yogurt?
I’m so glad you asked! There are a few options:
- Ask a friend that makes yogurt if you can have a half cup of their next batch! I LOVE sharing my fermented starters with friends and family! It makes me think about how long these bacteria colonies can last with proper maintenance! I want to be that crazy grandma that gives fermented starter packs to their grandkids when they leave the nest!
- Buy a starter culture online or in a health store near you! Personally I have been super impressed with Cultures for Health and they often run sales! They also have a variety of options for yogurt, from Greek to Bulgarian! The downside is you don’t get to taste the yogurt beforehand to ensure you will like it
- The last option is what I do most often: you can buy a yogurt from the store, that you enjoy! For this option you need to ensure that the packaging says contains live culture and that it is PLAIN flavored! You can add whatever flavorings you want after the yogurt is made. For now, you just want to make sure that the base flavor is one you enjoy and that it contains the needed bacteria.
Are there health benefits of making yogurt at home in the Instant Pot?
Yes there are! For one, you get to control the ingredients. That means you can use the highest quality ingredients that you can afford/find locally. Second, you are eliminating all of the preservatives and thickeners in store bought yogurt. We can debate the nutritional value or harmful effects of these chemicals in another post. Thirdly, The live culture bacteria in homemade yogurt act as a probiotic! You can pay a lot for supplemental pro- and prebiotics but you can also get them from a healthy wholesome diet! Fourthly, you are eliminating all of the added sugars and food dyes in yogurt! You should read the labels of popular kids yogurts, the amount of sugar and dyes is seriously disturbing. I pay more attention to dyes now, because my daughter is highly sensitive to them. Her attitude and behavior shift noticeably. So for me this reason alone would be enough, but add in the others and I will always do my best to have homemade Instant Pot Greek yogurt on hand all the time. For an even easier fermented dairy option, you might also try my HOMEMADE KEFIR!
How long does Instant Pot Greek yogurt last in the fridge?
As a starter, yogurt will only be viable for a week to 10 days. If you would like to extend that life a little you can freeze a starter amount of freshly made yogurt in a small mason jar. This method will only last for about a month because, again, this is a live culture and they need food to multiply and survive. As yogurt, it can last 2 weeks in the fridge.
What should I do with the whey?
When you make homemade yogurt you end with the byproduct of whey. There are a few ways in which you can utilize this product without wasting it. What I do most often is pour it on the garden. It is liquid calcium! You can add it to your watering can, watering it down so as not to burn your plants. I have also poured it directly on my soil without issue. Another option is add it to smoothies for the added protein boost and slight tang of yogurt without using your homemade yogurt. There are lots of other ways to utilize whey but these are the two I turn to most often!
How should I eat this Homemade Greek yogurt?
Anyway you would like! I personally love to top yogurt with granola, fresh berries, and honey! Yum! My mouth is water just thinking about it! This is a great snack for kids and adults, or a light breakfast! My second favorite way to eat homemade yogurt is to top it with homemade jam and make my own yogurt cups! I will put a small amount of jam in the bottom of my container and fill it the rest of the way with yogurt, if I’m snack prepping for the week! If I’m just grabbing a quick breakfast I will put the yogurt in a bowl and top with the jam! You can also throw in some flax seeds, hemp hearts, or chia seeds for added nutrients!
What do I need to make Greek yogurt at home?
- 6 Quart Instant Pot Pressure Cooker
- Thermometer
- Whisk
- Cheese cloth
- Colander
- 8×8 Pyrex baking dish
- Rubber spatula
- Wide mouth funnel
- 3 wide mouth quart mason jars
- 2 regular mouth quart mason jars
Ingredients List:
- 1/2 c active yogurt starter
- 1 gallon milk, I prefer grass fed whole milk
How to make Instant Pot Greek yogurt
1.Pour 1 gallon of whole milk into your stainless steel Instant Pot insert.
2.Plug in your Instant Pot and push the yogurt button until it says boil.
3.Place the lid, no silicone ring required, on the instant pot and wait for it to beep, signifying that the milk has come to a boil. This is called pasteurization and kills off any bacteria that may have existed in the milk. We do not want any other bacteria to be able to compete with the starter culture.
4.DO NOT ADD YOUR STARTER until the temperature has dropped below 115 degrees Fahrenheit. If you add your starter culture before the temperature has dropped you risk killing your starter. I will carefully remove the stainless steel pot from the instant pot and let it sit on my counter with the lid on it. This process can take a while. If you are trying to speed up the process, set the stainless steel pot in a sink filled a few inches with cold water. You can whisk the milk as well to cool it off.
5.When your thermometer reads 115 F or below whisk in your yogurt starter.
6.Place the stainless steel pot back in the base, place the lid on top, and press the yogurt button until it reads a number, adjust this number to 10 hours and to less pressure, if it isn’t already on low pressure.
7.When the 10 hours have counted down and the instant pot beeps multiple times it is time to strain the yogurt. Set up your colander in a baking dish and line it with cheesecloth.
8.Pour the yogurt into the cheesecloth lined colander and let rest for several hours in your fridge, until desired thickness. I usually let my strain overnight, up to 12 hours.
9.Use a spatula to remove the yogurt from the cheese cloth and use the funnel to limit the mess of getting your yogurt into your wide mouth jars.
10.Pour whey into regular mouth jars.
11.Refrigerate all products and use them within 2 weeks.
If you liked this recipe, check out my other Instant Pot recipes by clicking HERE!
Easy Instant Pot: Greek Yogurt
Super easy Instant
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup active yogurt starter
- 1 gallon whole milk, grass fed if possible
- Supplies Needed:
- 6 quart Instant Pot Pressure Cooker
- Thermometer
- Whisk
- Cheese Cloth
- Colander
- 8x8 Pyrex baking dish
- Rubber spatula
- Wide mouth funnel
- 3 Wide mouth mason jars
- 2 regular mouth mason jars
Instructions
1. Pour 1 gallon of whole milk into your stainless steel Instant Pot insert.
2. Plug in your Instant Pot and push the yogurt button until it says boil.
3. Place the lid, no silicone ring required, on the instant pot and wait for it to beep, signifying that the milk has come to a boil. This is called pasteurization and kills off any bacteria that may have existed in the milk. We do not want any other bacteria to be able to compete with the starter culture.
4. DO NOT ADD YOUR STARTER, until the temperature has dropped below 115 degrees Fahrenheit. If you add your starter culture before the temperature has dropped you risk killing your starter. I will carefully remove the stainless steel pot from the instant pot and let it sit on my counter with the lid on it. This process can take a while. If you are trying to speed up the process, set the stainless steel pot in a sink filled a few inches with cold water. You can whisk the milk as well to cool it off.
5. When your thermometer reads 115 F or below whisk in your yogurt starter.
6.Place the stainless steel pot back in the base, place the lid on top, and press the yogurt button until it reads a number, adjust this number to 10 hours and to less pressure, if it isn’t already on low pressure.
7.When the 10 hours have counted down and the instant pot beeps multiple times it is time to strain the yogurt. Set up your colander in a baking dish and line it with cheesecloth.
8. Pour the yogurt into the cheesecloth lined colander and let rest for several hours in your fridge, until desired thickness. I usually let my strain overnight, up to 12 hours.
9. Use a spatula to remove the yogurt from the cheese cloth and use the funnel to limit the mess of getting your yogurt into your wide mouth jars.
10. Pour whey into Regular mouth jars.
11.Refrigerate all products and use them within 2 weeks.
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