As much as I loved dairy in my pre-AIP days yogurt was never super high on my list of dairy favorites. I would definitely pick cheese, ice cream, and butter over yogurt. However, yogurt can come in very handy for making sauces and adding that little extract tartness to certain dishes, it was also a good healthy “dessert” when mixed with some yummy berries or some cocoa powder (if reintroduced). However, without a yogurt maker I have never been able to experiment with making any non-dairy yogurt alternatives… until now! I received an instant pot over Christmas and I have not stopped using it since. I am fully in love with this kitchen tool! It makes bone broth in a matter of hours, steams salmon perfectly from frozen, makes pulled pork in an hour I mean it is amazing! So obviously I was excited to try out its yogurt feature also! It is a standard yogurt maker, in that it takes a while its not the instant part of the instant pot, but it works like a charm. My first take I was following some other recipes out there and the result was a frustrating, clumpy mess. So, I decided to use my food processor to achieve the smooth but thick quality I was looking for… worked like a charm! I also increased the cooking time over many standard recipes to give it a more tart flavor similar to Greek yogurt. The result was delicious. I was honestly surprised by how much I enjoyed it, since yogurt really hasn’t been high on my list of foods I miss, but having not experienced yogurt in two years I guess my taste buds were pretty happy!
Do you miss traditional yogurt? What was your favorite use for it? Tell me in the comments.
Instant Pot Coconut Milk Yogurt (AIP/Paleo)
Ingredients:
2 Cans of full fat Coconut Milk
4 Capsules of High Quality Probiotic
2 TBS of Grass-Fed Gelatin
1 TBS Raw Honey
1 tsp vanilla extract (optional, omit for AIP)
Directions:
Empty both cans of full fat coconut milk into the metal bowl of the instant pot. Plug in your instant pot, close and lock the lip and press the yogurt button, then press the adjust button until the display says boil. When the instant pot beeps, signaling that it is done with this step, turn it off, remove the lid and take out the metal reservoir. Using a Candy thermometer or a meat thermometer wait until the coconut milk has cooled to below 115 degrees, then empty the contents of your probiotic capsules into the milk and whisk to combine. Return the metal bowl back into the instant pot, close the lid and seal it and press the yogurt button again. Use the (+) button to adjust the time to 14 hours. (This is probably best done overnight) When the machine beeps, taste the yogurt to make sure it is tart. Then, empty it from the metal reservoir into a blender or food processor. With the food processor running slowly sprinkle in your gelatin. (I have found that this method leads to less clumping and a smoother yogurt). You can also add in your honey or vanilla extract at this time. Make sure that everything is well combined and smooth, then pour it into a glass container and place it into the fridge. Let it set for a few hours (2-4) to thicken. The water from the coconut milk may settle to the bottom, if you like thicker yogurt just leave it at the bottom. Save 4 TBS of the final product as your starter for your next batch (instead of using 4 more capsules of probiotic)! Enjoy.
71 Comments
Does it taste coconut?
slightly, but its not a strong taste.
When you say 2 cans of coconut milk , what size are the cans? How many ounces in each can?
about 14 oz
Interesting. Thank s for sharing.
Do you have to add honey? Or can you love it unsweetened?
Have it not love it. 🙂
I don’t have an Instant Pot but I do have a yogurt maker. Could I use that instead? If so, would there be any modifications?
yes, you can use that. No there wouldn’t be any modifications.
You don’t have to add honey, without it tastes the a coconuty greek yogurt.
Anyone try it with homemade coconut milk?
not that I know of
I was wondering the same thing. Did you try it?
Could this be made in an instant pot model without the yogurt button?
no, unfortunately not.
Just wondering why you have to take the metal liner out in order to test the temp of the coconut milk? I use my IP often and find that it is not easy to remove the metal liner while it is hot. Is there residual heat if you leave the liner in the IP unit? I’m very curious…. thank you for posting this!
it is just to help it cool quicker and get you to the ideal temperature.
Awesome. Thanks so much for your reply. 🙂
Okay. I made this and followed the steps. When I pulled my yogurt from the fridge it was solid like hard hello. What went wrong?? Can I fix it or do I have to start over?
Same here. Did you ever find a fix for this? I’m thinking if I just throw it in the blender with some fruit, it may smooth it out.
This happened to me, too! When first coming out of my instant pot it looked and tasted great! After being in the fridge… it’s a rubbery hard jello 🙁 any fixes?
reduce the amount of gelatin in your next batch.
How long does it take for the first boil? I am trying to determine what time to start this process in the evening. Also, if I prefer yogurt that isn’t quite as tart, would I set it for less than 14 hours. Oh yes, a couple more, my probiotic capsules are 25 Billion CFU would it still be 4 capsules? One last thing, how long does the starter keep?
how do you go about making this in a yogurt maker?
