Cultures for Health Vegan Yogurt Starter Culture | 4 Packets Direct-Set Active Cultures | DIY Dairy Free Yogurt from Soy Milk, Oat Milk & Other Plant Based Milk | Vegan Probiotic Yogurt for Gut Health

The perfect answer to our first venture in making yogurt

I have been making yogurt from soymilk in my Instant Pot for several years. A month or two ago I started making it in jars inside the Instant Pot, which is terrific because I don't have any cleanup of the Instant Pot itself. I started with some probiotics from a local grocery store, and the first batch was a little watery, but, as I had read would happen, subsequent batches were thicker and thicker when I used the previous batch as the starter culture.Then I read the reviews of this product, which indicated it would produce perfect, thick yogurt from the start. So I ordered some, and did a little experiment. I put 4 jars in my Instant Pot. One had this new probiotic mixed into the soymilk. One had some yogurt from my previous batch mixed into the soymilk. Two jars had both.10 hours later, the 3 jars that had some of my previous yogurt were all thickened up, while the jar that had this starter was still almost completely liquid. I never saw anything that bad using the store-bought probiotics. I then added some previous yogurt to it, and put it back for another 10 hours, after which it was thick and perfect, like the others.I will grant that I did not follow the instructions on the package, I just used my normal method in the Instant Pot. If this is your method, I'd suggest you will be better off starting with basic probiotics from your local store.

Here's mine. Its still being perfected. Feedback appreciated ----I use an Instant Pot to make Vegan Yogurt, because once I press the Yogurt button and set the time, I don't have to do anything to it till its done. It can't scald because the temp never gets that high. The Instant Pot Yogurt button defaults to 8 hours, but I increase the time to around 12 hours for dairy yogurt, and 16 hours for vegan yogurt. You can always take it out early, or add time. But you don't want to run out of time and then have to heat it up again if you can avoid that. I hear slow cookers also work but have not tried it.For vegan yogurts I use "enhanced" corn starch to thicken, and the right thickener is essential. I'm still experimenting, but my most recent attempt made a very thick vegan yogurt. Seach "clear gel powder corn starch" to find the "enhanced" version of corn starch on Amazon. It works best so far -- the only downside is that you need more heat to mix in the corn starch, so I heat my vegan milk to using the Saute option on the Instant Pot, and in this case you do have to watch the pot and change it over to the Yogurt setting before it scalds, but the thickener dissolves nicely. There are other types of thickeners that may work well too. I haven't tried Pectin yet.The other essential seems to be to use the right non-dairy milk product, with a very high protein content. I have had the most success so far with Ripple brand, which is made with Pea Protein. There is a Silk brand product called "Silk Protein and Nut Milk" that is made with Almonds & Cashews & Pea Protein that also worked well for me. I can be hard to find but should get easier as pea protein products get more established in the market.I also drain off the whey after it cools and before it goes in the fridge. (Save it for cooking soup or baking or pour it down the drain). It comes out fairly thick and thickens more in the fridge.My evolving recipe so far is:o 2 qts of high quality high protein non dairy milk.o 3/8ths to 1/2 cup coconut sugaro 2 tbsp of vanilla flavor, or 1/2 tbsp of vanilla paste (optional)o 3/8ths cup of enhanced corn starcho one packet of vegan yogurt startero 2 tbsp of Agar Agar powder (optional)In an Instant Pot:o heat 1/2 qt of the milk at the Saute setting for about 15 minutes, making sure it does not scald, then mix in the thickener.]o add the rest of the milko mix in the remaining ingredientso set the pot to the Yogurt setting, and increase the time to 16 hours.o check to see how thick it is periodically after about 12 hourso turn off the pot after you are happy with the thickness.o after it cools for while, drain off the whey for 15 minutes using cheese clotho scoop out the yogurt, without stirring it, into the containers for the fridgeYield for 2 qts of non-dairy milk after draining the whey is about 1.8 to 1.9 qts of yogurt.

The instructions were not great, but after experimenting, it finally came out perfect using the Instant Pot. I used Westlife Organic Unsweetened Plain Soy Milk--4 cups. Pour into a large glass measuring cup. Add 1 package starter. Gently whisk to dissolve. Pour into 3 pint-size glass jars; screw on lids. Place jars into Instant Pot steel pot. Set for Yogurt, and increase time to 12 hours. Refrigerate. It did not work when set to 8 hours and it was also a little runny at 10 hours, but 12 hours was perfect. Very easy.

When the cultures work, they are excellent. I make the first batch then make multiple batches using reserved yogurt from the first. It can carry on for quite some time this way. However, this is the second time that I have received a package of cultures that fail. The milk (same milk) remains liquid milk after the dependable Instapot treatment. The sell by date on my latest lot is Oct. 20 2025 and I've kept it in the fridge consistently for storage. I can't afford to purchase a product that doesn't work in the end and, sadly, will look for alternatives.