Making yoghurt at home is easier than you think and is so much cheaper than buying it. Here is my guide for how to make yoghurt at home using three simple methods!
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I've had a yoghurt maker for years and have always bought the packets of powder to make my own. It was easy, fun and definitely cheaper than buying ready made yoghurt. But then I learnt that you could make it entirely from scratch without even using the packets and I was intrigued. Just milk and yoghurt needed? Obviously I had to learn!
I looked up a few tutorials online and tried, but only had mediocre success. It was ok, but not like I thought it would be. So I asked my aunty (the one who is responsible for us having chickens, making vanilla extract and homemade granola) and she gave me her method. I was determined to make it work, and I did!
The best thing about making yoghurt at home is that once you've made it once, you can keep using the leftover yoghurt to start the next batch which means it is super cheap to make! I buy 2 litres of milk which costs around $3.50 meaning 1 litre of yoghurt costs me $1.75 to make. Not bad considering buying 1 litre of yoghurt (even plain and unsweetened) is around $5 or $6! We usually get through 1 litre of yoghurt per week, so even with my terrible maths, that means we are saving about $175 per year. I can think of plenty more things I could spend that on.
It's certainly not as simple as adding a packet to cold water, shaking and incubating but once you have the hang of it, it becomes second nature and fits into your routine easily. When I need to make more yoghurt I heat and cool the milk in the morning while we are having breakfast, then leave it incubating all day, put it in the fridge before I go to bed and it's ready to go the next morning.
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Let's break it down into simple steps so that you can make yoghurt at home!
Equipment needed:
- 1 litre milk
- ¼ cup fresh yoghurt (store bought plain unsweetened yoghurt with lots of live cultures or leftover yoghurt from the last batch you made)
- Small pot
- Thermometer that can be clipped to the side of the pot (this is the one I have and love)
- 1L capacity glass jar with screw top lid (I use a 1L Agee preserving jar)
- Yoghurt maker OR oven OR slow cooker
Step 1: Heat the milk
Pour the milk into a saucepan, clip the thermometer onto the side, turn the heat to medium and leave it for 20 minutes until it reaches 85°C/185°F. I like to set a timer so that I don't forget about it.
Step 2: Cool the milk
Take the pot off the element and leave it sitting for 45 minutes until it reaches 45°C/113°F. I also use my kitchen timer here.
Step 3: Mix in the yoghurt
Once the milk has cooled to the right temperature, add the yoghurt to the jar you will be using and pour in 1 cup of the milk. Stir it up and then add the remaining milk and stir again.
Step 4: Incubate
Now the yoghurt needs to be incubated so that it can turn into yoghurt! It usually takes around 4-5 hours to set but the longer you leave it, the thicker and tangier the yoghurt. I like leaving mine for around 8 hours, but you can play around with it! At this stage you have a few options depending on which method you want to use to incubate the yoghurt.
Method 1: Yoghurt maker - if you have a yoghurt maker, this is the easiest option. Pour boiling water into the bottom of the yoghurt maker (I pour in enough so that the water isn't touching the jar.) Leave on the bench for 6-10 hours.
Method 2: The oven - heat the oven to the lowest temperature (it's 50°C/122°F on my oven) then turn off the oven but leave the oven light on and place the yoghurt jar in the oven. Leave for 6-10 hours.
Method 3: Slow cooker - I've tried a couple of different ways with the slow cooker. The only thing to note with the slow cooker is that you may need to make your yoghurt in two smaller jars as you need to put the lid on the slow cooker. If I'm making it in the slow cooker I use 500ml Agee jars. You can half fill the slow cooker with hot tap water, place the yoghurt jar in it, wrap the whole slow cooker in a towel and leave for 6-10 hours. The other way I did it was pouring hot tap water into the slow cooker, turning it to warm and leaving the yoghurt in there for 6 hours. I didn't like this method as much as wrapping it in a towel and leaving it for longer as I felt the temperature may have got too hot.
Step 5: Refrigerate
Once the yoghurt has set, it needs to be refrigerated. Place in the fridge overnight or until cooled completely. At this stage you can also stir in any flavours you like or strain it to make thicker Greek yoghurt.
To strain the yoghurt I place a sieve/strainer lined with a piece of muslin cloth over a large mixing bowl and pour the yoghurt into this. The whey will drip through into the bowl and you will be left with thick Greek yoghurt! This usually takes a couple of hours and I just leave it in the fridge. Note that when you make Greek yoghurt, you will end up with about half the quantity of yoghurt you started with, so 1 litre of normal yoghurt will give you about 500ml of Greek yoghurt.
Yoghurt will store in the fridge for up to 2 weeks and you can now use the last of this homemade yoghurt to make your next batch! I made my first batch of yoghurt in March and have been using my own yoghurt to make new batches ever since!
If I had to recommend a method to start with, if you have a yoghurt maker, this is the easiest. It's the job that it's designed for and it does the job perfectly. If you don't have a yoghurt maker and don't want to rush out and buy one, the oven is a very close second. The only disadvantage of using the oven is that your oven is then tied up for 8 hours or so but other than that, it maintains heat and makes perfect yoghurt too. Leaving it overnight is a great work around if you use your oven a lot. The slow cooker is still a good way of doing it but it is less reliable as it's a lot harder to maintain the correct temperature.
