Instant Pot Greek Yogurt
If you have an Instant Pot and love yogurt, then this is how to make it yourself. It's very easy, economical and really satisfying to make it yourself at home. Plus it is utterly delicious! I recommend starting this approximately 1 - 1.5 hours before you go to bed, assuming you sleep for 7-9 hours, giving you an hour to wake up and carry on the process when incubation is complete.
: 18 kcal
Ingredients
- 1.5 litres whole milk 6 cups
- 2 tbsp Greek/natural/live yogurt* rounded
Purely optional extras
- Vanilla extract start with 1 tsp per 500ml yogurt, then adjust to taste
- Honey or maple syrup to taste
Essential equipment
- An Instant Pot
- A reliable thermometer
- A whisk
- A small bowl
- A large sieve lined with kitchen roll or muslin OR a "nut milk bag" cheesecloth
- A jam funnel is helpful for neat portioning into small glass yogurt pots
- Glass jars which can be sterilised to store the yogurt in
Instructions
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Start by washing the stainless Inner Pot in hot soapy water, as well as the inside of the Instant Pot lid, and rinse well. Place 250ml water in the inner pot, place the lid on and set the valve to Sealing. Select Manual, check it is on High and set to 5 minutes, doing a QPR. Discard the water.
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Pour the milk into the clean Inner Pot and put the lid back on. Press YOGURT. Press ADJUST and the display will show "BOIL". This cycle takes about 25-30 minutes.
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When complete, remove the lid and whisk the milk and check the temperature, looking for 83˚C minimum. If not there yet, repeat this cycle once or even twice more. Press Cancel. Note - it does not matter if the vent is open or closed in yogurt making.
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When the milk is at 83˚C, remove the Inner Pot carefully and place in a sink filled with a few inches of cold water in to cool the milk down quickly. Whisk frequently, cool to 43˚C. Discard any skin** and take the pot out of the sink, drying the outside off completely.
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Take out a ladleful of the hot milk and in a small bowl, whisk in the yogurt starter until smooth then pour it into the hot milk and replace in the base of the IP. Replace the lid. It does not matter if the vent is open or closed in yogurt making.
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Press YOGURT. The display should read "8:00". Adjust using the ADJUST button to "10:00" if you want tangier yogurt. Boomski! You are done for the day - the IP will count up to 8 or 10 hours from 0 and the alarm will sound when it is finished. Have a good night's sleep!
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When the incubation phase is complete, cool the yogurt at room temp for about half an hour before covering the pot and transferring to the fridge to chill fully. This may take 6-8 hours. Sterilise your jars by washing in hot soapy water, rinsing and drying in an oven at 100˚C or run them through a dishwasher on high. Do not touch the insides with your finger once sterile to prevent contamination.
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Set a large sieve lined with several pieces of kitchen roll over a large bowl (my KitchenAid glass bowl is a perfect size for the job) and scrape all the yogurt into the sieve. Press 2-3 more pieces of kitchen roll to the surface of the yogurt and return to the fridge to strain for at least 2 hours for a good and thick yogurt. This can be done with a nut milk bag if you have such a thing too!
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If adding any flavouring or sweetening agent, such as vanilla, honey or maple syrup do it now then spoon into your jars and seal the lids tightly.
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Don't forget to save a couple of tablespoon's worth of plain yogurt for the next batch.
Recipe Notes
*= to begin with, you will need to buy a yogurt to start off your own. Once you have made a batch, reserve a couple of spoonfuls to use as your "starter" for the next batch. Freeze in ice cube trays if not using immediately - homemade yogurt will however keep for up to 2 weeks in sterilised jars in the fridge. If you have yogurt regularly, you won't need to freeze as you can start preparing a new batch the day before it runs out.
**= if a skin forms, the yogurt will be "bitty" so do remove it before incubation.