How to make fresh yogurt in a slow cooker that is more probiotically and therapeutically active for your gut than any store brands.
My somewhat sobering review of the best and worst brands of store yogurtย has apparently resulted in some folks considering a switch to homemade.
If this is your thought process too because not a single yogurt brand is optimal (grassfed, organic, non-homogenized milk, 24-hour, no additives), I would recommend slow cooker yogurt as an ideal solution.
Most of us have this type of appliance already as it makes dinner a snap on busy days. In fact, nearly everyone I know who does a lot of home cooking has one.
Boom!
No need to buy another appliance to clutter up the kitchen countertop!
Making Yogurt in a Slow Cooker
Convenient, easy, and infinitely more nutritious, making yogurt in a slow cooker is also more probiotically active than nearly all brands from the store, organic included.
Yogurt made in a slow cooker is perfect for gut healing diets like GAPS and SCD.
It is also optimal for those on a ketogenic diet because it is much lower in carbs than store brands.
You donโt even need to buy starter culture!
What Type of Milk to Use
If you choose to forgo starter culture to save money, I recommend using dairy milk for making slow cooker yogurt.
Coconut yogurt requires a dairy free starter cultureย for the fermentation to take properly, in my experience.
With that in mind, which type of milk is best?
Of course, unpasteurized grass-fed milk is the most nutritious as it is completely unprocessed with all the nutrients, probiotics and enzymes intact.
However, not everyone can get easily obtain this type of milk. (1)
If that is your situation, I would recommend finding non-homogenized, aka cream top milk that is vat pasteurized and preferably packaged in glass.
Most health food stores can order some for you if they donโt already carry it on the shelf. Natural by Nature is a good organic grass-fed brand to ask for (be sure to specify the cream-top milk), although Iโm sure there are plenty of others!
To Heat or Not to Heat
Yogurt made from raw milk that is heated no higher than 117 ยฐF/47 ยฐC during the fermentation process is the best of the best. This is because all enzymes and probiotics are preserved.
However, the results can be somewhat unpredictable.
This is because the probiotics naturally present in raw milk compete with the yogurt cultures during the fermentation process.
When the fermentation is successful, raw milk yogurt is a bit thinner than pasteurized yogurt. The texture is reminiscent of homemade dairy kefir.
Sometimes, the fermentation fails and you end up with sour milk most useful for cooking or baking.
When I make raw milk yogurt in my slow cooker, it turns out perfectly. However, in your neck of the woods, it might be less dependable.
If you want to ensure that your yogurt is very thick and perfect every time, I would suggest to boil the raw milk for a minute or two and then cool down to 110ย ยฐF/43 ยฐC before you put it in the crockpot and add the cultures. Yes, this will destroy the probiotics.
But, the end result is more consistent with the scoopable texture many people prefer. Little damage to the milk proteins occurs from the slow heating process on the stovetop unlike the violent denaturing that occurs with regular or UHT pasteurization.
So, the decision is up to you. If you are using raw milk, the results are less predictable, although I can say that in my experience, slow cooker raw yogurt turns out amazing!
I hope this discussion makes sense! If you have further questions about it, please let me know in the comments.
With that, here is my recipe for making yogurt in a slow cooker. You can use either a crockpot or a Vita-Clay.
24 Hour Crockpot Yogurt
Crockpot yogurt is a bit more complicated than using other types of slow cookers like the Vita-Clay because some models donโt have a setting that keeps the milk at a constant 100-110 ยฐF(38-43 ยฐC).
Here are the suggested steps for making yogurt in a crockpot.
- Pour 2 quarts of milk into the crockpot, put on the lid and turn on low.
- After 2.5 hours, turn the crockpot off.
- Let the milk cool for 2-3 hours, checking the temperature after 2 hours with a food thermometer.
- When the milk is 110 ยฐF/43 ยฐC, whisk in 5 tablespoons of plain, whole milk organic yogurt or a packet of starter powder.
- Put the lid back on and wrap the crockpot in a thick bath towel.
- Leave for 24 hours.
- Spoon out yogurt into glass jars and refrigerate.
While this recipe works, there is some risk based on whether the milk will stay warm enough for 24 hours to ferment properly.
Temperature variations in your kitchen based on season and location leave open the possibility of fermentation failure.
For this reason, I recommend making slow cooker yogurt in a Vita-Clay. This reduces the risk of fermentation failure to virtually zero because the temperature remains constant atย 110 ยฐF/43 ยฐC throughout the fermentation period. No enzymes are destroyed at this temperature, by the way, in case you choose to use unpasteurized milk.
If you must make yogurt in a crockpot, I would suggest doing it only during the warmer months!
How to Make Slow Cooker Yogurt
Method for making yogurt in a slow cooker that is more nutritious, lower in carbs and more probiotically active than any store brands.
Ingredients
- 1 quart grassfed milk raw or low temp pasteurized/non-homogenized
- 5 Tbl plain whole yogurt
- 4 Tbl 100% fruit jam optional
Instructions
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Add milk to Vita-Clay pot and stir in the plain whole milk yogurt.
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Put on the lid and turn on the yogurt setting.
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Leave for 24 hours. Note: If you are using the larger Vita-Clay models, you will have to reset the timer after 9 hours. The medium-sized andย small slow cooker modelย (this is the one shown in the photo above), will continuously warm the milk at 110 F/ 43 C for 24 hours without resetting the timer.
