Rich, creamy, and packed with nutrition, making goat yogurt is simple and easy! You don’t need any fancy equipment or special techniques to enjoy your own homemade goat milk yogurt.
I’ve gotten really into making yogurt these days! From coconut yogurt to regular homemade yogurt, it seems like we always have a few jars in the fridge and a few more fermenting.
Whether you like the nutrition and digestibility of goat milk or raise goats yourself, there are so many amazing reasons to use goat milk instead of cow milk. This yogurt is smooth, creamy, and tangy and will be your new favorite breakfast or snack!
Why You’ll Love this Recipe
Simple and easy – It’s not complicated to make delicious yogurt – you don’t even need a yogurt maker!
Clean eating breakfast or snack – Healthy breakfasts and snacks can get tricky, but this yogurt is the perfect solution.
Versatile food – Yogurt not only makes a delicious breakfast or snack, but it’s also perfect to use in recipes like yogurt dill sauce or moist apple oat muffins.
Kid-friendly – Yogurt is one of the best foods for kids! Top with some homemade granola and berries to make a snack they’ll ask for over and over again. (My toddler asks for this almost daily.)
Does Making Homemade Yogurt Save Money?
Yes! This was a big reason I started making it in the first place.
When you make yogurt, the amount you end up with is only slightly less than the amount of milk you started with. With this in mind, to figure out how much you could save, simply compare the cost of the milk you buy with the cost of yogurt.
I have found that yogurt pretty much always sells for more than milk, so making my own yogurt is extremely cost-efficient.
How to Store
Goat yogurt will keep for about two weeks in the fridge.
However, if you started your yogurt with an heirloom starter, you will need to make your next batch within one week for best results.
Can I Freeze?
Yes, you can freeze goat yogurt, but it won’t have the best texture once it thaws. If you freeze it, it’s best to eat it still frozen.
Also, keep in mind that freezing can impact the active cultures in it. While it won’t necessarily kill them all immediately, they will become dormant and the numbers will decrease the longer the yogurt is frozen.
Starter Options
When making goat yogurt you have three starter options, all of which have pros and cons.
Store-Bought Yogurt
You can use a small amount of plain store-bought yogurt to start your batch of homemade yogurt. If you do this, make sure that it has no additives, sweeteners, or flavors and contains live active cultures.
Pros:
- Easily obtained (you may already have some in your fridge)
- Doesn’t require you to maintain a starter
Cons:
- You have to purchase more for each batch you want to make. If you start your goat yogurt with store-bought yogurt, you cannot use your goat yogurt to start your next batch. It may seem to work, but the results will be unpredictable and get increasingly worse as time goes on.
- Various factors outside of your control (or knowledge) can determine how many live active cultures are actually in the starter yogurt. This can lead to unpredictable results.
Commercial Yogurt Starter
This is another popular method for making yogurt. You can often buy commercial yogurt starters at health food stores or online. Cultures for Health is my favorite brand for a reliable commercial starter.
Pros:
- There’s no need to check the ingredients for additives that may be in store-bought yogurt.
- You don’t need to worry if there are any live active cultures.
- Consistent results (if you are using the same ingredients and technique every time)
Cons:
- Using a commercial yogurt starter is the most expensive option for starting goat yogurt.
- You have to purchase more for each batch of yogurt you make.
Heirloom Yogurt Starter
This is my favorite type of yogurt starter! Cultures for Health has an heirloom Bulgarian starter that I use to start my goat and cow yogurt, and I highly recommend it.
Pros:
- Lasts indefinitely. You can use each batch of goat yogurt to start the next batch, and there’s no need to purchase more starter. If you want to be self-sufficient in your yogurt-making, heirloom starters are the way to go!
- Most affordable option to start yogurt. Since you never need to buy more starter, this is by far the cheapest method.
Cons:
- Requires upkeep of your starter. In order to keep making batch after batch of yogurt without buying a new starter, you have to make sure the yogurt is properly stored and not contaminated or you’ll ruin the starter. (A good tip for this is to as soon as your current batch of yogurt is done, pull out enough to start the next batch and store it separately from the rest of the yogurt.)
- You will need to make yogurt at least once a week in order to maintain the freshness of the starter. (There are a few tricks if you have to skip a week or two, but they can be unreliable.)
- Can lead to unreliable results if your starter gets contaminated or old.
Tips for Thick Yogurt
Goat yogurt is always thinner than cow milk yogurt and it doesn’t have any thickeners that are often in store-bought yogurt. This creates yogurt that is naturally runny and almost drinkable. However, there are a few things you can do to help your goat yogurt thicken.
Try another starter – Different yogurt starters will make a difference in how yogurt thickens. You can try different brands of yogurt to use as a starter, use a commercial starter, or buy an heirloom starter. Do not try mixing starters as this can upset the bacteria balance and even create yogurt that is dangerous to eat.
Heat milk longer – Holding the milk at approximately 180 degrees for 30 minutes will denature the proteins and help the yogurt to thicken.
