• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
Low Carb Yum
Easy Gluten-Free & Keto-Friendly Recipes
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • YouTube
  • Start Keto
    • What Is The Keto Diet?
    • The Benefits Of A Keto Diet
    • What Are Macros In Keto?
    • Best Keto Fruits
    • Best Keto Vegetables
    • 5 Types Of Keto Diets
    • Low Carb vs Keto?
    • The Keto Food Pyramid
    • Keto Supplements
  • Recipes
    • By Course
      • Keto Appetizers
      • Keto Drinks
      • Low Carb Breads
      • Keto Casserole Recipes
      • Keto Salads
      • Sauces & Dressings
      • Keto Sides
      • Low Carb Snacks
      • Low Carb Soups
    • By Cuisines
      • Asian
      • Italian
      • Mexican
      • Southern
    • By Diet
      • Dairy-Free
      • Paleo
      • AIP
      • Nut-Free
      • Egg-Free
      • Vegetarian
      • Vegan
      • Kid Friendly
    • By Cooking Style
      • Air Fryer
      • Crock Pot
      • Instant Pot
      • One Pan
      • Freezer Friendly
      • 30 Minutes or Less
  • Fast Food Menus
  • Breakfast
  • Dinner
    • Beef
    • Casseroles
    • Chicken
    • Eggs
    • Pork
    • Seafood
    • Turkey
  • Desserts
    • Cakes
    • Candy
    • Cheesecakes
    • Cookies
    • Frosting
    • Frozen Desserts
    • Fruit
    • Pies
    • Puddings
  • Shop
    • 5-Ingredient Keto Cookbook
    • Simple Keto Meals Cookbook
    • Low Carb Casseroles eCookbook
    • Low Carb Keto Products
Home / Recipes / Keto Desserts

How to Make Low Carb Yogurt Using an Instant Pot

By Lisa MarcAurele · Jul 8, 2020 · 93 Comments

4.9K shares
Jump to Recipe
Instant Pot low carb yogurt

Did you know you can make your own delicious low carb yogurt using an Instant Pot? It's so simple even a beginner should have no trouble on the first try!

low carb yogurt made in an Instant Pot
Article Index
  • How to Make Low Carb Yogurt in the Instant Pot
  • Recipe

I had a half gallon of organic whole milk that had been sitting in my basement refrigerator for a while. Thankfully, organic milk seems to always have a "use by" date pretty far out.

My son had been coming home from college and eating cereal and milk. So, I stocked up on whole milk. But, he hasn't been around to drink it.

I decided to try making a batch of low carb yogurt since the expiration date was coming up in a few weeks. I used the electric pressure cooker method which is super easy!

Do you have an Instant Pot with the yogurt feature? If so, you must give this a try. It was so much easier than I thought it would be to make my own low carb yogurt.

Instant Pot low carb yogurt

The only ingredients you need are a half gallon of milk and two tablespoons of whole milk yogurt with active cultures in it. I had a container of Organic Stonyfield whole milk plain yogurt in the fridge which was perfect to use as a starter.

The Instant Pot makes it super easy to make your own low carb yogurt. All you do is dump your container of whole milk into the pot liner, put the lid on, then click the "Yogurt" button and use the "Adjust" button until "boil" is displayed.

The Instant Pot will then heat the milk up until it reaches 180°F. However, This Old Gal provided a very helpful tip. She recommends stirring the milk with a whisk in the middle of the boil cycle to ensure the liquid is evenly heated at 180°F. There is no pressure used when making boiling the milk, so you can open the lid as needed to give the milk a little stir.

Accurate temperature taking is important when making your low carb yogurt. You'll want to have a digital meat thermometer handy to make sure your milk is at the right temperature. If you don't reach the 180°F temperature and continue, you may end up with thin yogurt.

Instant Pot low carb yogurt

If the milk isn't at 180°F, you'll need to push the "Yogurt" button and "Adjust" button to continue the boil cycle until the temperature is reached. Once reached, you place the inner Instant Pot liner into a sink filled with cold ice water to drop the temperature down to 110°F.

Once the milk has reached 110°F, you add a little bit to your two tablespoons of starter yogurt to temper it before adding it to the warm milk. That keeps the cooler starter yogurt from curdling if it changes temperature too quickly.

The yogurt mixture is then added to the warm milk in the liner which is then placed back into the Instant Pot and the lid put on. Now, you set the pot to incubate the milk into low carb yogurt. And, the longer the better because more milk sugar will be eaten by the live cultures the longer it incubates.