FAQ's/Troubleshooting
My yoghurt hasn't set - what did I do wrong?
If the yoghurt hasn't set there are a few things to check.
- Was your yoghurt fresh? Did you use plain unsweetened yoghurt with lots of live cultures?
- Was the milk the correct temperature when you added the yoghurt? Too hot and it will kill the bacteria, too cold and it won't work either
- Did the temperature of the yoghurt stay constant while you were incubating it?
If all of these things were right, you may need to start over with fresh milk and yoghurt and try again.
I accidentally let the milk get too hot or too cold. Will it still work?
It will! The great thing about making yoghurt is that it is actually pretty forgiving. I have lost count of the number of times I have been trapped under a baby or outside and not heard the timer go off and come back to milk that is boiling over. The good news is, let it cool to the right temperature and it will still be fine. Likewise, if you let it get too cold, I just turn the heat back on and let it get back to the cool temperature (45°C/113°F) and continue. When this happens I find that sometimes the end result can be a little grainer than usual, but just give it a good stir and it comes right. Also, the next batch of yoghurt won't be affected by this.
What milk should I use?
I use full fat (dark blue) milk. I have also made it using light blue milk successfully.
Can I use milk that has been frozen?
YES! As we live so far out of town, I buy milk in bulk (think 12L at a time!) and put it in the freezer. I thaw the milk on the bench overnight and it works perfectly to make yoghurt.
Can I use non-dairy milk to make yoghurt?
I haven't experimented with non-dairy milk but Cassie at Wholefully has a great tutorial on making coconut yoghurt on her website that you should check out.
How long can I keep my homemade yoghurt?
We usually eat ours within a week but I've definitely kept it for 2 weeks with no problems. You will be able to tell if it's no good - it will start to separate and will smell weird. If this is the case, throw it out, don't use it to make a new batch - start over.
Are there other methods to incubate yoghurt?
Yes definitely! I haven't used these methods but here are some great posts that can help you.
Do I need to use yoghurt as the starter?
No. You can buy yoghurt culture that you can use instead of fresh yoghurt. I've never tried it but imagine it would be a great place to start or a good option to have as backup in case you run out of yoghurt!
Now you are all set to make your own yoghurt at home! If you think of any other questions that I haven't answered, comment below or send me an email!
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How to Make Yoghurt
Ingredients
- 1 litre milk (I use dark blue - full fat)
- ¼ cup yoghurt (with lots of live cultures)
Instructions
- Step 1: Heat the milk. Pour the milk into a saucepan, clip the thermometer onto the side, turn the heat to medium and leave it for 20 minutes until it reaches 85°C/185°F. I like to set a timer so that I don't forget about it.
- Step 2: Cool the milk. Take the pot off the element and leave it sitting for 40 minutes until it reaches 45°C/113°F. I also use my kitchen timer here.
- Step 3: Mix in the yoghurt. Once the milk has cooled to the right temperature, add the yoghurt to the jar you will be using and pour in 1 cup of the milk. Stir it up and then add the remaining milk and stir again.
- Step 4: Incubate. Now the yoghurt needs to be incubated so that it can turn into yoghurt! It usually takes around 4-5 hours to set but the longer you leave it, the thicker and tangier the yoghurt. I like leaving mine for around 8 hours, but you can play around with it! At this stage you have a few options depending on which method you want to use to incubate the yoghurt.
Method 1: Yoghurt maker - if you have a yoghurt maker, this is the easiest option. Pour boiling water into the bottom of the yoghurt maker (I pour in enough so that the water isn't touching the jar.) Leave on the bench for 6-10 hours.
Method 2: The oven - heat the oven to the lowest temperature (it's 50°C/122°F on my oven) then turn off the oven but leave the oven light on and place the yoghurt jar in the oven. Leave for 6-10 hours.
Method 3: Slow cooker - I've tried a couple of different ways with the slow cooker. The only thing to note with the slow cooker is that you may need to make your yoghurt in two smaller jars. If I'm making it in the slow cooker I use 500ml Agee jars. You can half fill the slow cooker with warm water, place the yoghurt jar in it, wrap the whole slow cooker in a towel and leave for 6-10 hours. The other way I did it was pouring hot tap water into the slow cooker, turning it to warm and leaving the yoghurt in there for 6 hours. I didn't like this method as much as wrapping it in a towel and leaving it for longer.
- Step 5: Refrigerate. Once the yoghurt has set, it needs to be refrigerated. Place in the fridge overnight or until cooled completely. At this stage you can also stir in any flavours you like or strain it to make thicker Greek yoghurt.
- Yoghurt will store in the fridge for up to 2 weeks and you can now use the last of this homemade yoghurt to make your next batch! I made my first batch of yoghurt in March and have been using my own yoghurt to make new batches ever since!
Nutrition
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If you tried and loved this recipe, please leave a comment and a rating below!
