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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 this and let everyone try it (so proud of making my own food from scratch) and received the highest praise from people. ‘Make it for me, I’ll pay you!’ (Coworkers); ‘That yogurt you made it better than your mama’s! So good Jennifer!!’ (my FIL); ‘I’m glad you’re making more, it’s better than mine!’ (My MIL)
I made it with honey and fresh strawberries then my immersion blender.
Thanks for making my day with your comment! So pumped you loved it!
Is there any harm if the temperature stays too low? It still set and came out ok! But I left it overnight and it was probably around 85-90 degrees
No harm at all if it still set! Lower temps just slow down the fermentation, so it can take longer to thicken and might be a bit tangier. But if it worked and tastes good, you’re golden!
Good
If this recipe can be doubled. It just doesn’t make enough. I’d love it so much. If I double it do I have to use a half a cup of yoghurt as my starter or will a quarter cup still be enough to get it started.
You can double it! Just double everything to keep the proportions the same (including starter).
This was amazing. Great easy to follow directions. Did not realize how much better Greek yogurt could be until I made this. Thank you! It is now part of my weekly meal prep.
So glad you enjoyed it Jo-Ann, thanks for making my day with your comment!
I’ve made yogurt for years and use a gallon of milk at a time a one scoop of yogurt from a previous batch. I put a heating pad on low in a cooler, then a small towel, then put the pan of cooled milk in overnight. Strain and enjoy!
Adjustable recipe! Save this one!
Can I add vanilla in this at the starting point to flavour it?
If you want to add a flavor like vanilla, stir it in at the end, after straining 🙂
My sister and I eat a lot of Greek yogurt and this is saving us a lot of $$. We love it so much it turned out FANTASTIC 🤩🤩!!! Thank you so much Sarah, my sis says thank you to!!
Can I use lactose free whole milk?
Lactose free milk will not work here because the beneficial bacteria really need that lactose sugar to create the yogurt!
My InstaPot has a yogurt setting. Do you recommend using it?
While I haven’t tested it in an InstaPot, I think it would work! 🙂