To start the incubate cycle, you simply push the yogurt button and set the incubation time. The default is 8 hours. I set my timer to 15 hours. You want to be careful you don't accidentally hit the yogurt button to many times and get the 24 hour setting which puts the yogurt cycle on low. This was another great tip from This Old Gal. You want to incubate with the yogurt cycle on "normal" not "low" for the lights in the center display.

Instant Pot low carb yogurt

Another tip I got from This Old Gal was that the timer counts up. So, when you set your incubation time (I chose 15:00), the timer will go to 0:00 and then start counting up to let you know how long it's been going.

I started in late afternoon and let my pot sit in the yogurt cycle overnight. I stopped the cycle the next morning after about 13.5 hours. When I lifted the lid, in the morning, I was thrilled to see that my thin milk had turned into thick yogurt.

Since we want low carb yogurt, it's best to strain out the whey so you end up with thicker Greek style yogurt. There are some carbs in the whey so straining it out ensures you'll get the lowest carb count.

Another tip I got from This Old Gal is to let the yogurt chill before straining. So, I let the freshly made yogurt sit in the refrigerator for several hours before putting it in a strainer.

Instant Pot low carb yogurt

I put the yogurt in a colander lined with cheese cloth over a big bowl. I let it sit like this in the refrigerator until I got almost 4 cups of liquid strained out of the low carb yogurt.

The result was a thick and creamy Greek style yogurt. It was very tart so I mixed in some vanilla stevia and liquid monk fruit to each serving which gave a nice sweet vanilla flavor!

If you think yogurt has too many carbs, think again! The labels on yogurt are typically inaccurate when it comes to carbs because it counts sugars that the cultures have consumed so they are not longer there.

To learn more about why yogurt is much lower in carbs than stated on the label, I recommend reading this article. I typically count about half the carbs on the label to be safe, but plain whole yogurt is so sour, it's safe to assume there's almost no sugar in it.

How to Make Low Carb Yogurt in the Instant Pot

Enjoy this easy homemade yogurt. And be sure to let us know what you thought of it by leaving a comment. You may also want to use it for making yogurt parfaits by layering it with my keto muesli cereal or my low carb granola.

Follow us on FACEBOOK, PINTEREST, and INSTAGRAM for even more tasty keto-friendly recipes!

Recipe

Instant Pot low carb yogurt

Making Low Carb Yogurt in the Instant Pot

4.96 from 24 votes
Did you know you can make your own delicious full fat yogurt using an Instant Pot? It's so simple even a beginner should have no trouble on the first try!
Prep Time:10 minutes mins
Cook Time:10 hours hrs
Total Time:10 hours hrs 10 minutes mins
Course: Breakfast, Snack
Cuisine: American
Print Pin Review Recipe Save Recipe View Collections
Servings: 8 people
Calories: 151

Ingredients

  • ½ gallon whole milk preferably organic
  • 2 tablespoons whole milk yogurt with live cultures
US Customary - Metric

Instructions

  • Pour milk into Instant Pot and close lid. Push "Yogurt" button and then "Adjust" button until "boil" is displayed.
  • You'll want to remove the lid to stir the milk with a whisk to evenly heat the milk and speed things along during the boil cycle.
  • While milk is heating, fill sink with ice water at least halfway full. 
  • Once the milk reaches 180°F, the Instant Pot will beep marking the end of the boil cycle. Using a thermometer, make sure the milk is indeed at 180°F. If not at temperature, initiate the boil cycle again until the milk is at 180°F.
  • Place the inner liner of the Instant Pot (with the hot milk in it) into the sink with ice water. Using your thermometer, monitor the temperature of the milk until it reaches 110°F. Once temperature is reached, place liner back into Instant Pot.
  • In a small bowl, add the two tablespoons of starter yogurt. Then, slowly incorporate 2-4 tablespoons of the warm milk from the instant pot to temper the yogurt. Add tempered yogurt into the warm milk in the Instant Pot and stir in.
  • Place lid on Instant Pot and then hit "Yogurt" button. Hit "Adjust" button until you get a time displayed with the "Normal" light on. Use the "+" and or "-" buttons to adjust your time to 10 hours or more. This is the incubation time for the active cultures to turn the milk into yogurt. A longer time will result in more milk sugar being consumed by the cultures which gives a tarter and lower carb yogurt. NOTE: After you set your time, the display will go back to 0:00 and start counting up until the time you se is reached.
  • Once your incubation time is up, you should have a thick plain yogurt. Place the inner liner into the refrigerator to chill for at least 4 hours.
  • After yogurt has chilled, place it in a strainer or colander lined with filter paper or cheesecloth over a larger bowl to catch the liquid whey. All the yogurt to fully strain until no longer dripping liquid. I ended up with over three and a half cups of liquid whey.
  • You should now have a thick Greek style yogurt. Enjoy it with a few drops of flavored stevia and monk fruit for the least carbs. Or, add some fresh berries along with the zero carb sweetener(s).