What are the instructions then? Thanks!
heeeeeeeeelllllllllllo!
She said above in response to another person that no changes were necessary in a regular yogurt maker.
I do not have any probiotic capsules. Can I use Plain greek yogurt that have on hand? I know it is dairy, but was trying to use it up.
I’m wondering this same thing…
If you’re not concerned about the trace of dairy that will be in the finished yogurt, any plain yogurt with active cultures should work — just use it the same as the instructions give for using the finished yogurt. It just won’t be technically dairy-free.
just to clarify for anyone else reading, using dairy based yogurt as starter would not be AIP compliant.
honey is antibacterial so it’s not the best choice of sweeter for yogurt
I’ve always used honey when making “pre-sweetened” yogurt and, surprisingly, it has never seemed to interfere with fermentation. I assume because it’s a small amount. But you can also just make it plain and sweeten it when you’re ready to use it. (I like stevia. Can’t remember for sure if that’s AIP, but I think so.)
stevia is not AIP, but thank you for sharing your experience!
Had anyone tried this recipe using almond milk? My son doesn’t like it with coconut milk. I’m just wondering if any changes need to be made to the recipe if I used almond milk.
Has anyone added fruit to this recipe? I’m not a fan of plain yogurt, but I love yogurt with fruit. Wondering if I need to add more gelatin, so it doesn’t get watery.
What if it doesn’t taste tart when it comes out? Does this mean it hasn’t worked? Mine came out with little lumpy bits on the surface in a slightly different colour :-S
it sounds like the probiotic didn’t take, unfortunately.
This is what happened to mine too 🙁
How long can you keep the reserved yogurt to use for the next batch? I assume it would need to be refrigerated?
I followed this recipe exactly and ended up with a solid white “jello”. I also tried a different recipe that only called for 1Tbsp of gelatin, and got the the same result. Any tips on how to keep it creamy and not solid?
Me, too! Solid white jello! Looks like some of the above posters had the same issue. Interesting that you tried 1 Tbsp and the same thing happened. Not sure what to try!! The flavor is great, but the consistency is clearly all wrong!
If it is too thick, reduce the gelatin by half next time.
Can we address this solid while Jello like issue? I don’t want to buy a bunch and have it wasted.
if you are worried about it being too thick, reduce the amount of gelatin by half.
I’d like to know what size cans are being used. The link goes to 8.5 oz cartons, not cans. So I don’t know if I should use 13.5 oz cans or 8.5 oz cartons. Recipes should ideally list the size of the container.
I used a 14 oz can. I will adjust the link, thank you for letting me know.
I believe that she said the 13.5 oz cans.
Does the instant pot need to be on venting or sealing while making yogurt?
it should be sealed
I made this and used 1 TBS grass fed gelatin – too jello like. Next time 1/2 TBS
Also way too tart- will cutting the cooking time to around 12 hrs solve this?
I wouldn’t recommend cutting the cooking time but you could add some honey or maple syrup or fruit after cooking to increase the sweetness.
how long can the yogurt keep in the fridge?
about 2 weeks.
Have u tried to use tapioca flour instead of gelatin… Just curious if that would work the same? Thank u for this I love my instant pot also and I love yogurt since I quit dairy and the store bought is very expensive. So thank u ?
I have not tried it, but I doubt it would work well. The two have very different qualities. However, if you try it and like it be sure to let me know!
Coconut milk in a carton, like regular milk or is this something different?
most coconut milk that is free of too many extra ingredients comes in a can.
What if I don’t want it to taste like Greek yogurt? What will I need to do?
Maybe you can tell me what’s going on. I made this recipe last night and now I have a pot full of yogurt water with a little cream floating on top.
it sounds like your starter didn’t take
Make sure you are using full fat coconut milk in the can and not the “lite” variety.
I tried this and let the yogurt go in the instant pot for 10 hours, and it’s still runny!!! (I modified the recipe to use 4 cans of coconut milk, and adjusted the amount of starter accordingly.) It tastes tart, though. I added two packets of gelatin as well. What went wrong??
This is not a very thick yogurt, if it tastes tart then your starter took and it did ferment. You may also need to just let it cool in order for the gelatin to thicken it.
I cooked mine for 14 hours and used very high quality probiotics and it does not taste tart.
Also, you are saying that this is not a thick yogurt. I am looking to make a very thick greek style yogurt like Anita’s. Any idea why mine would not ferment? Also how can I get a very thick texture?
Honey? Antibiotic properties in honey would kill of all the good stuff…no?
Can you do this in a crock pot like some regular dairy yogart recipes I have seen?
Do you think it is possible to make this recipe by boiling on a stovetop and then following your instructions and placing in a warm area in a glass jar? I do not have an instant pot or yogurt maker.
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