Have you ever tried making homemade yogurt? If not, you are really missing out! Not only is it very easy and delicious, but also a frugal alternative to the store bought brands. There are two different methods I recommend: in a stock pot or in a crock pot! 
As I have shared before in my original post on making homemade yogurt, “Of all the cultured dairy products, yogurt is the most versatile. Yogurt assists the intestines in destroying harmful bacteria by producing an acid environment. Yogurt with active cultures may encourage friendly bacteria production in the digestive tract. Milk protein is more quickly and easily digested in yogurt form over liquid sweet milk. The more tart the yogurt, the greater the absorption of calcium. Eating yogurt can relieve both constipation and indigestion.”
This past week I made yogurt in a crockpot for the first time and it was a big success and very easy! It took maybe 10 minutes of my time and the rest was just letting it sit there and culture away! I kept breaking my candy thermometers, thus making my original method very difficult to complete. With the crockpot, it’s like 1, 2, 3! All’s you need is a 1/2 gallon of your milk of choice, 1/2 cup of yogurt starter (plain yogurt from the store or a previous batch), and a crockpot! It works beautifully! Homemade yogurt will not be as thick as store bought but still tasty. Thanks to Nourishing Days for passing on the method. Check it out here!
We love to add a little maple syrup and vanilla extract for a delicious yogurt! Karis loves yogurt and eats it practically every day. Enjoy!
How do you like your yogurt?
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Thank you for sharing this recipe!! I loved the homemade yogurt my parents made when I was growing up, but I don’t have a yogurt maker myself, so I haven’t had it forever. I’m so glad I have a way to make it now! I love yogurt with a little vanilla and sprinkled with homemade granola–my mom has a fabulous recipe for that too
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I had no idea! Yogurt was on my long list of “To Make Myself”, but my oven is so finicky, etc. I knew that it was not possible. And what?! There’s a crockpot on my counter crying in loneliness? Off to the rescue!
Thank you for keeping this site going. It is my most frequently visited website. I found it when I was a lost, brand new housewife wanting to get more out of my food and do things the traditional way. You support that here, OBVIOUSLY, and thus supported me and get me going. I (and my husband) thank you!
I have made yogurt this way too, except when adding the yogurt starter I also mixed a package of plain gelatin into the milk, which helped it to set up more like storebought yogurt. I keep meaning to make more, I just forget to save some starter of previous yogurt! Do you use raw milk? I am curious how it would work with raw cow’s milk, which I do have access to.
The reason we would avoid gelatin is because it often contains MSG. I do use raw milk to make my yogurt and it works great!
I agree with Lindsay on this- MSG gives me migraines so we avoid it too- If you really want it thick you can strain it- Just pour it in a cheeseclth set over a bowl for a few hours- the longer the thicker- Or you can thicken it with arrowroot powder or add a bit(1 cup maybe?) of organic powdered milk to the batch.
My boys love vanilla yogurt best. Question: do you add your flavors before it’s set? Or just stir them in later? I have been making plain yogurt on the stove for a while now, but I haven’t quite worked out how and when to add flavorings.
You will want to add the flavorings after it is set and complete, that way you can remove 1/2 cup of the plain yogurt to make your next batch. I actually usually just flavor each portion as I serve it. Hope that helps!
Until I started making kefir, my favorite way to eat our homemade yogurt was in a smoothie. Now I just enjoy eating it with a little bit of strawberry preserves or with some vanilla and honey. My husband loves it on his granola
I love my 1 quart yogurt maker, but I’m excited to give this method a try so I can make a larger batch.
I’ve been making yogurt in the crockpot for the past 4 months or so and love it. It takes so little hands on time.
I love the tartness of the plain yogurt and often eat it without sweetener, but my husband likes it sweeter so for him I add a drizzle of raw honey and a little vanilla for flavoring. We often eat it with fresh or frozen fruit on top. Yum!
I actually have yogurt culturing in my crock pot right now! This recipe really works and is very easy.
i will have to try this–sounds so easy! thanks:)
I tried making yogurt in the crockpot once, and it totally flopped. I think I had it way too hot. I am going to have to try following Nourishing Day’s directions. (I just made it up myself last time and it obviously wasn’t right!)
Thanks for pointing this out! I haven’t been to Nourishing Days in awhile, so I missed this.
Thanks so much for this post- I am really looking forward to trying this out as my husband and I are avid yogurt eaters but hate the price at the grocery stores! This post also served to confirm to my husband that you CAN make your own yogurt- I’m off to prove him wrong, haha!