Notes

Adapted from This Old Gal
NOTE: Actual carbs in the yogurt are lower than specified as most of the milk sugar has been consumed by the cultures. Therefore, effective carbs are typically half or less. See this article for more information on why  this is true.

Low Carb Sweeteners | Keto Sweetener Conversion Chart

Nutrition

Serving: 200g | Calories: 151 | Carbohydrates: 8.1g | Protein: 20.2g | Fat: 4g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Cholesterol: 10mg | Sodium: 66mg | Potassium: 282mg | Sugar: 8.1g | Calcium: 200mg

Additional Info

Net Carbs: 8.1 g | % Carbs: 21.7 % | % Protein: 54.2 % | % Fat: 24.1 % | SmartPoints: 4
Values
Array
(
    [serving_size] => 200
    [calories] => 151
    [carbohydrates] => 8.1
    [protein] => 20.2
    [fat] => 4
    [saturated_fat] => 3
    [cholesterol] => 10
    [sodium] => 66
    [potassium] => 282
    [sugar] => 8.1
    [calcium] => 200
    [serving_unit] => g
)

Notes on Nutritional Information

Nutritional information for the recipe is provided as a courtesy and is approximate only. We cannot guarantee the accuracy of the nutritional information given for any recipe on this site. Erythritol carbs are not included in carb counts as it has been shown not to impact blood sugar. Net carbs are the total carbs minus fiber.

Copyright

© LowCarbYum.com - Unauthorized use of this material without written permission is strictly prohibited unless for personal offline purposes. Single photos may be used, provided that full credit is given to LowCarbYum.com along with a link back to the original content.

« Southwest Steak Salad with Spicy Avocado Dressing
Cheesy Beef Taco Skillet Recipe with Cauliflower Rice »

Related Posts

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Debbie

    January 24, 2022 at 1:08 pm

    5 stars
    Excellent yogurt!!

    Reply
  2. Lola St Marie

    March 15, 2021 at 2:33 pm

    5 stars
    How much is a serving size?

    Reply
    • Lisa MarcAurele

      March 15, 2021 at 2:39 pm

      It's about a cup.

      Reply
    • Angela Duby

      April 21, 2024 at 2:26 pm

      Hi! I am new to using instapot and was wondering what to do if the instapot does not have the adjust button. I am getting an IP next month as low carb yogurt is too expensive in stores and I buy a lot of yogurt. I cannot find any with the adjust button or the boil button. What instapot do you use?

      Reply
      • The Low Carb Cook

        April 22, 2024 at 12:56 pm

        Hi! My favorite Instant Pot is the Instant Pot Duo Plus 9-in-1 and you can get it off Amazon 🙂

  3. Phyllis

    March 01, 2021 at 10:41 pm

    What do you think about adding vanilla beans to the yogurt? Where in the cycles would you add it?

    Reply
    • Lisa MarcAurele

      March 02, 2021 at 11:20 am

      I'd stir it in at the end. The flavor from the beans will get absorbed any time really.

      Reply
  4. Karlene

    August 06, 2020 at 9:43 pm

    5 stars
    I finally quit procrastinating & made my first batch of InstaPot yogurt using your recipe - I'm so glad I did! I used heavy cream with Greek Gods yogurt for my starter. After boiling, I fermented it directly in the InstaPot for 12 hours. Wow...creamy, smooth, slightly tangy & delicious!!

    Reply
  5. Tina

    July 09, 2020 at 5:12 pm

    I just put gallon of whole milk in the instapot. On a side I worm up a little 2 cups of milk, than I add 2 cups of greak yogurt in it and whisk, than add all that in big pot and mix well. After 3.5 hours, smooth and not too thick yogurt is ready. Take out pot, let it cool for an hour and pur back in gallon milk container and back to fridge. My family of 4 can finish it in 3 days.

