Instant Pot Yogurt
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Living in the US, I used to buy yogurt from the store like most people here.  It was too creamy for my Indian taste buds.  I would always wonder, have they added something to it??   Sure enough…most of the yogurts in the market have gelatin added to make them seem creamier than they really are.  Huh…so now what?  There are yogurt brands which do claim to be gelatin free and live probiotic and organic.

I was living with them, but only until I started making homemade yogurt.  You will never go back to the store bought one after having fresh homemade yogurt.  And you might also save some bucks!

When preparing yogurt without the instant pot, it was hard to get it right each time.  Especially in the winter when the weather is cold.  Sometimes it would not get set properly, would be a bit runny and sticky.  But with the instant pot, you take some of the possible uncertainties out.

That said, you can still prepare homemade yogurt if you don’t have Instant Pot.  After you have mixed in the starter, place the bowl in an oven with the light on.  That has also given me very good results.

This recipe is to make yogurt with the pot-in-pot method. I prefer this, so I can just remove the bowl and refrigerate it. Use whole milk to make yogurt, and you will get a better result.  I also prefer to use organic milk, not just for this recipe, but in general.  The reasons for that can easily be a separate post.

Try this easy yogurt recipe and Enjoy the taste of real yogurt.

Update: There is another new method to make yogurt in the instant pot, called cold-ingredients or no-boil method. This method does not need boiling and cooling of milk, but requires a specific type of milk which is ultra filtered (Fairlife).

4.70 from 20 votes

Instant Pot Homemade Yogurt (Pot-in-pot / PIP)

Delicious home made Yogurt made in the Instant Pot with the pot-in-pot method. 
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 9 hours
Total Time: 9 hours 5 minutes
Servings: 3

Ingredients 

  • 4 cups Whole Milk
  • 3 tablespoon Starter culture, or any yogurt with live culture
  • 1 cup Water

Instructions 

  • Place the wire rack in the bottom of the Instant Pot. Pour in 1 cup of water and place the milk in a glass bowl on the rack.  Close the Instant Pot and set it to “Steam” mode for 1 minutes with vent in sealing position.
  • Remove the yogurt culture and keep it at room temperature.
  • After the instant pot timer goes off, release the pressure naturally.
  • Open the instant pot and let the milk cool down to about 110°F or 43°C, anything in the range from 108-115°F works as well.  Approximately it will take an hour to cool down to this temperature.  (I used a digital thermometer to check the temperature, until I got used to checking with my finger).
    getting the temperature of yogurt in a bowl inside the instant pot
  • Mix the yogurt culture and start the instant pot again in “Yogurt” mode.  This will automatically set the timer to 8 hours.
  • When the timer beeps, yogurt should be ready. Enjoy the yogurt as a side with your meal or as a snack topped with fruit or granola.
    yogurt in a spoon over the glass bowl

Notes

  • (Optional) Sanitizing the instant pot to remove any odors: If you do a lot of cooking with spices, you may want to add this step.  Add 2 cups of water with a few drops of lemon juice and put the instant pot in steam mode.
  • Have the yogurt culture at room temperature when you are ready to mix.
  • The temperature when you mix in the starter with the milk is very important.  Initially it can be hard to get it right, so you can use a digital thermometer to check the temperature.
  • Don’t keep the yogurt in the instant pot for long after the timer beeps, as it might be more sour.  Unless you prefer sour yogurt.

Additional Info

Course: Side Dish, Snack
Cuisine: Indian
Diet: Gluten-free, Vegetarian
Tried this recipe?Mention @pipingpotcurry or tag #pipingpotcurry!

About Meeta

I strongly believe that each one of us has a chef inside us, we just need to explore the ingredients and create great food. My passion is to share easy, healthy, and wholesome recipes made using Instant Pot & Air Fryer, that are well tested, so you can cook with confidence.

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86 Comments

    1. Hey Allie – I usually get yogurt with active live culture from the Indian grocery store (Gopi, Desi Natural brand). I have also tried making yogurt with other brands, and they have worked fine. If the yogurt is incubated properly, it should not be slimy. The temperature of milk and the culture is important when they are mixed together. Hope that helps!

      1. I think the greek yogurt will work as long as it has active live cultures. Let me know how it turns out 🙂

  1. I love your recipes, they are simple as are the easy-to-follow instructions. Just got my Instant Pot and decided to make your Broccoli Cheese Soup. It turned out exactly as your pictures show and was delicious. In less than 30minutes, it was ready. No curdling.

    1. Hey Janet – Glad you are enjoying the recipes. Broccoli Cheddar soup is my favorite too and we love that it is so quick!

  2. Hi Meeta – Thanks for this blog! Love it 🙂
    If I am making more than 4 cups of yogurt does the steaming time needs to be increased?

    Thanks!
    Priya

  3. So m making this right now! Need a quick help. What do I do with the water left behind after steaming for a minute?

    1. Hey Sakshi – Leave the water in the pot. After the milk has cooled down and you have added the culture, keep it back in the instant pot on Yogurt mode.

      1. Hi, thank you so much for this lovely recipe. This has worked like a charm and gives me the best yogurt I have made. I have a quick question, I am using Instant Pot Ultra. If I leave the water in the bowl after the Steam mode, after the Yogurt is done, I see multiple circular white spots at the inner bottom of the steel pot, with water still remaining. Can you please tell me why this is being caused and if this would ruin my steel pot faster? And also how this can be avoided?

      2. Hey Sharley – Glad you are enjoying yogurt made in the ip. I do get the little white spots too. I believe they are because of mineral (salt/calcium) deposits from the heated water. They won’t ruin the instant pot and they come off easily after a few washes. I use Barkeepers friend to clean the steel insert and they come right off. Hope that helps!

  4. Hi, I don’t have a temp taker device so if I just let the IP naturally release the steam and after about an hour I should be able to add the culture to it, correct?

    1. Yes that would work too. Try checking the temperature with your finger. It should be slightly warm, but not hot. Then add the room temperature culture to it.

  5. Sorry I am confused here, when you say set the instant pot to steam mode for a minute- is that enough to bring the milk to boil? I usually boil the milk before making yogurt- is that not required?

    1. Hi Julie – the steam mode for 1 minute will bring the milk to a boil. This is the method to use when doing pot-in-pot. If you are making yogurt in the main pot, use the boil setting.

      1. Ok great – sorry I didn’t know it would. Thanks for your prompt response – I definitely will try this.

      2. Sure, I hope you enjoy it. My family easily consumes double the yogurt when it is made at home. They love it so much more compared to store-brought yogurt.

    1. Hi Sharan – If a recipe does not have amount mentioned along with the cup, I was using the plastic cup I got with instant pot, which measures 180ml for 1 cup. For more recent recipes, I got a new measuring cup set and have started mentioning a 250 ml for 1 cup. Hope that helps ????

  6. Thanks, a lot for telling how to make yogurt in IP. Would like to try soon. Do we have to use WHOLE MILK? Can I use 1% or 2% also.

    1. Hi Meena – I prefer to use whole milk to make yogurt. It might not give you the same consistency with 1% or 2% milk. Do try and let me know how you like it. Thanks!