Oh, thank you so much for sharing this! I am so excited. I went to yogurt and kefir making class at Whole Foods last week and loved it…my kefir has been turning out great and SO good, but I hadn’t ventured into yogurt territory yet since I haven’t got a candy thermometer and it sounds a little more finicky than kefir…
Anyhow, I am trying this tomorrow!
Thanks for the idea! I am going to have to try this. I love making yogurt but sometimes I over cook it too much and it doesn’t set up, so this way will probably be easier for me!
Lately I’ve been eating plain, fat free or low fat greek yogurt. I’m not sure how it is made differently, but the amount of protein is at least double of typical yogurt and it is so thick and creamy. I get mine usually from Trader Joe’s, and sweeten with agave syrup, bananas, and strawberries. Do you know if greek yogurt can be homemade? Thank you for all that you share with us!
I can’t wait to try this! I’ve wanted to make homemade yogurt using my oven, but it just seemed a little tedious, time-consuming, and very hands-on. This is definitely more my speed, especially with everything else we’ve got going on. Thanks for sharing!
This is the only way I have ever made yogurt! I got the recipe from the 365 Days of Crock Potting blog. It’s definitely an easy solution for busy mommas. I use mine in smoothies and in baking or I eat it topped with some homemade granola and a little honey.
If you use 1 Tablespoon in place of 1/2 cup starter, you will end up with:
1. A thicker product
2. A longer-lasting batch (I REALLY like that)
The theory is the cultures are happier and more efficient when they aren’t “crowded.” I humor them because it works!
Seriously, I read that in a book on fermentation, and I noticed a HUGE difference with less starter!
Oh, the detail I forgot to mention is 1 Tablespoon per QUART.
Lauren:
Are you familiar with the Weston A. Price Foundation (westonaprice.org)? Sally Fallow from this organization has denounced agave nectar (yes, even those labeled organic and raw) as highly processed and very similar to high fructose corn syrup! It’s news to me…
I just want to throw that out there. I just hate to be passive about certain claims of the health community that are ungrounded and that potentially can cause so much damage!
I would advise you to research this and not just accept that it is a healthful food. If it comes down to it, why risk it if the integrity of the product is in question?
Alisse,
Thank you for passing along the info! I had not heard that before. I will be looking at that website. I’m wondering if honey is just the best all natural sweetener? What are your thoughts?
I’ve tried to find some good, solid info about agave, and I can’t find any. So, we still use it sparingly in our house.
Sally also has a less than positive attitude about breastmilk, so I personally don’t take her word as final (although I agree with most of what she has to say).
Lindsay, we just put honey on our yogurt, and it’s delicious. I actually tried it with agave once, and I had to throw it away! Honey is perfect for it, but that cotton-candy flavor that agave tends to have was just way too much for it.
Whoops, I thought it was Lindsay who asked about the agave, but I guess I was wrong!
I’m so glad you shared this – thank you. My daughters LOOOOOOOOVE yogurt, but it gets way too expensive – and being able to make it ourselves will be really fantastic! So simple – and I LOVE that it can be put together and left to itself for awhile!!!
We use raw milk, and I do make my own yogurt in a one quart yogurt maker, but I’d like to try a larger batch in the crock pot. (We eat a LOT of yogurt!
) Since we use raw milk, I try not to heat the milk too high, since I don’t want to kill all that great beneficial bacteria… does anyone know how hot the crock pot gets?
That was one of my concerns as well. It heats it to about 180 degrees. I know with my previous method I only heated it to about 115 degrees to protect the milk more. I am going to try experimenting on decreasing the cooking time now that I have completed my first batch successfully. I will probably just heat it for two hours rather than the 2 1/2 hours and see what happens.
Lindsay, we’d love to hear how your experiments work out. I’ve been making my raw milk yogurt by heating the milk to about 110 degrees, adding starter yogurt to it, then putting the glass jars in my insulated cooler with a towel and a few other glass jars of hot water next to it. It’s worked quite well, but it’d be nice to know if the crockpot can be used and still keep all the raw qualities of the milk.
I did just make another batch and decreased both the cooking time and cooling time by one hour each (making the cooking time 1 1/2 hrs and the cooling time 2 hrs), and it worked just fine. It shortened the process even more making it easier. I need to get another thermometer to check the temperature, but I know this will be helpful in protecting the raw milk.
Just wondering, does the size of your crockpot matter? I have a big oval one that will hold a 5-6 lb. chicken. It seems to overcook things when its not at least half full. I’m afraid the temp would be too high for the yogurt. What do you use?
