Instant Pot Greek Yogurt!

Last night I folded a bunch of laundry, watched an episode of The Magicians, read 24% of Go Ask Alice (thank you, Goodreads, for giving me percentages!), and started some homemade yogurt in my Instant Pot.
Around 12:32am, just as I was dozing off, we had a pretty good earthquake, here in AK. 8.0, south of us. The warning notifications were going nuts about tsunami formations, family and friends were concerned, I was concerned for family and friends who might also be affected, and I finally got to sleep around 1:45am. 

Yes, mine was in there too

Then, I was up again at 5:30 to reset the IP for another hour, took a short nap, got back up to strain the yogurt, because Greek yogurt is the BEST, and took another nap while it did it's thing. To say I am tired is a severe understatement. I feel like I pulled an all-nighter and have to stay up for another one tonight. The good thing is, I'll probably crash pretty hard tonight. I can't wait for bedtime!

Yup, definitely needed that extra little nap today! Still not quite 100%, but I was a much happier, and more motivated, person after. 
So much so, we read 4 chapters, including the Prologue, in our family book: Ranger's Apprentice book 1. K2 told K1 to hide it in his room until tomorrow so I don't try to read ahead. Smart move kid, smart move. I probably would have. 

Let's discuss this homemade yogurt, shall we? 

I'll admit, I was pretty nervous to try it. My AKBFF said she has made it before, and several times since getting her IP, and I knew it could be done. I'd just never done it. 
It was so easy! I'm seriously kicking myself because I'd never done it before. Even without the IP, just using your stove and oven, it can be done! 

Before I go any further, I'm going to say that I did not come up with this recipe on my own. I had some help from two different places (here and here). They're very similar, so I knew I was on the right path. One thing I did differently: I used a gallon of 1% milk. I admit, it wasn't as thick and creamy as I expected, but it is good. 
Be prepared, this recipe is not a set it and forget it type. You do need to be around, for the most part, in the beginning to make sure the milk comes to temperature. 
I cleaned my inner pot, swapped out for a new seal just for making yogurt/cheeses, sterilized the pot (1C water, close lid, close vent, steam for 3mins, empty water= done!) and then set up my stuff. 

All you need for the first step is a gallon of milk and your Instant Pot. Pour the whole gallon in (with 1% milk, a whole gallon yielded about 7 cups of yogurt in the end), press "yogurt" twice until you see it say "boil," close the lid (this part isn't too picky since you can open and stir at will as you go along) and let it go. 

It takes about 45 minutes until the IP talks at you and switches to "yogurt" mode again. That's when you have to act quickly. Granted, I was able to shower and finish up a few of my Usborne business things until that time, but don't forget about it! 
I opened the lid, gave it a good stir with my silicone whisk, and checked the temperature. It said 145℉. No good. I need it at 180℉ at least. I quickly turned on "saute" and messaged my AKBFF for advice. After being reassured this has happened to her before, normally when her house is cold, and that she did exactly as I was doing, sauteing on low and stirring until it got to temperature, I relaxed a bit. If you aren't familiar with my kitchen you probably wouldn't know that the best usable, out of the way, space I have is on the counter, next to the sink, in front of my kitchen window. Yea, it's a tad drafty there. Especially considering I keep our backdoor open almost year round. (Yes, we have a storm door)

Don't get set on trying this and freak out if you assume the milk should be at temperature and it's not. I think using a gallon of milk, and possibly in a cooler part of the house, is a culprit in this. 
Once you reach your happy temperature, set the inner pot with milk in an empty sink (turn off the IP) and turn on the cold tap to start bringing the temperature down. No, don't pour water into the pot, you want to cool the milk down from the outside, not drown it. 

You'll need greek yogurt with live cultures, which you can pull out while you wait. Keep your thermometer handy. You can order some online, there is a wonderful place I've heard of, and plan to use soon for other things, here. OR you can purchase some plain Greek yogurt at the store, one small 7oz. container will do, just make sure it has LIVE CULTURES listed in the ingredients. *Note: the 7oz. container is enough to make 2 batches!* 

Once your milk gets down to roughly 110℉-113℉ set your inner pot back into the IP base, skim out about 1 cup of milk into a 2 cup measure, add 2 heaping tablespoons of the Greek yogurt to the measure and mix really well. Once you are satisfied with no clumps, mix the yogurt milk back into the inner pot. Put the lid on, double check the vent is closed, and hit the "yogurt" button until it displays "8:00." This means it will sit and the cultures will do their thing, for 8 hours. You can increase the time by pushing the "more" button. I ended up letting mine go for 9 hours total. It counts UP not down, so don't worry when you see the display at "0:00". 

