Instant Pot Greek Yogurt

White bowl of yogurt with honey, granola, and strawberry on top with gold spoon.

5 from 1 vote

Easy homemade Instant Pot Greek Yogurt with TWO ingredients: milk and a little yogurt to use as a starter. Super easy, just takes time!

Prep Time1 15

Cook Time8

Total Time9 15

Course: Breakfast

Cuisine: American

Servings:

Calories: 155kcal

Author: Sara Smith | Eat Dessert Snack

Equipment

1 Yogurt Strainer Pouch
1 Instant Pot at least 6 Quart

Ingredients

1 gallon whole milk (can use ½ gallon
2 Tablespoons Plain unsweetened Greek yogurt

Instructions

Pour the milk into your Instant Pot. You can use as much milk as you'd like, I like to make a large batch (1 full gallon) but you can also do a half-gallon batch.
Use the yogurt function of the Instant Pot to heat the milk to at LEAST 180 ℉, with the lid on. This takes about 1 hour.
Use your user manual to find directions for the "Yogurt" button since Instant Pot models have different buttons. The milk does not need to boil, but does need to reach 180 ℉ to alter the proteins in the milk to set the stage for proper fermentation. Otherwise the yogurt has problems setting and can be runny!
Remove the Instant pot liner and let the milk cool to room temperature over an hour or so to 110℉, or put it in an ice bath in the sink, which takes about 10-15 minutes to reach the correct temperature. The milk needs to cool enough to not kill the yogurt cultures and allow them to grow.
Make sure the milk cools to around 110-115 ℉, similar to what you would proof yeast at. Any hotter and it can begin to kill the active cultures in the yogurt.
Once the milk is cooled to 110 ℉, add in at least 2 Tablespoons of yogurt to act as the culture starter. Whisk it so it's mixed in well.
Use the yogurt function to set it to incubate for at least 8 hours at 110 ℉. You can also do it for longer, which will keep it around 110℉ and will give it a more tart flavor and can thicken the yogurt a little more.
Once the yogurt is finished incubating, you can immediately transfer it to a yogurt straining bag to strain the whey. Place the bag over the edges of a bowl or pot that can hold at least 1 gallon of liquid and transfer the yogurt using a ladle.
Let the whey drain for about 2 hours (I drain off about 500mL, about 4 cups of liquid; then you can refrigerate the whey and use it for later in other recipes! See my Frequently Asked Question section for some ideas for recipes that use whey).
After the whey is drained (drain how long or how little you want) you can transfer the yogurt to storage container to refrigerate. The more whey drained, the thicker the yogurt will be. It thickens as it refrigerates as well.
Serve with a drizzle of honey or maple syrup and fresh fruit or in place of sour cream in other recipes!

Notes

Makes about 15 (⅔ cup) servings once the whey is drained.

TIP: Sometimes the Instant Pot doesn't heat the milk all the way to 180 ℉ during the heat cycle due to uneven heat/heat sensors and it may need to be set to the heat function an extra cycle or two to reach the proper temperature. Make sure you use an instant-read thermometer to reach 180 ℉, and cool to 110 ℉ before stirring in the yogurt starter and incubating.

Serve with a drizzle of honey or maple syrup, a dollop of your favorite jam, some orange zest (my favorite), granola, fresh or frozen fruit, etc.

Or use in smoothies, in place of sour cream in recipes!

Nutrition