Oh, and another question. Anyone ever made yogurt with soy or rice milk? My daughter has a severe milk allergy, and loves the soy yogurt. But its so expensive I only buy it when its on sale, which isn’t often.
I have a rival crock-pot that is about the same size…it works fine. Try experimenting with the cooking time if you believe your crockpot cooks too fast.
I would like to know about making this with soy as well. My son has milk allergies and paying over $1 per cup of soy yogurt is killing me! Has anyone tried using soy milk and soy yogurt as the starter?
I haven’t tried this personally, but thought it might give you a starting place. Good luck!
http://veganfeastkitchen.blogspot.com/2007/02/new-homemade-soy-yogurt-recipe-easier.html
Thank you for posting this! It’ll go on my to-do list for this weekend for sure.
I have a question, though. How long will the yogurt last? My husband doesn’t really care for yogurt so I am the only one eating it (although he does like yogurt cheese so I could use some for that). I don’t want to make too much and have it spoil.
It should last about two weeks, but for best results make a new batch with a week with some of the starter. Try cutting the recipe in half and I am sure it should work fine.
This is how I make my yogurt, too! I use however much yogurt we eat and then strain the rest to make whey and yogurt cheese (or cream cheese? I’m still not clear here?)…and then use the cheese (whatever it is) to make home-made cake icing! The whey gets used to soak our grains.
Oh! I also usually freeze a bit of the yogurt (in addition to what I have set aside as my next starter) so that I’ll always have some on hand even if I don’t get around to making any new.
I too had success making it this way after destroying a batch in the oven. I found that you can make it thicker and sweeter, thereby not needing any sweetener if you pour the yogurt into a collander lined with a few layers of cheesecloth and let it sit over a bowl for up to two hours to drain off some whey. You can save the whey and use it in other recipes. This makes it more of a Greek yogurt consistency and tastes great without adding anything! Be sure to not let it sit for more than two hours for safety reasons.
This sounds like such an easy method I’ll have to give it a shot! I love that I don’t have to buy any new kitchen gadgets for it either. I HATE spending money on new kitchen gadgets, lol. I really enjoy your blog.
Yum! My husband I LOVE yogurt as a snack, and for breakfasts. I’m really looking forward to trying this simple alternative! Thanks for sharing!
This sounds like a great recipe! How long do you cook it in the crockpot? My favorite flavor of yogurt is rasberry so maybe I can cook some rasberries on the stove for a few minutes and add them to the yogurt after it has set! I can’t wait!
I love stirring in some apple juice concentrate and a dash of cinnamon in my plain homemade yogurt. Sometimes I use orange juice concentrate and a dash of nutmeg instead.
Someone mentioned not having a candy thermometer. I just use my meat thermometer, and it works fine. I guess I’m not a very exact cook, but I’ve never thrown away yogurt!
I have never heard of gelatin containing MSG. Would it be in the ingredient list? On the package of plain gelatin I have, it just says it contains gelatin-nothing else. I don’t use gelatin often, but if it has MSG, I’m definitely not buying it again! Thanks for any info you have!
Alyssa,
I recently read that gelatin does contain MSG. Check out http://www.drmercola.com for info on MSG. Yikes, right?
I’m surprised about the MSG in gelatin. In fact I thought I read several times in Nourishing Traditions to add gelatin to stocks and sauces.I’ve been using it thinking it was good for us. I’ll have to check it out…
Gelatin is made from rendered animal hooves. There is no MSG in it unless it is naturally occuring. Gelatin is also used to clarify beer in the brewing process. Knox plain gelatin is just gelatin.
We love homemade yogurt here! It tastes so much better than store bought. We mix in a little honey and cinnamon, and sometimes add granola. I learned (the hard way) that you need to stir the yogurt gently…if you stir too much it gets soupy. We’ve gone through a couple candy thermometers here, too.
Now I use a meat thermometer and it works fine.
I’ve found that if you add the right amount of starter and incubate it long enough it actually turns out just as thick as store bought. I use my yogurt maker, but I might try the crock pot method just for fun. Thanks for the tip!
This may be a silly question, but do you HAVE to use raw milk? Its hard to obtain in our area, so we’d have to use pasteurized milk from the grocery store.
I have the same question. I can get pasturized but NONhomogenized milk. Would this work?
Yes, you can use regular store bought milk as desired. That is why I said use the milk of your choice, raw milk is not necessary, just my preferred choice.