    Reply
  6. Clarise Boudreaux

    April 25, 2020 at 9:21 pm

    Yummy. I have made this twice. I have made coffee mocha, key lime, and blueberry, all are yummy. Question: could I use a whole gallon of milk at once? i don't want to ruin it. Also, I had better get a good carb count as we are eating it so much.

    Reply
    • Lisa MarcAurele

      April 26, 2020 at 8:46 am

      You should be able to do a whole gallon, especially if you have the larger 8 quart pot. But a gallon does fit in a 6 quart too. I'm just not sure how even the heating will be with the larger volume of liquid. If the yogurt is tart when it's done, the culture has consumed most of the milk sugar.

      Reply
  7. Janice Mines

    March 07, 2020 at 7:03 pm

    I don't know why you said you shouldn't do it on the lower temp that is actually backwards! if you want to the good bactria to eat the lactos you incubated longer on a lower temp the 24 hour setting but I wanted to know how to tell your insta pot yogurt beneficial bactria truly eat all of the lactose and not 90% so I don't go over on carbs if I eat yogurt thinking it is zero carbs and it really has 5g

    Reply
  8. Sandra Fann

    January 20, 2020 at 10:12 am

    I have tried two recipes for instant pot yogurt. The first was runny, still good, but more like a sauce in consistency. I read to add a cup of cream for thicker yogurt and ended up with lumpy yogurt with a yellowish liquid floating on top. Still tasted ok though.
    I am not willing to give up, so I will try yours next.

    Reply
  9. JD

    January 15, 2020 at 1:49 pm

    What if you don’t have a yogurt button on your IP?
    Also, can you not strain the liquid if you prefer non greek style yogurt?

    Reply
    • Lisa MarcAurele

      January 15, 2020 at 1:59 pm

      You need the yogurt button to get the temperature correct.

      Reply
  10. Roberta C Nahas

    December 10, 2019 at 7:50 am

    5 stars
    It would be much more helpful if the actual carb count be measured, based on incubation times and then accutately provided Stating that it "should be" half or less of 8 carbs to a group of readers who are primarily concerned with carb count is like telling a basketball coach choosing among like-talented centers that a player is about twice the height of 3' 5".

    Reply
    • Lisa MarcAurele

      December 10, 2019 at 12:57 pm

      Agree! But there's no way to know for sure without testing.

      Reply
  11. brenda

    September 04, 2019 at 10:55 am

    so is the nutritional information above correct? 8carbs? i strain my yogurt until it is a speadable texture...so with even less whey the carbs should be less, correct? it is the consistency of labneh or kefir cheese

    Reply
    • Lisa MarcAurele

      September 04, 2019 at 3:13 pm

      Carb count should be less. I believe it's generally 4g per cup.

      Reply
  12. Terri

    July 29, 2019 at 7:03 pm

    Yay! I’ve been making my own yogurt for several years now, and I love it! I use a yogurt starter and fairlife whole milk. I add glycerite stevia to sweeten it -and strain out the whey. How do I figure out what the carb count is when I make it like that? Everywhere I’ve looked never takes out for the whey and totally count the milk. So So yummy! Thank You! This is really helping me a lot!

    Reply
    • Lisa MarcAurele

      July 30, 2019 at 6:40 am

      It's tough to get an accurate count, but using stevia glycerite should keep the yogurt about 4 grams per cup.

      Reply
    • Juli

      October 01, 2020 at 11:59 am

      Terri, I am trying to figure this out as well. Considering that Fairlife has almost half the sugar than regular whole milk, and straining out the whey, I’m making the lowest carb Greek yogurt I possibly can...it’s going to be higher protein as well.
      I don’t know the exact numbers, but this process works for me...

      Reply
  13. Heather

    June 14, 2019 at 4:12 pm

    5 stars
    Love homemade yogurt in the IP!

    Reply
  14. Ginger Weigel

    February 12, 2019 at 10:41 pm

    5 stars
    I made this over the weekend with a gallon of organic milk, using Fresh Thyme Greek yogurt and a packet of prebiotic and probiotic. I incubated it for 14 hours, got it cold, then strained it for a couple hours. I got a ton of whey strained and this yogurt is super thick. Tried it tonight with 5 drops of monk fruit sweetener, a few blueberries and a little of Diabetic Kitchen’s Cinnamon granola. It was so delicious.

    I’m tempted to mix in the sweetener and see what happens if I freeze it.

    Also, shout out to all who make it with heavy cream, I’m going to have to try that, but a gallon of heavy cream will be expensive.