Have I mentioned you should do this in the evening so you aren't waiting on this all day? If not, then now is the time to tell you, start it around 9pm, if you have an 11pm bedtime and don't like to wake up early (like me). 
When the 8/9 hours are up, get your colander/strainer/cheesecloth/nut milk bag and a large bowl ready. You are going to dump the new yogurt into the fine mesh strainer (or whatever you are using) over the large bowl, or directly into the sink if you don't plan to save the whey (it's packed with protein and has a ton of uses, so keep it if you can!). Make sure the yogurt is draining from the strainer into the bowl, try not to make a mess (I totally did, it was not graceful at all) and if you need a nap, like I did, go lay back down for 2-3 hours. The longer you let it strain, the thicker and tangier it gets (that's what I've heard). I let mine go for 3 hours. 

Once that is done, you're done! 

OR

You're me and you like to complicate things. 

I had 7 cups of whey in the bowl when all was said and done. I put that into a container and stuck it in the fridge for later. I see whey pancakes and a yummy dog food gravy for my furbabies in the next day or so. I cleaned out the bowl, dumped the yogurt in there, scraping as much of the bits off the nut milk bag I used as I could, and measured. Roughly 7 cups of yogurt! WOW!

I poured half into a jar I hastily labeled "plain" and the other half I added 4 tablespoons of honey and 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract. I mixed like crazy and then tossed that into the other jar, labeled "honey vanilla."  Stuck it all in the fridge, after pictures of course, tossed the dishes in the sink because I didn't want to think about doing dishes just yet, and gave myself a mental high-five for making my own Greek yogurt! 

Then I worried I added too much extra to the flavored yogurt. And I worried some more. 
I shouldn't have. Like, at all. The flavored yogurt has gotten the seal of approval, and then some, from all the kiddos, and the plain yogurt was AMAZING when added to macaroni and cheese tonight! 
Lil Monster had the honey vanilla yogurt after lunch for a snack, then the plain yogurt, with strawberry jam mixed in, for her chosen dessert after dinner. Lil Monster gushes over lots of things, but she took it to a whole new level tonight. Good job, self! 
Now, if only I had thought to buy another IP so I could make more than 7 cups of yogurt at a time... My hubs would probably have a cow. Not kidding. 

Below is the recipe, instructions, and links to all of the items I have and used for this recipe. I'm not trying to claim ownership of this recipe, it's clear that there are so many out there. I just took the first 2 I saw that appealed to me and kind of looked to make it as easy as possible for my maiden voyage. I am not disappointed! 

Recipe: 

1 Gallon 1% milk
2T (heaping) Greek yogurt with LIVE CULTURES

2t vanilla extract (optional)
4T honey-not clover per K1's request (optional)

Directions: 

1. Sterilize your clean Instant Pot, I have a 6qt., with 1C water on steam setting, closed valve, for 3 minutes. Dump water when cycle is complete.

2. Pour gallon of milk in IP, press "yogurt" button until "boil" appears. You have about 45 minutes to do as much as you can. GO! But listen for the IP tone when it wants to switch back to "yogurt." 

3. Use your thermometer to check the temperature. If it's not at 180℉, press "saute", make sure it's on low, then stir with silicone whisk and check the temp continuously until it gets where it's supposed to be. 

4. Set hot milk filled inner pot in empty sink, turn on cold tap water (do I need to say this again? Don't pour the water into the pot, just around it to cool it down). Stir and check temp until it reaches around 110℉-113℉. Set inner pot back into IP, scoop out 1 cup of milk, add your Greek yogurt, mix well.

5. Add yogurt milk back to IP, mix well, quickly. Turn IP back on, press "yogurt" until it says "8:00", or however long you want it to go, put the lid on it, make sure the valve is closed, and go to bed. 

6. Pour a cup of coffee I mean pour the milk into whatever strainer works for you, I used My Big Fat Nut Milk Bag (yes, I bought it because of the name), over a large bowl, and go nap for 2-3 hours. 



7. Save, or discard, the whey. (I won't judge, just don't tell me about it) Put your fabulously fresh Greek yogurt into a container, set it in the fridge to chill, and voila! You're done!

Or not.

8. For half of what you made, roughly 3.5 cups of yogurt, mix in 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract and 4 tablespoons of honey. Mix, mix, MIX! Place in airtight container and put it in the fridge. 

There you have it. Fresh, homemade Greek yogurt. 

*Side note: you don't have to strain the yogurt, if you don't want to. For 1% milk I would. If you don't strain then it's considered regular yogurt. The added step of straining is what makes it Greek yogurt. Using whole milk you may not need to strain it, just mix and put it in the fridge. Or strain it, then add whey back into the yogurt and mix until you get the consistency you prefer. 

I know, it sounds like a ton of work. It's not. Believe me. I'm thinking the first time is the worst, then it gets better because you know what to expect. That first time also helps you to gauge how much time you'll need for each step. 
Pat yourself on the back! You did it! 
Smile and know that you just made something, for about half the cost, if not less than, and you know EXACTLY what is in it. 

Now, go relax with a nice glass of wine and applaud yourself on a job well done!

*Disclosure: Some of the links are affiliate links, meaning, at no additional cost to you, I will earn a commission if you click and make a purchase.*