I have been making raw milk yogurt (NT) in my dehydrator for the last few months and we love it. Aside from eating it raw we also love baking with it but we also love hanging it in a cheese cloth and letting the whey drip out and using the yogurt cheese as cream cheese. my kids love additions like fruit and cinnamon with a little raw honey or apple pie spice or just plain yogurt cheese and vanilla. So healthy AND easy!
I posted a photo tutorial on homemade yogurt recently if anyone is interested: http://jungwirths.com/2009/03/homemade-yogurt-photo-tutorial/
I prefer to put the yogurt mixture straight into the jars and then place the jars in water in the crock pot. That way when it’s done, it’s already jarred and ready to go in the fridge, with nothing to wash!
For those who asked about “Greek” yogurt, it is nothing more than strained yogurt (at least traditionally – not sure if they do something else to it for store-bought Greek yogurt). Line a strainer with a few layers of cheesecloth, pour the yogurt in, and leave overnight. It’s reduced by half in the morning, and even better than the store stuff! Very thick and creamy.
Oh that’s smart on the containers in the crockpot! That’s interesting on the Greek yogurt. I just bought some for a starter for the first time. Had no idea that it was basically thin yogurt cheese- which btw is what I do with older yogurt if I make too much. I add roasted red peppers, garlic and green onions for a yummy dip (that we eat asap) and have whey for soaking. No waste!
I’m Greek, and my grandparents use the cheesecloth method for straining (well, they use paper towels, but it’s the same idea). It makes the yogurt nice and thick! Too bad they haven’t figured out how beneficial the whey can be; they just throw it out!
The stuff from TJ’s has cream added to it, but I’m not sure if they add anything else. All of the other packaged “Greek-style” yogurts that I’ve seen have sugar, honey, and some other things added to them.
We eat hommade yogurt almost every day and eat it plain or with real maple syrup or thawed mashed fruit. I’ve tried with goat milk and I can’t stand the taste. Lindsay, do you ever try fresh goat milk for yogurt? If so, let me know if you have any tips.
Do you worry about the safety (i.e. absence of lead in the glaze) in your crock pot glaze? I threw mine out and I could never find another one that I was sure was lead-free. If someone knows a crock pot that is lead free I would like to find one. Since things stay in a crock pot for so long I think the lead issue is particularly troubling.
No, I have not heard of there being a lead problem in crock-pots.
Emily, if you are concerned about the lead, maybe you could do what Arielle suggested and culture your yogurt in glass containers and incubate them in a water bath using the crock pot.
This model has an unglazed insert: http://www.amazon.com/Vitaclay-Slow-Cooker-Rice-Clay/dp/B000PRPYIG/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1249823870&sr=8-1
This looks like such a wonderful simple recipe that I can’t wait to try! How long will this yogurt last before it goes bad?
Thanks, Lindsay!
It should last two weeks on average.
Hey, I had another question… Lindsay, when I make yogurt with my raw milk, it turns yellow and it is not a smooth consistency – does that happen with you? I noticed it didn’t turn as yellow when I lowered the temp. And tonight I’m making it using the dry milk powder; maybe it will make it a smoother consistency – what do you think?
The top turns slightly yellow as it cooks in the crock pot but it is still perfectly smooth. I am just making it as the recipe describes for shorter amounts of time and just 1/2 cup starter and it is so smooth and delicious.
Is this crockpot yogurt adequate for soaking grains?
Thanks.
Most definitely! It is fully cultured and ready for all your soaking needs.
This is so easy! I find that we do not eat the yogurt fast enough, so here is a sauce recipe to use it up quick: http://recipes.howstuffworks.com/fish-tacos-with-yogurt-sauce-a-recipe.htm/printable
HI Lindsay,
THanks for your site. I”m a recently unemployed orchestra teacher who has decided to become a housewife and open my own studio instead of returning to the public school system.
Now that I finally have the time I”ve been trying a bunch of your recipes and love them! I”m having trouble with the yogurt. Twice I’ve made it and I think I let it get to hot because my crockpot runs really hot even on low. It separated into curds and whey…..I think.
I’m trying the process a 3rd time and I’ve been very careful about the temp, no more than 110. I’m noticing some minor separation. If this normal? Could you give me a run down of what my yogurt should look like at the different stages…….if you’ve ever actually watched your yogurt? THanks!
I would recommend cutting down the cooking time. My crockpot heats at a higher temperature as well, so I cook it for about 2 hours and then cool for 2.5 hours. I have found that the milk with scald a bit, leaving a thin layer of dark yellow scalded milk on the top, but nothing more. It may be different if you are using store bought milk though. I honestly wouldnt worry about it because the entire pot will get solid after incubating in the towels and thus cover up any chunks.