This is great! Such easy to follow instructions. I used light blue milk and store bought greek style yogurt with my plastic yogurt maker jar and left it on the bench about 8 hours. The result is perfect. Thanks Laura
How do I know how much live cultures are in my yoghurt?
My method starts with the last inch of yogurt left on the bottom of the 1 kg pot.
To this I add a bit of cold water plus 1 1/3 cup of full-fat milk powder.
Stir until it is all mixed, fill it to the top with more water and stir again.
For setting I use a tall cooking pot and a sous-vide stick.
Stand the yogurt pot in the cooking pot, clip the sous-vide stick to the side, fill with warm water to the necessary level for the stick's operation.
Set temperature to 40 deg C, time to 4 hours and hit start.
After the first and second hours I open the yogurt pot and stir the contents to encourage homogeneity.
Hi Laura, my kids have a penchant for vanilla yoghurt , would you add in during the heating process or once you set?
Hi Marg, I would add any flavours once the yoghurt has set. Laura
So good to know! Am making it all the time now, thank you.
Has anyone tried adding powdered yoghurt (the one that gets mixed with water and made in the yoghurt maker) to make this yoghurt? I forgot to get plain unsweetened yoghurt from the shops today 😅
This recipe with various procedures has been wonderful! I had wondered about getting a yogurt maker but instead tried the oven method and it works brilliantly. I won’t bother buying an extra appliance now. I can even make lots more in the oven. I’ve been so impressed that I made some for my daughters and had 4 litre pots in the oven at the same time.
I have a couple of tricks that work for me. I always have enough left from my litre pots so I put that into small jars each time and they become my starters for the next batch. They sit in the oven at the same time.
The best thing I learnt from a daughter who had made yogurt years ago in France where fresh milk was less available was that you can omit the step of heating milk to 85C if you use long life milk. This step has already been done in creating the long life milk. This cuts out a heap of preparation time. Now I only need to heat to 45C (a few minutes) add the starter and then into the oven. This has now become so quick!
Thanks for sharing your yogurt making information. Saving me about $370 a year is my estimate! (Australia)
Hi Tess! That is amazing, thank you for your helpful comment!! I have just started doing the same with the small jar to keep for the next batch, so smart!!
Hi Laura - Have you tried making yoghurt in your magic pot on the yoghurt setting? Would love the instructions for this method if you have!
Hi Kate! I haven't cracked it yet but I will update as soon as I do!
Hi just found your recipe and will try it. If you use powdered milk my goto ratio is 1x100 ml measuring cup of dry low fat milk powder to 500 ml cold water. Not sure how to make full cream mik, just read the instructions on a pack on your next trip to the grocery store. Hope this helps you 😊
I'm not sure where I went wrong. I heated up the milk to the correct temp and then bought it down and added the yoghurt and put it in the yoghurt maker with hot water and it curdled. I want to keep trying but what do you think happened? Milk too warm?
Hi Gabby! It is so frustrating when this happens, I get it from time to time too. I can usually put it down to either the milk still being too hot (or too cold!) or most often, that my culture (either the last of the old batch of yoghurt or a packet culture) being too old.
Thank you, this really helped me..x
I saw you mention heat mat, would that be the same type as what I put my seeds on?
Yes exactly!
Do you have to use a glass jar ? I have the same yogurt maker as in the picture and it comes with a plastic container.
Hi Jennifer, you can definitely use the plastic jar that comes with the maker!
I love this recipe and now I make yoghurt all the time. I keep a little bit in the freezer to make more since I dont get through it quickly on my own. Mostly I turn it into frozen yoghurt icecream, more of a sorbet. It is so delicious with its natural flavour which I prefer or some lemon, vanilla or almond essence.
Thank you for this. Its been many years since I made yoghurt and thought j I'd just give it a go again. It was a doddle to make thanks to your clear instructions and it turned out perfectly. Used my thermometer, some Greek yoghurt and semi skimmed milk.
Hi Laura
We are starting our journey to becoming 90% self sustainable in the food department. We have access to raw milk from our cows. If I were to make this tomorrow using leftover homemade yoghurt, how much yoghurt do I add to the milk? Will I need to heat the milk to 85’ if it’s fresh from the cow? Body temp?
Thanks
Hi Chelsea! Oh how cool having access to fresh milk! I would still heat the milk and use 1/4 cup yoghurt. Let me know how it goes!
Hi there.
I’m just about to get started with my own yoghurt making journey. I’m lactose intolerant, so will be using lactose free milk. I normally buy UHT milk.
Will that work? Or should I buy fresh lactose free milk?
Thanks 😊
Hi Yvonne! I have never tried with lactose free milk (although I feel like I should test it out to see!) I would give both a try and see which produces the best results!
I like your recipe and methods Laura. Been making yoghurt for around 50 years. Use full cream powdered milk and 2 spoons of cornflour per litre. Mix the cornflour with boiling water then add powdered milk and cool water to reduce the temp. to 40c and then add a few spoons of yoghurt before blending with a whisk. After setting up for several hours or so in a warm place the yoghurt is soft and firm and tastes pretty good.
Oh cool! I love seeing new ways to do it!
Hi Dave,
When you make it with the milk powder, how much do you use per litre please?
Curious to know why you include the cornflour?