    Reply
    • Lisa MarcAurele

      February 13, 2019 at 7:33 am

      I do think the homemade yogurt would make a nice frozen yogurt treat. But I haven't tried it myself.

      Reply
  15. cacarr

    January 29, 2019 at 5:53 pm

    " ... but plain whole yogurt is so bitter ..."

    I think you mean "tart" or "tangy" -- which are the exact opposite of bitter. Bitter things have a high pH; tart, tangy, acidic things have a low pH.

    15 hours of incubation should have it very low carb indeed, and very tart (which is an indication that the sugars have been metabolized by the bacteria). And I suppose remaining sugars would be dissolved in the water, so straining it really well should really get the carbs way down.

    Reply
    • Lisa MarcAurele

      January 29, 2019 at 7:10 pm

      Yes. Tart or sour is a better word. Thanks for pointing that out.

      Reply
  16. Preston

    November 04, 2018 at 8:50 am

    After 15 hours, I opened the lid on my instant pot and my yogurt was very runny and smelled really “funky”

    What could have caused this? Should I still cool it in the fridge and strain it to see if it firms up?

    Thank you!

    Reply
    • Lisa

      November 04, 2018 at 12:56 pm

      I always strain the yogurt. I'm not sure about the funky smell. Something may have gone bad in the process.

      Reply
      • Fern Everett

        February 28, 2019 at 9:04 pm

        The gasket retains smells from other foods you have cooked. Since you aren't using the pressure you don't need the gasket. No more funky yogurt.

      • Lisa MarcAurele

        March 01, 2019 at 6:56 am

        Great tip! A lot of people use different gaskets for different foods.

  17. Christina

    September 14, 2018 at 2:08 pm

    5 stars
    This sounds great! I was wondering if you have any flavor suggestions? I typically add stevia and vanilla for myself, but my family is not a huge fan of vanilla, and I'm not sure what other carb friendly flavors I could use.
    Thanks!

    Reply
    • Lisa

      September 15, 2018 at 8:51 am

      My daughter likes to add hopped strawberries. Berries are a good low sugar fruit.

      Reply
      • Andrea

        July 09, 2019 at 1:41 pm

        what is a "hopped" strawberry?

    • MELANIE

      April 06, 2019 at 1:50 pm

      Christina,
      I use various "flavors" of extract. Frontier Co-op has organic, non-alcoholic, non-GMO flavorings. They sell it at Whole Foods. No added carbs. Strawberry, banana, cinnamon, coffee, etc.

      Reply
  18. Brandi Mills

    September 09, 2018 at 11:49 am

    5 stars
    What is the serving size (200 g) in US cups or Oz? Wasn't sure how to convert yogurt as i know it's different for solids and liquids.

    Reply
    • Lisa

      September 10, 2018 at 9:02 am

      200g is just under a US cup.

      Reply
  19. Tisa

    August 23, 2018 at 10:30 am

    5 stars
    Thanks for the info on the yogurt - it's the one thing I've struggled with on LCHF and now I don't have to! Great recipe also. I have been making yogurt in the InstantPot and it's divine and so easy. Thanks again.

    Reply
    • Lisa

      August 24, 2018 at 7:45 am

      You're welcome! It's too bad they don't test the product for the nutritional data so it can be more accurate on the carb information.

      Reply
  20. Mary

    July 14, 2018 at 6:16 am

    5 stars
    I came across your page today and I must say I will be trying this recipe. I have been making my own yogurt for awhile in the slow cooker. I have an instant pot now and this is on my to do list. I do use raw milk and swerve to make mine. Off to try this. Thank you for sharing

    Reply
    • Lisa

      July 14, 2018 at 7:46 am

      Hope the yogurt works out for you in the pressure cooker!

      Reply
    • Valerie

      August 04, 2018 at 2:34 pm

      Hi Mary. Do you use granulated or powdered swerve? Also, do you add it after culturing or process with the swerve already added? thank you!

      Reply
  21. Sonya

    May 16, 2018 at 5:29 pm

    5 stars
    I had a whole gallon of whole milk in the fridge that wasn't opened and the expiration date was 2 days past so I decided to try your recipe. I used Oikos Vanilla Greek yogurt for my starter. When the whole instant pot process was done, I strained the yogurt for several hours, then put it in my mixer with some vanilla extract and honey and it came out delicious! This was my first try with yogurt and it was such a success I will definitely being doing it again. Thanks for sharing your recipe.

