I usually like making a lot of things homemade… and yogurt is one of them. (I draw the line at ice cream anymore these days though.)
I used to make yogurt a lot back when I used my Sous Vide. It was fairly easy, but not without its hassles, so after awhile I stopped. After getting an Instant Pot and hearing how easy it was, I had to try.
Super easy. Saves money. Awesome.
Did I mention that it SAVES MONEY?
I’m hooked. It’s one of the best reasons for getting an Instant Pot, other than how an Instant Pot helps my family eat like 4X as many veggies, turning cheap cuts of meat tender super fast, and more.
Yogurt in the Instant Pot
Yield 2 quarts.
- 1/2 gallon whole-fat milk (I buy grass-fed)
- 2 tablespoons yogurt with good cultures you have on hand (I buy Straus Greek*, Whole-Fat)
1) Pour the milk only into the Instant Pot.
- Press “Yogurt” button, then press the “Adjust” button until the screen reads “boil” (pictured below).
- Place the lid on, it doesn’t need to be locked or sealed.
- Take the lid off and stir the heating milk a few times during the heating, replacing the lid each time you take it off.
- You want to get the milk to 180 degrees F. This takes about 25 to 30 minutes. Take the lid off to test the temperature with a thermometer when the Instant Pot claims it’s done.
- If it doesn’t actually reach 180 degrees F by the time it claims it’s done, turn the saute feature on (low) and cook, stirring frequently, until 180 degrees is really reached. (It happens like that on occasion.)
2) Take the lid off, if not already. Turn the Instant Pot off, if not already. Let the milk cool until it reaches 105 to 110 degrees F.
- To speed up the cooling, remove the insert from the Instant Pot and place on a cooling rack, or in a cold water bath if really in a hurry. Generally the cooling takes from 20 to 45 minutes depending on whether you take the insert out or keep it in the Instant Pot to cool.
3) Put the insert back into the Instant Pot base if you took it out for cooling.
- Place the 2 tablespoons of yogurt into a separate cup and ladle some of the cooled milk into the cup. Stir to mix. Transfer this mixture into the Instant Pot and stir to gently mix. (If you forget to stir the yogurt and some of the cooled milk together in a separate cup before putting it into the main batch of cooling milk – i.e., you put the two tablespoons of yogurt straight into the big batch of cooling milk – no biggie, just stir it all gently and thoroughly.)
4) Place the lid back on.
- Again, it doesn’t need to be locked. Press YOGURT (normal). Adjust time to 10 to 12 hours based on preference. The longer the tangier (I usually do 12 hours). Walk away. Leave alone. (I usually do this part overnight).
5) When it’s done and the screen reads YOGURT, transfer the insert and lid to the refrigerator to chill / set for 3 to 4 hours.
6) When it’s chilled, then you can whisk it (not necessary but I like to).
7) Ladle into 2 quart mason jars (or smaller serving glass jars). Store in the refrigerator.
- From here you can use 2 tablespoons of this fresh yogurt to make future batches. If you accidentally eat it all and forget to save a couple of tablespoons, buy a yogurt from the store to start another fresh batch.
*Note: I usually have Greek yogurt on hand because Kamea loves it, and that’s why I use it to culture the milk into yogurt using my Instant Pot. However, you can use any good yogurt. Using a Greek yogurt will not make your Instant Pot yogurt a Greek yogurt. To do that, you’d have to strain the whey off the yogurt you make for a Greek yogurt.