Easy Greek Yogurt Recipe with No Special Equipment
This homemade greek yogurt recipe doesn’t require any fancy tools, cultures, or even an instant pot!
This is the SIMPLEST yogurt recipe ever and it tastes amazing. You do not need a yogurt maker, heating pad, crock pot, insta pot, slow cooker, none of it! Just a few basic kitchen tools and your oven and we are set to go.
Why Make Your Own Yogurt
Maybe you are like me and have a cow who keeps you supplied with plenty of fresh milk. Or maybe you just really like yogurt and go through a lot of it. Either way, making your own yogurt can be very satisfying and cost effective!
In this recipe we will be taking one gallon of raw cow’s milk (you can use whatever milk you like) and turning it into a half gallon of greek-style yogurt with a creamy texture that can be eaten as is or mixed into recipes.
What Kind of Milk Should You Use?
That is entirely up to you. When I make this recipe I am usually using my skimmed raw cow’s milk. With all the cream removed it is probably closer to a 2% milk. It yields a rich, creamy greek yogurt that is perfect to my tastes.
If you want an even thicker, creamier yogurt, then go with whole milk.
I personally would probably not use skim milk, but that’s just personal preference.
How much yogurt will this recipe yield?
Depending on how much whey you filter out of it, this will get you about one half gallon of creamy greek yogurt.
Ingredients for Homemade Greek Yogurt
- 1/2-1 cup Plain Yogurt
- 1 Gallon of Milk
Equipment for Making Your Own Yogurt
- Six-quart stock pot or larger
- Thermometer – A meat thermometer or candy thermometer will work just fine.
- Whisk
- Strainer
- Cheesecloth
- Clothes Pins
Which Yogurt Starter Works Best for this Recipe?
I always start off my new batches of homemade yogurt using store-bought yogurt. I’ve had good success with Aldi’s organic greek style regular yogurt as well as the same from Costco.
Whichever option you get from the grocery store I recommend getting something that is plain, greek style, and organic.
Find a yogurt you like the taste of and give it a try. Your yogurt should have a similar flavor whichever base yogurt you use.
How to Make Greek Yogurt from Scratch
Heat
Begin by heating one gallon of milk on the stove until it reaches 185 degrees Fahrenheit. Use a thick-bottomed pot for this process otherwise you risk your milk scorching.
Whisk frequently to keep the milk from forming a skin, scorching, or bubbling over the top of the pot. Make sure the whisk is hitting the bottom of the pot to keep it from sticking.
Once the milk reaches 185 degrees, remove it from the heat. Fill your sink with cold water a few inches deep. It should come up the sides of the pot about 3/4.
Cool & Culture
Set the pot in the cold water to help the milk cool. Stir with the whisk to help speed up the cooling process. It should take around five minutes.
Once it has cooled to 125 degrees Fahrenheit, scoop out about one cup of the milk and pour it into your bowl or container of either store bought yogurt or the last bit of your own homemade yogurt.
Whisk well until it is all combined into a thick liquid.
Pour this back into the pot and whisk again.
Incubate
Next, turn your oven on to the lowest keep warm setting. Mine doesn’t beep when it comes up to temperature on the “Warm” setting, so I advise just letting it sit for about five minutes, then switch it off.
Next, place a lid on your pot and wrap it in a towel.
Place it gently in the oven and turn the oven light on.
Leave it to sit for four hours.
After four hours remove the pot from the oven and check it. It should have separated into yogurt and whey.
Strain
Line a colander with a cheesecloth and pin it into place using clothes pins. Ideally, place a seive on top of a bowl or pot, then the colander on top of that.
If you don’t have one have someone hold the colander over a bowl to catch the whey, or just keep watch on it that the whey straining through the colander and into the pot isn’t high enough to start soaking back in to your yogurt. That sounds more complicated than it is, so check out the YouTube video for clarity.
Pour the yogurt and whey into the cheesecloth-lined colander.
How long the straining process takes will depend on how thick you want the yogurt to be. For super thick yogurt, allow it to sit for around 20 minutes. I typically strain mine and let it sit just for a few minutes because the yogurt will get thicker as it sits in the fridge.
For best results, take it out of the strainer when it is still a little thinner than you’d like it to be.
Final Steps
Scoop the yogurt into quart size mason jars. I like to use a canning funnel for this.
Then, using a whisk, stir the yogurt briskly for a few seconds. This is key to getting a good smooth greek yoghurt.
Place caps on the jars, either one piece plastic lids or the two-piece canning lids. Store it in the fridge. It will keep for up to two weeks.
That’s it! You have just made your own homemade Greek yogurt!
Making this in a Crock Pot
If you don’t want to use your oven, you can also make this in the crock pot.
Switch the crockpot onto low heat while you prepare the yogurt mixture as directed above. Then, instead of placing it in the oven, pour it into the crock pot. Place the lid on top and tuck the whole thing in with a towel.
Allow this to sit for a minimum of four hours. check it to see if it has started to separate out into yogurt and whey.
Complete all the steps up to when you put it in the oven.
What to do With the Leftover Whey?
I typically feed my whey to the chickens. I like to soak their feed in it overnight.
If you don’t have animals to eat it, you can use it yourself in baking. You can also cook it down and make mysost cheese (though fair warning, this takes a long time).
Another option is to add equal parts water to your whey and water your outdoor plants with it. Whey still has a lot of nutrients in it that will help boost your plants. Just make sure it is completely cooled before you pour it on them.
What if I want Raw Milk Yogurt?
Because we heat this milk to 185 F, it is a pasteurized product.
If you’d like to make a raw yogurt you can! Check out that recipe here. It is one of my more popular YouTube videos but folks do tend to have trouble with it, though I’m not sure why. It definitely will yield a less thick yogurt.
How to Use Greek Yogurt
I use plain greek yogurt in all sorts of things.
- My favorite way is making stellar pancakes on the weekend. I’ll be sharing a recipe for these soon!
- Eat it with granola, fresh fruit, honey, etc.
- Replace your sour cream with this homemade yogurt and you won’t even miss the sour cream.
- Frozen yogurt is a great treat to make in the summer.
Quick Troubleshooting
Yogurt Isn’t Tangy Enough
Let the yogurt sit for another half hour, then give it a taste. If it still isn’t as tangy as you would like, let it go another half hour. Keep in mind it will get a stronger flavor as it sits in the fridge.
Yogurt Isn’t Setting Up
Check that you followed all the steps above correctly, especially the temperature parts.
If you did everything as directed, try using a different yogurt as your starter culture next time. You could also use more of the starter yogurt culture.
Lastly, add in more heat. If your house is pretty chilly, then your oven and towel incubator might not be keeping it warm enough. Try adding a hot water bottle to the oven or even a heating pad.