    Reply
    • Lisa

      May 16, 2018 at 7:48 pm

      Awesome! Great way to use up that milk.

      Reply
  22. Monica

    April 08, 2018 at 1:57 pm

    Do I need a new store bought yogurt for each batch or can I use my homemade for the next batch?

    Reply
    • Lisa

      April 09, 2018 at 6:59 am

      You can use your own homemade.

      Reply
      • Jacki Prettyman

        July 22, 2018 at 10:42 pm

        5 stars
        You can buy a quart of high quality plain yogurt, put a tablespoon into mini muffin cups with the little paper liners and freeze them. Once they are frozen, simply pop them out, drop them all into a gallon sized ziploc bag and store in the freezer. When you are ready to make yogurt simply take two out, place them in a small bowl to thaw while heating the milk. Very inexpensive way to have your yogurt culture ready when you want to make yogurt. I make it weekly in my Instant Pot but I use Half and Half instead of whole milk to reduce the carbs further.

      • Lisa

        July 23, 2018 at 5:57 am

        Great idea! Thanks for sharing.

      • Suz

        July 14, 2023 at 12:02 pm

        This re cipe and Old Gal version work perfectly everytime. Only thing is this time I tried the frozen leftover yogurt starter to make and it did not thicken. First time ever. Just wanted to warn everyone of using that tip. It would have been cheaper to add new yogurt than waste a gallon of milk.
        Greek yoqurt alway upset my stomach. Not the lactose. Tried A2 milk several times back and no stomach upset! Just a tip.

  23. Marlene

    March 28, 2018 at 9:19 am

    Could you use half heavy cream half milk ?
    Can you use skim milk?

    Reply
    • Lisa

      March 28, 2018 at 4:32 pm

      Either should work. You just need some lactose for the culture to consume.

      Reply
      • Nancy

        December 03, 2018 at 3:04 pm

        I always make my yogurt using heavy cream. Lowest amount of carbs that way. Also,, it is so decadently rich,, you really don't have to eat much to feel satiated. Between 1/4-1/2 cup more than does it for me.

        And tip,, adding heavy cream, or half and half increases the thickeness and gives you much less whey if your straining. one half gallon of cream nets me 1 cup of whey.

      • Lisa MarcAurele

        December 04, 2018 at 6:46 am

        That is a good tip as there is more whey in whole milk.

  24. Carrie

    February 23, 2018 at 11:01 am

    5 stars
    This is seriously the best greek yogurt I've had! It's like ice cream! Here in the Seattle we have local greek yogurt called Ellenos that everyone goes nuts over, and I swear this is BETTER! So Delish with a bit of Stevia in it. Thanks so much!

    Reply
    • Lisa

      February 23, 2018 at 12:45 pm

      I agree! It's much better to make the yogurt at home and the taste shows the freshness.

      Reply
  25. Ginger Schooling

    January 22, 2018 at 8:30 pm

    I have an 8 quart instant pot, and it only took 20 minutes in the boil period to get milk to 180 degrees. Then in the sink ice bath it only took 3 minutes to cool to 110 degrees. Pretty fast! I used a half gallon of milk.

    Reply
  26. Ginger Schooling

    January 22, 2018 at 7:47 pm

    Approximately how long will this last in the fridge? I want to make a big batch.

    Reply
    • Lisa

      January 23, 2018 at 5:28 am

      It depends, but generally one to two weeks and maybe longer.

      Reply
  27. Ginger Schooling

    January 22, 2018 at 7:46 pm

    Approximately how long does it take to get the milk to 180 degrees? Then how long to cool to 110 degrees? Thanks in advance!

    Reply
    • Lisa

      January 23, 2018 at 5:42 am

      I'd say 15-20 minutes to reach 180 and only a few minutes to drop down to 110 in an ice bath.

      Reply
    • Carla McDonald

      March 01, 2018 at 7:18 am

      About 40 minutes to boil, i then take the pot out and put it in a tub of ice water and stir every couple minutes. It takes about 5 minutes to cool that way.

      Reply
  28. Lori Sherman-Appel

    December 19, 2017 at 2:33 pm

    My IP is a mini version at 3quart,700 watts. Can I make this recipe? How should I cut the recipe ingredients? Thanks ... I can’t wait to make it!

    Reply
    • Lisa

      December 19, 2017 at 2:35 pm

      You can! Just use the slider that pops up to adjust the number of servings.

