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This is your foolproof guide to making healthy homemade Greek yogurt. With just two simple ingredients and basic kitchen tools, you can enjoy homemade Greek yogurt that is healthier and more flavorful than store-bought versions.
save this recipe!Milk is made up of casein and whey. While whey is the watery substance left when the milk curdles, casein is what curdles and is used to make cheese and yogurt! And the best part? This process is incredibly easy to do at home!
Hundreds of people have used this recipe to successfully make yogurt in their kitchens—yours next?
- Control the ingredients: No thickeners or added sugars—just milk and live cultures (aka yogurt).
- Budget-friendly: A quart of homemade yogurt costs a fraction of the store-bought stuff.
- Double-duty: You also get whey (the leftover liquid), which you can use in smoothies, bread, or cooking grains.
Reader rating
“I just gave it my first go and it turned out perfect! Never dreamed making yogurt was so easy!” —Nicole
Just 2 Ingredients
Yogurt is a fermentation (just like kefir, kombucha, and kimchi), meaning it’s created by adding some bacteria (yogurt) to a sugar-containing substance (milk) and letting the bacteria eat up the sugar. So to make yogurt at home, you’ll just need 2 ingredients:
- Yogurt: Use a good-quality yogurt with live or active cultures listed on the label. (After this first batch, all future batches can use what you made as the yogurt starter. You’ll never need to buy it again!)
- Milk: Whole-fat milk produces the best texture for homemade yogurt.
This is just an overview; jump to the recipe card for measurements!
The process is simple
This is just an overview; jump to the recipe card for full printable instructions and step-by-step photos!
- Heat the milk: Warm milk to 185–200°F. This changes its proteins so the yogurt thickens properly.
- Cool it down: Quickly cool to 100–110°F. This is the ideal temp for activating the yogurt cultures.
- Add the starter: Whisk in live culture yogurt to introduce the bacteria that make yogurt.
- Ferment: Cover and let sit in a warm spot (like the oven with the light on) for 4–8 hours to thicken and develop tang.
- Strain (optional): For Greek yogurt, strain in the fridge until it reaches your preferred consistency.
- Store and enjoy: Chill and use as you would store-bought yogurt—sweet or savory!
Tips For Success
Keep it warm: The oven light should be enough, but if your kitchen’s cold, turn the oven on for one minute every few hours to gently rewarm.
Tanginess depends on time: A 4-hour ferment makes mild yogurt. Closer to 8 hours = tangier.
Save some as a starter: You can use a few tablespoons of your homemade batch as a starter for the next one.
More than just for breakfast
Use your freshly made Greek yogurt to whip up Spinach Artichoke Dip or Healthy French Onion Dip. And my favorite way to use Greek yogurt? In this quick and easy tzatziki sauce!
How to Make Greek Yogurt (No Special Equipment)
Equipment
- Medium pot with lid, aim for the heaviest/thickest pot you have
- Kitchen thermometer
- Quart-sized jar or bowl
- Mesh sieve
- Cheesecloth or thin dishcloth, coffee filters, paper towels etc. placed inside a mesh strainer
Ingredients
- 4 cups whole milk, 960 mL
- ¼ cup plain store-bought yogurt, ensure the container says “live” or “active” cultures, 60 g
Instructions
- Heat Milk: Place 4 cups whole milk in a medium pot and heat to 185-200°F (85-93°C), stirring frequently to preventing a skin from forming.
- Cool Bath: Transfer the pot with milk to an ice bath (I filled my sink with ice and water), to cool milk to 100-110°F (37-43°C).
- Mix: Add ¼ cup plain store-bought yogurt to the cooled milk and whisk well to combine.
- Ferment: Cover jar or bowl with a lid, wrap in a moist, warm towel to keep in heat, and place in oven. Turn on oven light to keep warm, and let the bacteria do its yogurt making magic for 4 to 8 hours (or overnight).*
- Strain: You can eat the yogurt like this, or strain it to make Greek yogurt. To strain, line a mesh sieve with cheesecloth (or paper towels, coffee filters etc), and pour yogurt in. Place over a large bowl and let strain in the fridge for a few hours (or overnight), until it’s reach a consistency you like.
- Serve chilled with your favorite yogurt toppings, or use it in a recipe as you would store-bought yogurt!
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information calculated by Sarah Bond, degreed nutritionist.
did you make this?Leave a comment below and tag @liveeatlearn on social media! I love seeing what you’ve made!
I made it and was stunned with disbelief that it actually worked! I have a tub of creamy Greek yogurt and a bowl of whey! Woo-hoo!
I wrapped my jar of yogurt with two warmed up gel packs that came with my Pyrex Portable pans and held them in place with rubberbands. I sat that in the oven for 8 hours to incubate. Halfway through I accidentally turned off the oven light, but I also did a quick warming of my top oven (it’s split…upper and lower) to keep some waffles warm as I continued making them, and that seemed to do the trick of keeping the air around the yogurt jar warm without getting too hot. When I pulled out the jar after 8 hours, there was a very thin layer of water (whey?) on top of the yogurt. Not runny or liquid at all. I couldn’t believe it. I made yogurt!!
YAY!! So happy you loved the process!! Isn’t it so fun? 😀
Could you please clarify how many calories are in 1 cup of your homemade yogurt? I see you are using whole milk. I also assume that the calories you show in your nutritional information are for yogurt before you strain? (I show full fat yogurt being around 220?)
Hi Susan! I based the nutritional values off of store bought full fat greek yogurt, which is an approximation (because home fermentations are always a little different!)
Happy to learn new thing..
Thank you for the simple and clear instructions! How much milk versus yogurt do you use in this recipe? I couldn’t find those measurements
4 cups whole milk and ¼ cup plain store bought yogurt 🙂
Can you remake this again with the leftovers of your previous batch of homemade yogurt
Yes! 😀
If your oven has a proof setting at 100F would that be okay in lieu of turning the light on?
Yes absolutely!
Can you do the process in a crock pot/slow cooker?
You can, as long as the temperature can be kept right around 100/110 F!
Hello!
Thanks for the recipe! I’d like to know how much strained yogurt one gets from 4 cups milk. Thank you!
About 2 cups of yogurt 🙂
How do I know it worked and it just isn’t soured milk? I don’t want anyone to get sick. Sorry if dumb question. I have never tried this before…
It should thicken into a yogurt-like consistency if it’s working! 😀
Amazing! So easy and foolproof. I used to make yogurt in the Instant Pot. This is so much better with consistent results .