Help with homemade vegetable yogurt

Help with homemade vegetable yogurt - Faceless women in aprons cooking delicious pasta with fresh tomatoes standing at counter in modern kitchen

After making several batches of failed vegetable yogurt (10 is a good estimate), I'm at my wits end and running desperate.

My attempts have been with either coconut or almond milk. Coconut milk, I've tried homemade and canned with 68% coconut and only 4 ingredients; I also tried pureed fresh coconut but I couldn't achieve the right consistency in my blender. Almond milk, I've tried homemade and store bought with 5 ingredients.

Thickeners: I've tried tapioca starch, cornstarch and xanthan gum.

Probiotic: I'm using something called Beneflora. I'm confident in my probiotic, I know two people who use it with good results. But one of them is using a kitchen robot (I don't own one), the other lives in another country and the milks she uses aren't sold in my country.

I'm using a brand new yogurt maker and I culture anywhere between 8 and 12 hours. I've thought there may be an issue with the yogurt maker but I tried putting an oven thermomether in it and the temperature seemed right (around 40ºC). My oven doesn't have a light so the oven method is not a possibility.

The recipe that's closest to success is 1 can coconut milk, half a teaspoon xanthan gum, 1 teaspoon fructose and half a teaspoon probiotic. Add milk, xanthan gum and fructose and mix with a stick blender. Add probiotic and stir with a fork. Get it on the yogurt maker and culture for 9 hours.

When I finish mixing in the probiotc my milk is a dreamy, creamy consistency. But after I remove it from the yogurt maker, it's runny! And it doesn't thicken in the fridge.

What could I be doing wrong? I feel completely desperate. I bought a yogurt maker exclusively for this. And I'm determined to make this work. Let me know what you think. Thank you.



Best Answer

An update: the things I were the most confident with (my probiotic and my yogurt maker) were the ones malfunctioning. I was successful making yogurt with lactose free milk and homemade coconut milk using store bought lactose free yogurt as starter and a yogurt nest (basically a thermal bag made of fabric and cork). As for the almond milk I believe removing the peels will solve the problem. I've made 3 batches so far. Super happy!




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Why my homemade yogurt is watery?

Too hot or too cool will negatively impact the bacteria in youryogurt starter culture. You really need a yogurt maker. A possible cause of runny yogurt is the bacteria fermentation slowing down, becoming dormant or being killed by an uneven heat source. Fermenting for longer always results in a thicker yogurt anyway.

What to add to yogurt to make it taste better?

Plain Yogurt Add In #3: Extra Taste and/or Texture
  • cinnamon.
  • fresh mint.
  • pure vanilla extract, almond extract, or lemon extract (use sparingly as it's potent!)
  • slivered almonds or pistachios.
  • chia, hemp, or flaxseeds.
  • cocoa nibs.
  • naturally sweetened granola.
  • cocoa powder.




  • Chickpea Yogurt, Easy Thick Vegan Yogurt | Soy Free | Nut Free | Only 1 SINGLE INGREDIENT




    Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

    Images: Katerina Holmes, Katerina Holmes, Katerina Holmes, Angela Roma