      Reply
  29. Krisa

    October 19, 2017 at 5:47 pm

    So did you use a powder yogurt starter or can you use yogurt that is already made as the starter? Sorry maybe that's a dumb question, I have never made yogurt before but I want to try. I use my Instant pot all the time!

    Reply
    • Lisa

      October 19, 2017 at 8:40 pm

      I used a little bit of store bought organic yogurt. However, you can break open a few probiotic capsules and add that as a starter.

      Reply
  30. Heidi

    August 13, 2017 at 9:45 am

    Where do you get the liners? I've used liners in the slow cooker, are they the same?

    Reply
    • Lisa

      August 13, 2017 at 5:55 pm

      You don't need a liner for making yogurt. It's the steel liner that comes with the pot that you make the yogurt in.

      Reply
  31. Sarah Strebe

    June 11, 2017 at 4:04 pm

    Can I use non-fat milk and starter to make non-fat Greek yogurt?

    Reply
    • Lisa

      June 11, 2017 at 7:43 pm

      You can! I typically use heavy cream because I like more fat.

      Reply
      • Robin

        February 09, 2018 at 1:41 pm

        You said you typically use heavy cream... How? Do you use it instead of the whole milk?
        This would lower the carbs too, correct?
        Thank you!

      • Lisa

        February 09, 2018 at 3:19 pm

        Heavy cream has less sugar than whole milk so technically, it should be lower carb. But, in yogurt, carb count depends on how much of the sugar remains after cultured.

  32. Robin Davis

    May 25, 2017 at 10:29 am

    5 stars
    Made this earlier in the week. Absolutely delicious...my husband gave it a thumbs up as well !!

    Reply
    • Lisa

      May 25, 2017 at 2:50 pm

      Excellent! Love when the husbands approve.

      Reply
  33. Kayla

    April 11, 2017 at 1:56 pm

    5 stars
    I made this over the weekend and it was delicious! Next time I want to use a full gallon of milk. Would I still use 2 tbsp of yogurt as the starter or would I need more? Thanks!

    Reply
    • Lisa

      April 11, 2017 at 4:04 pm

      2 tablespoons should work for a full gallon too. You really only need a tablespoon for the half gallon.

      Reply
  34. txgrandma

    April 05, 2017 at 8:32 pm

    5 stars
    One question-Would freezing this harm the probiotics in this yogurt? Thanks!

    Reply
    • Lisa

      April 05, 2017 at 10:19 pm

      I believe the cultures go dormant when frozen.

      Reply
  35. txgrandma

    April 05, 2017 at 7:36 pm

    5 stars
    I made this and it was a smashing success! I used organic milk and yogurt as you suggested and it was the smoothest and creamiest yogurt I've ever had. No tart taste to it at all. I added a rhubarb sauce and it didn't need much sweetener at all. I am currently straining it for Greek yogurt and expect that is will get better by tomorrow. Thanks for such a great tutorial. It was very helpful! I also checked out "This Old Gal" and between the two of you, it was very easy to follow. I did use your time suggestions. Starting to wonder if there is anything the Instant Pot can't do, lol! Thanks so much.

    Reply
    • Lisa

      April 05, 2017 at 10:19 pm

      The credit for this goes mainly to This Old Gal who is an Instant Pot expert.

      Reply
  36. Cheryl

    March 31, 2017 at 11:37 pm

    Does the carb count change drastically if you don't drain off as much whey? I prefer my yogurt a little less thick.

    Reply
    • Lisa

      April 01, 2017 at 4:45 am

      The whey only adds a couple (like 2-3) grams of carbs per serving.

      Reply
  37. txgrandma

    March 30, 2017 at 10:42 am

    5 stars
    Great instructions. I think I can do this! How much does this make and what size are the average servings? Thanks!

    Reply
    • Lisa

      March 30, 2017 at 12:25 pm

      It makes about 8 cups. You can use a whole gallon of milk if you want to make a larger batch.

      Reply
  38. Diane Silvestri

    March 07, 2017 at 8:06 pm

    Is there any other appliance that can do this other than Instant Pot? I have a slow cooker- pressure cooker combo but it doesnt have a yogurt setting.

    Reply
    • Lisa

      March 07, 2017 at 8:08 pm

      You can make yogurt similarly in a slow cooker on low for the incubation. Just heat the milk up first to 180 degrees F, then cool it down and incubate in the slow cooker on low heat.