I’ve been making my own yogurt for a couple of months now, and have come up with a few questions I’m having trouble finding answers to online. I’ve read that it’s ok to use homemade yogurt as your starter only about 3 times, then you need to replenish by buying another yogurt. Have you found this to be the truth? I used homemade as a starter over and over and then yesterday my yogurt was lumpy and runny…I was afraid to feed it to my baby. I put the crockpot on warm for about an hour (which had previously thickened up a runny yogurt nicely) but it still looked the same. Do you have any advice? Also, at what point do you throw out yogurt? Do you know it’s bad by the smell? That lumpy/runny stuff smelled fine, but was it? How do I know? And you say homemade should keep about 2 weeks, how do you know when it needs to go? And my last question is can you freeze yogurt you want to use as a starter, or will that kill the bacteria? Thank you so much.
It is normal for you to need to replace your start after several batches. I have found that it will definitely last more than 3 batches though. Mine has lasted up to around 6 batches. The lumpy and runny results is a sign that it is time to replace your starter. That is normal. But this product is still fully safe to consume. I never throw out my yogurt. Of course I use raw milk for my yogurt so it sours naturally and is always safe to consume. If the yogurt starts getting too sour, I use it for other purposes, such as soaking. If you use pasteurized milk, I would just go by the taste and smell or if you have any mold growing in the container. You can freeze yogurt but I have not tried it. I would imagine this would affect the texture as well though. Hope that helps!
I just wanted to share how I’ve adapted this recipe to work for us… I put a gallon of raw milk in my crockpot and heat it for about 1.25 hrs. until it’s around 110 degrees (I judge by holding my finger in it and it should feel hot, but cool enough that I can hold it in for 10 seconds.) Then I add 1/2 cup starter to a little bit of the warmed milk, stir well, then mix it into the crockpot. Then we let it incubate for 8 hours. This way I keep the raw properties of my milk. Also, a tip on the starter: When I have to buy the quart of Stonyfield yogurt, I freeze it in 1/2 cup portions to use as the starter (just thaw when needed.) Then from the first batch of yogurt I make, I immediately freeze several more portions for starters. That way I always have a “fresh” starter without worrying about what # batch I’m on, or how many days the starter sat in the fridge. We make (and devour) a gallon of yogurt every week this way. There’s some whey, but we either eat it, or I put it in smoothies/pancakes.
Has anyone tried this with a milk alternative? We’re dairy free due to my son’s life threatening allergies, so I wonder if this would also work with coconut milk or almond milk? Anyone tried this? Thanks!
Could this be made with raw goats milk ? And is there anyway that this would not be safe to eat(like I did it wrong and it went bad!)how would you know ?
To answer both of your questions, I am sure you can use goat’s milk, but I have not tried it. You would have to give it a try. If it did not work, it would be perfectly suitible to use in smoothies or such as it would simply have become cultured from sitting out, even if it didn’t solidify. Does that make sense?
Also,could you use cows milk yogurt as a starter with raw goat milk?Stonyfield farm is the only organic yogurt avail. here . Thank You!
Thank you so much for posting this Lindsay! I’m so excited to do yogurt in the crock pot! I tried my grandparent’s method on the stove and in the oven (Greek yogurt), and it flopped for me. I know that I did a few things wrong, and wanted to try again, but I’ve been too chicken, and TJ’s makes it far too convenient for me to keep putting off my next try…anyway, I’m going to try this this weekend. Yay!
I’ve made this about 5 times now. My last batch was the best though. It turned out super thick! The only difference I did for that batch was that I let it cool down for 2hrs instead of 3hrs, before adding the starter (leftover yogurt from the previous batch)! Once the starter is added I let it sit wrapped in a couple of thermal blankets for 10-11 hrs. The original starter I used was Stoneyfield Farm organic plain yogurt.
I have special dietary needs and need increased protein. I use unjury unflavored protein in most things. I find when I mix it in store bought yogurt in clumps ans gives in a funny texture. Anyone try adding in protein powder during the fermenting phase? Perhaps it might even help thicken it up.
I’ve never made my own yogurt before. But if I can make my own with the extra protein and less sugar that tastes good I’d be all for it.
thanks
Have you considered just eating cottage cheese (a very high protein item) with your yogurt? That is what I would recommend. I would probably not recommend adding the protein powder during the culturing process, but you certainly could add it afterwards.