Strain the yogurt – Another way to thicken goat yogurt is to strain off the whey using a cheesecloth. If you use this method, don’t throw out the whey! There are many wonderful uses for it.
Use cow milk – If you’re not satisfied with runnier yogurt, you can always use cow milk to create thick homemade yogurt.
Violet’s Tips for Serving
This yogurt is delicious topped with homemade granola and a drizzle of honey! You can also add some berries for additional flavor.
FAQs
Yes, just like other fermented foods, making yogurt is a safe process. If it smells good, tastes pleasantly sour, and has thickened slightly, it should be safe to eat.
Yes, the fermentation time for yogurt can be adjusted slightly based on your preference. Most people prefer the flavor between 8 and 12 hours, but others let it ferment for up to 24 hours! I’ve even made 30-hour goat yogurt that was delicious!
This is often caused by fermenting slightly too hot or for too long. It can also be caused by heating the milk too quickly. You can simply whisk the lumps into the yogurt. It’s still safe to eat.
This is whey, and it’s a natural byproduct of making yogurt. I whisk it into my yogurt, but you can also strain it out with a cheesecloth. Excessive amounts of whey are often caused by jostling the yogurt before it’s set or fermenting it too hot or too long.
First, goat yogurt is naturally runny and it has no thickeners like most store-bought yogurt does. It should, however, still be thicker than milk. If it’s still very much a liquid, try letting it ferment for at least 12 hours and then check again. If it still hasn’t set, most likely either your starter didn’t have enough active cultures or you didn’t ferment it at a high enough temperature.
Tools You May Need
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Ingredients
Step-By-Step Instructions
Step 1: First, preheat your oven to 180 degrees.
Then, pour the milk into a pot and heat slowly on the stovetop on medium-low heat, stirring frequently. Once it gets close to boiling and bubbles begin to form around the edges (180 degrees if you have a thermometer), place it in the oven for 30 minutes.
Step 2: After 30 minutes, turn off the oven and leave the door ajar so it can cool.
If you are using yogurt as a starter, go ahead and remove it from the fridge so it can come to room temperature.
Remove the hot milk from the oven and let it cool without stirring until you can move your finger back and forth 10 times without getting burnt (it will still be pretty hot). This should be about 110 degrees.
Step 3: Now stir in the room-temperature yogurt starter.
Step 4: Then, place the lid on the pot and wrap it in a large towel to help it stay insulated.
Put the pot of yogurt wrapped in the towel inside the oven, and turn on the oven light. Then let it ferment undisturbed for approximately 8-12 hours.
Step 5: Once the yogurt is does fermenting, remove it from the oven. There may be some liquid whey in the pot along with the yogurt, so whisk it into the yogurt until it’s smooth.
Step 6: Place the yogurt in an airtight container (such as a mason jar) in the fridge. As it sits in the fridge it will continue to thicken slightly for the first number of hours.
Enjoy your delicious homemade goat yogurt!
If you try this recipe, let me know in the comments! Tag me on Instagram @violet_rightathome
More Clean Eating Breakfast Recipes
Apple Oat Muffins (Gluten-Free Oat Flour Muffins)
Gluten-Free Strawberry Dutch Baby
Ginger Smoothie with Strawberries
Oat Flour Banana Bread (Gluten Free)
Goat Yogurt
Ingredients
- 1/2 gallon goat milk
- 1/4 cup yogurt or powdered starter
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 180 degrees.
- Pour the goat milk into a pot and heat slowly on the stovetop on medium-low heat, stirring frequently.
- Once it gets close to boiling and bubbles begin forming around the edges, place it in the oven for 30 minutes.
- Turn off the oven, leaving the door ajar so it can cool.
- If you are using yogurt as a starter, remove it from the fridge so it can come to room temperature.
- Remove the hot goat milk from the oven, and let it cool without stirring until you can move your finger back and forth 10 times without getting burnt (it will still be pretty hot).
- Once the milk has cooled enough, stir in the room-temperature yogurt starter.
- Place the lid on the pot and wrap it in a large towel.
- Put the pot in the oven and turn on the oven light.
- Let the yogurt ferment undisturbed for approximately 8-12 hours.
- Remove the goat yogurt from the oven.
- There will likely be some liquid whey in the pot along with the goat yogurt, so whisk it into the yogurt until it's smooth.
- Place the yogurt in an airtight container in the fridge. As it sits in the fridge it will continue to thicken slightly for the first number of hours.
Notes
Goat yogurt starter options:
- Store-bought yogurt with active cultures that doesn’t have any flavorings or sweeteners.
- Homemade yogurt from your previous batch. Make sure that it’s not older than a week! Also, if you started your first batch from store-bought yogurt, you will likely only be able use your homemade yogurt as a starter for a few batches before it stops working.
- Powdered commercial or heirloom starter. Commercial starters are for one-time use. However, heirloom cultures will allow you to continue using each batch of yogurt to start the next indefinitely.
Nutrition
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My whole family loves this goat yogurt! If you have any questions on making it, please let me know. I’d love to help out!