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When the yogurt is finished, turn off the Vita-Clay and leave on the counter until room temperature. If making fruit yogurt, spoon in the optional jam and blend with a handheld blender. Enjoy some warm โฆ itโs amazing!
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Place the pot in the refrigerator and chill for 2 hours or longer.
-
Transfer the yogurt into a glass mason jar and store in the refrigerator.
Recipe Video
Recipe Notes
I recommend using fruit jam that does not contain added sugar.
Be sure to reserve 5 tablespoons of your finished yogurt to start the next batch!
I am so excited to try my new Vita Clay yogurt maker…thank-you for the recommendation! I do have a question about using raw milk….which we drink all the time…and the recipe included in the VitaClay. Their process is to heat first to 180ยฐand then after cooling, add the culture to the milk and put it all into the clay pot to finish the process. I would rather not heat my raw milk as I’d like to keep as much of the natural enzymes as possible. I also don’t have any yogurt in my fridge right now, but i do have yogurt cultures so that may make a difference also. I’m a bit confused…if you can’t tell. ๐ Any advice you can offer me would be SO appreciated.
I never heat the raw milk to 180 degrees before making the yogurt in the Vitaclay. Then, it is no longer raw milk yogurt! As you can see from the recipe in this post, you just put in the raw milk into the Vitaclay (I use it cold right out of the fridge), add starter (yogurt starter powder works the same as actual yogurt), select “yogurt” setting, and ferment for 24 hours. Done.
Hi Sarah:I had a question.I used your raw milk yogurt recipe to make yogurt with non homogenized milk and just heated it to 100 degrees and wrapped the mason jar in a cloth the same way you instruct in the drinkable raw yogurt recipe and left it on the counter for 24 hrs.My question is whether it is safe to eat being that is a low temp pasteurized and I left it on the counter.It did turn into yogurt but not sure if 100 degrees was too low for a pasteurized milk to be heated.Thank you for your knowledge and answer.
I see you mentioned something about using coconut milk instead of raw milk. I have yet to drink any kind of milk due to a dairy sensitivity (I think I should get retested, just in case Iโm in the clear) for over 15 years. Would there be different directions/measurements for this method outside of finding a coconut-based starter? Maybe the So Delicious brand?
So Delicious is not a healthy brand (too many additives). Here is how to make oat milk yogurt … using a nondairy starter. You can sub coconut milk.
https://www.thehealthyhomeeconomist.com/homemade-oat-milk-nondairy-yogurt/
Here’s how to find the best coconut milk brands in your area. https://www.thehealthyhomeeconomist.com/best-type-coconut-milk/
Received my VitaClay cooker (the small one) a while back in July…just in time for my dairy farmer to have their raw milk (has to be sold here as pet food) on hold until maybe Oct due to timing issues with the Mamas. So, I was able to snag a 1/2 gallon and I am finally making a batch of raw yogurt for my husband. He has yogurt almost every morning. I had some A2A2 organic from the store for the 5 tablespoons. Super excited to see how it turns out. Loving that I may be able to get him to eat raw yogurt by making it myself!
Some brands we buy are a bit watery, but if this is still too much I am guessing I can try straining it a bit for the whey, just like you do milk??
Yes you can remove some of the whey from the finished raw yogurt to thicken it up Greek-style if you like!
Sarah, is it ok to use raw yogurt I get from the farm as my starter?
I used organic whole milk and Trader Joe’s organic plain yogurt in the VitaClay for 24 hours and my yogurt came out very runny. How can I make it thicker?
Can I use my raw goats milk in replace if the cows milk?
Yes you can.
I make raw milk yogurt weekly and it turns out perfect every time with an extra step- here is how I make it for my 3 boys who eat it up!!
Dump ยฝ gallon cold raw milk in instant pot for 24 hours on yogurt function with about ยฝ cup whey from previous batch or 1-2 tablespoons (quality) store bought yogurt.
After the 24 hours is complete it will be partially set, the fat will be at the top and it will be slightly separated and a bit of whey will be around the edges. I use my immersion blender to blend it all into a smooth consistency.
Place a restaurant size coffee filter in a colander and put the colander in a bowl, add the yogurt to separate the whey. I usually leave it overnight (in the refrigerator) and the strained yogurt ends up looking like sour cream in the coffee filter.
Carefully take out the coffee filter and put it in a bowl making sure to fully scrape all the yogurt from the filter. Add back a cup or so of the whey and stir, mixing back in as much as you want to get the consistency that you like. Then use the immersion blender again to make it smooth and creamy. There it is!!
I usually have about 4-5 cups of whey left over and I use this in recipes that call for buttermilk, like waffles or pancakes, as well as smoothies, or mix it in with my dogโs food. Donโt forget to save about half a cup for the next batch!
Not sure if you’ll see this so long after your original post. Do you have a source for unbleached coffee filters in the extra large size? I haven’t been able to find them.
I just got my Vita clay. Yayy. I’m finally going to give yogurt making a try. Thanks for the tips! Since this is my first batch… for my 5 tbl of yogurt, I’m debating on whether to use a yogurt starter ( Traditional yogurt starter by cultures for health) or a store bought yogurt (Maple hill or Cascadian farms). I know you mentioned we can use either in your posts. For a newbie to yogurt making who prefers thicker yogurt, any advice on which starter I should go with ๐
Here are the recommended ways to thicken yogurt. https://www.thehealthyhomeeconomist.com/plant-based-yogurt-thickeners/
I think using store yogurt as the starter is easiest in my opinion.