How to Make Greek Yogurt

Learning how to make Greek yogurt has changed my life! Packed with protein and calcium, homemade Greek yogurt is creamy, delicious and so easy to make. Eat it plain or customize it with your favorite fruit and a touch of honey for a healthy breakfast or a satisfying snack.

If you’re wondering how to make Greek yogurt, I’ve got a secret to tell you: IT’S EASY!

It takes awhile from start to finish, but most of the time consists of the ingredients sitting there, turning itself into yogurt. Yes, you read that correctly. The ingredients do most of the heavy lifting. Your actual hands-on work is minimal. 

This homemade yogurt is made by mixing milk with a little bit of yogurt. Then, the magic begins. With enough time and patience, you end up with MORE YOGURT!

And here’s the really cool part: Your homemade Greek yogurt is about half the price of the store-bought kind. If you’re someone who likes to start each day with a yummy bowl of yogurt, you’re going to save some serious moolah by making it yourself.

You don’t need super-fancy kitchen gear to make your own Greek yogurt, but I strongly recommend 2 items:

1. An instant read thermometer (Less than $15 on Amazon)
2. Cheesecloth (Less than $5 on Amazon)

The thermometer lets you know when your milk has cooled to the precise temperature while cooking. The cheesecloth is for straining your yogurt, turning it from regular to Greek!

WHAT IS GREEK YOGURT?

If you hadn’t noticed, Greek yogurt has been on a mission to conquer the galaxy. Or at least the dairy aisle. Seriously, you can’t swing a bag of oranges in a grocery store without hitting it. But what is it, exactly?

Greek yogurt is like concentrated yogurt. It’s yogurt with a higher milk content, but with much of the water strained out. The result is a thicker and more tangy yogurt. It is lower in carbs, sugar, and sodium, and higher in protein than regular yogurt.

INGREDIENTS – WHAT YOU NEED

All you need to make yogurt is milk (1%, 2%, nonfat, or whole) and some “starter” yogurt to provide the active cultures. Add some fruit and honey to customize the flavor. Ligonberry peach? Why not! Pineapple passion fruit? Go for it!

HOW TO MAKE GREEK YOGURT – Step by Step

Pour gallon of milk into a large pot (Reserve 1/4 cup of milk for later). Bring the pot just to a boil, and then turn off the heat immediately.

Let milk cool until the temperature reaches 100 degrees. Remove the film on the top.

While milk cools off, mix 1/4 cup of plain yogurt and the reserved 1/4 cup milk in a separate bowl.

When the cooked milk finally cools to 100 degrees, add in the yogurt/milk mixture. Mix it up gently but thoroughly, then cover the pot with a lid. Wrap pot in a towel, and leave in your oven with the oven light on only for overnight or 16 hours. When the time is up, presto: you magically have yogurt!!!

You can stop right here and you have regular yogurt, or you can strain it further if you want Greek yogurt. Using a colander lined with cheesecloth or flour sack towel, start draining your yogurt. The goal is to separate the solid yogurt from the liquid. If it looks like a wet, white blob, you’re doing great.

Every few hours either gently squeeze the cheesecloth or use a spoon to stir the yogurt blob to help it to drain faster.

After about 6 hours you have nice, thick Greek yogurt. Opa!

Pour into Tupperware and chill and transfer to the fridge to chill. Enjoy plain, or with chopped fruit and honey.

It lasts in the fridge for about 2 weeks. If you’re using some of the yogurt as a starter for the next batch, make it within 1 week.

CAN I MAKE GREEK YOGURT FROM ALMOND MILK?

Not with this recipe. My recipe was created using cow milk. It might work with other animal milk, such as goat milk. It definitely won’t work with non-dairy milk. There are other recipes for almond, coconut, soy, etc. You’ll need to do a little research to find one you like.

CAN YOU FREEZE IT?

You can, however…

Heaven knows I love to freeze food. And while it’s possible to freeze Greek yogurt, I just can’t recommend it in good conscience. You won’t have any issues in terms food safety, but the final product will most likely have a different texture and mouth feel than you’re expecting. As an ingredient in Homemade Yogurt Pops or Healthy Popsicles, it freezes just fine. But as a stand-alone food item, it is just so much better when it’s enjoyed fresh. 

(If you absolutely have to freeze your home made Greek yogurt, portion it into an ice cube tray, then pop out a few cubes as needed. No more than a couple of months in the freezer, however).

PRO TIPS/NOTES

When adding fruit to your yogurt, fresh or frozen each work well. Frozen fruit gives you more consistency with the flavor/ripeness (notice how sour frozen strawberries are always sweet?).

The size of the fruit pieces is up to you, but the fruit typically found in yogurt is chopped to about the size of raisins. I like to leave the yogurt plain, then add fruit and honey just before eating. This lets me enjoy different flavor combinations throughout the week, rather than 7 days in a row of raspberry yogurt.

Save some yogurt in Tupperware to use as the starter for the next time you make it. You’ll never have to buy store-bought yogurt again!

If the yogurt doesn’t end up with the right consistency you were hoping for, don’t throw it out! You can use it in dozens of easy recipes, like smoothies, sauces, or as a substitute for sour cream.

WHAT ELSE CAN YOU DO WITH YOGURT?

• Make this Easy Spinach Artichoke Dip.
• Mix this satisfying Strawberry Oatmeal Smoothie.
• Create this phenomenal Freezer Friendly Baked Tandoori Chicken.
• Make this No Guilt Peanut Butter Chocolate Smoothie.
• Bake these amazing Homemade Muffins.

If you make this recipe, I would love to see it! Snap a picture of it and share it with me on Instagram using the hashtag #happymoneysaver and tagging me @happymoneysaver.

This recipe was first posted Jan 24, 2013, but has been updated with new photos and better detailed instructions & tips on January 12th, 2021.