This Instant Pot Yogurt Recipe is creamy and delicious. It’s super easy to do too with this how to guide!

Have you ever made homemade yogurt? It’s absolutely delicious and so creamy! And the best part is this creamy yogurt recipe is so easy!  It does take some time, but still just requires only a few minutes of hands on time. The whole thing takes 2 days to make. But, it’s worth it.

Homemade Yogurt is a much thicker yogurt and is a milder yogurt than regular yogurt. I love making my own plain greek yogurt because you have control over what’s in it. This homemade greek yogurt has no additional sugars or sweeteners, we only use what is naturally in the milk.

If you’d like to make your yogurt with a hint of vanilla, it’s super easy to do that! Once you’ve made a couple batches of this delicious, creamy, and smooth yogurt, you’ll never want to buy the store-bought varieties again.

The best time to start this recipe is in the morning, this way it cooks all day and then strains all night.

How to Make Yogurt in Your Instant Pot:

If you scroll down, I have a free printable recipe card for you with full ingredients and instructions.

The first time you make this recipe, it may seem a bit complicated, but it’s actually very easy once you get the steps down.

Be sure to save a quarter cup or so of your yogurt to use as a starter for next time.

Prep time: 5 minutes

Active cook time: 45-55 minutes

Incubation time: 8-10 hours

Serves: 4-6

Special Equipment Needed, with affiliate links:

• Instant Pot Pressure Cooker or any type of Electric Pressure cookers with ‘Yogurt’ function 
• Instant Read Digital thermometer or Candy Thermometer
• Cheesecloth or coffee filters

Ingredient List:

• a gallon of milk
• 1/4 cup plain whole milk yogurt or yogurt starter culture

Let’s make the yogurt!

Boil the milk:

Add your milk or yogurt culture (this is your starter yogurt) to your Instant Pot, select the yogurt setting – either the yogurt button or the yogurt function (whichever your instant pot has). Adjust until the screen is on the Boil Cycle.

Close the lid and wait until the unit beeps to indicate it is finished boiling. The screen will say “YoGt” when done. Insert instant read thermometer into the milk to ensure the milk reaches 180 degrees F.

Cool the milk:

Turn unit off and remove pot to allow the milk to cool to room temperature. For quicker results and to bring the temperature of the milk down in less time, place the instant pot insert in a tub of ice water or ice bath or you can leave it on the counter to cool the milk. When an instant read thermometer temperature reaches 110°F, the milk is cool enough. This usually takes about 30-45 minutes.

 

Add the Starter:

You can either remove about a cup of milk from the pot and place into a small bowl or use a yogurt starter. If you are using a yogurt starter, be sure to stir about 1/4 cup of plain whole milk yogurt together from your previous batch or unsweetened plain yogurt from the store before pouring into the rest of milk in the pot.

Incubate:

Place inner pot back into the unit for the second time and cover with the lid (no need to seal for this function). Select the ‘Yogurt’ function again and make sure the setting is on “Normal’ (NOT “Low” – very important!) and adjust time for 8-10 hours.

For a tangier yogurt, let your finished yogurt incubate for a long time .

When the yogurt is done incubating, remove the lid and turn unit off.

Strain:

Line a strainer with your sieve and place over a large bowl.

Pour yogurt into the strainer and place in the refrigerator to strain for several hours to overnight. For thick greek yogurt, allow your yogurt to strain for a long time. I personally enjoy a thick yogurt.

The next day when your yogurt is done straining, discard the liquid whey (although my favorite way to use it is in a smoothie because it is full of good bacteria) and transfer your very own yogurt to a bowl.

For best results, process your yogurt mixture with an immersion blender or hand mixer until creamy and smooth if you are finding it to be lumpy still.

Serve your tangy yogurt immediately topped with fresh fruit, granola, and a drizzle of honey, if desired.

If you like fruit flavored yogurt, you can mix in your favorite jam or fresh fruit to your individual servings. For added sweetness, drizzle in a little bit of maple syrup. 

Where do you find Yogurt Starter?

You can purchase yogurt starter in the grocery store. It’s important for your creamy greek yoghurt starter to have active cultures and live cultures.

Pro Tip: The easiest way is to save about 2 tablespoons for your next batch before you discard your yogurt. You can freeze starter so you always have it on hand to make this amazing yogurt recipe!

What Kind of Milk Should I Use?

The milk mixture you use is important. Whole milk will produce a thicker and creamier yogurt and is preferred. Skim milk just doesn’t have the fat content that whole milk does and will need additional ingredients. I’ve only made yogurt with this kind of dairy, so I can’t give details on anything else.

How to store your yogurt:

Store your batch of yogurt in an airtight container in the refrigerator for a week to 10 days.

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