      Reply
    • Christine

      September 15, 2017 at 10:08 am

      5 stars
      I have been making yogurt in a large pot over the stove for years now. I find it is MUCH more dependable and faster than using the crock pot method. My recipe uses the same process as stated here, except I bring the milk to 180 degrees over the stove top. Be sure to stir with a spatula or flat wooden spoon often during cooking to make milk doesn't cook or burn on the bottom. It only takes a half hour or so. Then I let it cool to 110-115 degrees. (This takes about 2 hours) I skim it with a mesh spoon before I temper in the starter yogurt to get the "skin" that forms and any small chunks of cooked milk that might have formed. This step creates a very smooth final product. (I just use one carton of plain Greek yogurt, even though you don't need that much...we have a family of 8, so I use a gallon and a half of milk in an 8 quart pot). Then I insulate the pot with several towels and let sit on my counter for 12 hours. Straining is crucial, in my opinion, just as stated in the recipe here.

      Reply
      • Lisa

        September 16, 2017 at 7:17 am

        Thanks for the tips on making it on the stove. I've never tried it that way.

  39. Cindy

    March 07, 2017 at 4:23 pm

    With 8 grams of sugar and using whole milk.. I don't see how this is low carb?

    Reply
    • Lisa

      March 07, 2017 at 6:55 pm

      There's not really 8 grams. That's what's calculated based on ingredients. The longer you incubate, the less sugar you get because the cultures consume the sugar.

      Reply
  40. patricia

    March 07, 2017 at 12:41 pm

    I have to be dairy free. Can this be made using coconut milk?

    Reply
    • Lisa

      March 07, 2017 at 12:52 pm

      I have seen recipes for coconut yogurt, but you want to use the thicker coconut cream to make it. And, you'll need probiotic powder or capsules as the culture. It is a similar process, but I have never tried it to be sure.

      Reply
  41. Mary Page

    March 07, 2017 at 8:21 am

    5 stars
    I use this recipe. I had never really liked yogurt until I made it in the instant pot. It's really good.

    Reply
    • Lisa

      March 07, 2017 at 12:53 pm

      My daughter was never crazy about yogurt either until she tried this homemade version.

      Reply
4.96 from 24 votes (4 ratings without comment)

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




Primary Sidebar

BEST Keto Fall Recipes

Here are some of our most popular keto fall recipes you can make this season! From homemade dips to quick and easy dinner recipes, these low-carb recipes will be on repeat all summer long!

  • Keto Beef Stew Featured Image
    Easy Keto Beef Stew Recipe
  • Pumpkin Cheese Ball
  • Keto Pumpkin Deviled Eggs
  • overhead of shredded pot roast in the slow cooker after cooking with two forks in it.
    Mississippi Mud Roast (Crockpot Recipe)
  • healthy pumpkin smoothie featured image.
    Healthy Pumpkin Smoothie (With Pumpkin Pie Spice)
  • hot dog mummies on halloween platter.
    Keto Mummy Hot Dogs

Popular Fall Keto Desserts

Desserts can be a challenge while on a keto or low-carb diet. We have wonderful recipes to satisfy your sweet tooth while watching those macros!

  • Keto peanut butter cookies featured image.
    3-Ingredient Keto Peanut Butter Cookies
  • Keto cinnamon churro featured
    Cinnamon Churros (Keto + Low-Carb)
  • pumpkin chocolate chip muffins on wire rack
    Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins (Keto + Gluten Free)
  • pumpkin truffles candy featured image
    Keto Pumpkin Truffles Recipe (Sugar-Free Candy)
  • keto snowball cookies
    Keto Snowball Cookies
  • sugar free snickers Featured Image
    Sugar Free Snickers Bar

Footer

Featured On:

Parade FitnessHuffington PostHealthLineBuzzFeedThe KitchnShapeWomen's HealthCountry Living Men's Health

Keto

  • Get Started
  • Keto Calculator
  • Low Carb vs Keto
  • Low Carb Food List

Recipes

  • Breakfast
  • Desserts
  • Dinners
  • Salads
  • Sides

About

  • About
  • Contact
  • Newsletter
  • Work With Us

↑ back to top

LowCarbYum.com makes money through affiliate partner links: If you click on a link, we may earn a commission. Our writers create all reviews, recipes, and other content to inform readers, with no influence from our advertisers. LowCarbYum.com may earn from qualifying purchased made on Amazon.com. Learn more about our policies and disclosures.

Copyright © 2025. Low Carb Yum. All Rights Reserved.

Rate This Recipe

Your vote:




A rating is required
A name is required
An email is required

Recipe Ratings without Comment

Something went wrong. Please try again.