3-ingredient Homemade Cashew Yogurt is so easy to make. It's creamy, tangy, and delicious. Plus, this dairy-free yogurt contains probiotics just like dairy yogurt, but without unhealthy fats. You DO NOT need an Instant Pot to make this recipe. It works in an oven, on a countertop in warmer climates, or next to a broiler.
Cashew yogurt is my favorite vegan yogurt. I use it in place of yogurt in recipes, or enjoy it plain by the spoonful, or with fruit and granola. However, it's pricey and not widely available. This inspired me to create my own. This Homemade Cashew Yogurt turned out to be the perfect texture. It's thicker than the store-bought cashew yogurt brands I have tried, which tend to be thin and watery. This one is perfectly creamy and tastes amazing. Plus, it contains all clean ingredients – raw cashews, distilled water, and a starter (any yogurt with live bacterial cultures or probiotic capsules).
This homemade cashew yogurt recipe was inspired by my Easy Soy Milk Yogurt recipe. Use yogurt to make my Easy Vegan Tzatziki! It's also ideal for adding to curries and chilis. I add it to my High-Protein Chickpea and Lentil Curry, as well as this Easy Vegan Tomato Basil Soup for extra creaminess and tang.
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👩🏼🌾 Ingredients
Milk and a yogurt starter are all you need to make homemade yogurt. For this vegan Homemade Cashew Yogurt recipe, raw cashews and distilled water are blended to make nondairy cashew milk.
- Distilled water works best for making yogurt because it lacks minerals and impurities which can potentially interfere with the yogurt-making process. Plus, it's free from harmful microbes and bacteria that might be in tap water. It also ensures that the yogurt has a clean and pure taste. Plus, distilled water has a stable pH level during the fermentation process. This is important because the live cultures thrive in a specific pH range. While you can use safe tap water, I prefer to use distilled water for the best quality yogurt.
- A small amount of commercialized unsweetened yogurt with live active cultures is used as a starter for homemade yogurt. The yogurt starter, or culture, is a specific type of bacteria used to initiate the fermentation process. These include Lactobacillus bulgaricus and Streptococcus thermophilus. The two bacteria work together to create the right texture, consistency, and flavor. Make sure the starter yogurt starter is labeled as containing "live and active cultures." You can save a portion of your homemade cashew yogurt as a starter for your next batch of homemade yogurt.
- Raw cashews are blended with water to make cashew milk for this nondairy yogurt. Typically, for dairy yogurt, cow's or goat's milk is used instead.
See the recipe card for quantities.
🥜 Substitutions
- Cashews - instead of cashews use almonds, a different nut, or hemp seeds
- Unsweetened cultured yogurt - Use any commercial yogurt with live active cultures. Do not use sweetened yogurt as this will slow down the fermentation process. You can save a portion of homemade cashew yogurt as a starter for the next batch of yogurt. Or use probiotic capsules. (See my preferred brands below.)
Make my Easy Masoor Dal Recipe. It's packed with protein and pairs delectably with cashew yogurt! For more easy and healthy breakfast and snack ideas, visit my Vegan Breakfast Recipes page.
🥣 Equipment
To make yogurt at home, you need a saucepan, blender, bowl, and an insulated container or appliance for fermentation. This can be an Instant Pot, an oven with the pilot light on, a yogurt maker, or a pet-warming blanket! Or place the bowl near your broiler. Keeping the bowl of milk and yogurt starter warm for a consistent period allows the bacteria to convert the milk into yogurt.
📖 How to Make Cashew Yogurt
This is an overview. The full recipe is at the bottom of the post.
- Soak cashews: Transfer the cashews and distilled water to a small saucepan. Bring the water to a simmer over medium-high heat. As soon as bubbles start appearing on the water’s surface, turn off the heat. Cover the saucepan with a tight-fitting lid and remove it from the stove. Set aside for 30 minutes.
- Combine: Transfer the cashews and water from the saucepan to the canister of a blender.
- Blend on high until smooth milk forms.
- Add starter: Transfer the cashew milk to a medium ceramic or glass bowl. Add the starter yogurt and mix well to combine. (If using probiotic capsules, empty the powder into the bowl and mix.)
- Warm Spots for Proofing: Place the bowl inside an unused oven with the pilot light on, or inside the inner pot of an Instant Pot, by a broiler, wrapped in a pet warming blanket, or on the countertop in warmer climates.
- For the Instant Pot, press the ‘yogurt’ button on the right, and set the timer to 10 hours. Otherwise, place the bowl inside an unheated oven with the pilot light on for 8 hours. The set, homemade Cashew Yogurt will be thick, creamy, and tangy.
💡 Expert Tips
- Storage: Refrigerate Homemade Cashew Yogurt in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks. If you are using this batch as a starter to make more yogurt, do this within one week of making it.
- For a thicker yogurt, use less distilled water (about 1 cup total).
- For a tangier yogurt, ferment it for longer before refrigerating the yogurt. Refrigeration stops the fermenting process and the yogurt thickens as it cools.
- For a less tangy yogurt, use 1 tablespoon yogurt starter instead of 2 tablespoons.
- Do not use sweetened yogurt as a starter. This will slow down the fermentation process. Use any unsweetened yogurt with live active cultures, or probiotic capsules.
- Other warming options: Cover the bowl with a dish towel, cling wrap, or reusable silicone lid and wrap it inside a warming pet blanket, or place it on the kitchen countertop in warmer temperatures, or leave it next to a broiler for 8 hours.
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🙋🏽♀️ Recipe FAQs
Homemade yogurt can be an excellent source of probiotics when made correctly with live and active cultures, such as Lactobacillus bulgaricus and Streptococcus thermophilus. When you make yogurt at home using a starter that contains live bacterial cultures, you are essentially creating a product rich in these probiotics.
You can use vanilla yogurt as a starter for homemade yogurt if it contains live and active yogurt cultures. A hint of the vanilla flavor will transfer over to the homemade batch. If the vanilla yogurt is sweetened, this can slow down the fermentation process. A small amount of added sugar should not be a problem, but heavily sweetened yogurts are not good starters.
To make four servings of Homemade Cashew Yogurt, you need 1 cup of raw cashews, which costs anywhere from $3 to $6, or sometimes more, when purchased in the United States, depending on whether they are organic, and where you buy them. Buying them from bulk bins in the supermarket is the cheapest option.
Store-bought cashew yogurt is about $2.50 for a single-serve container. Plus, it is not widely available. I also find the texture of commercial cashew yogurt too thin for using it in place of yogurt for recipes that call for dairy yogurt.
Once you have activated the starter culture and started making yogurt, your homemade yogurt is generally good for eating for up to 2 weeks, when stored in the refrigerator. For re-culturing, use the homemade yogurt within 7 days to make a new batch.
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📖 Recipe
Homemade Cashew Yogurt
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Ingredients
- 1 cup raw cashews
- 2 cups plus 2 tablespoons distilled water
- 2 tablespoons unsweetened yogurt with live and active cultures or 2 vegan probiotic pills
Instructions
- Soak cashews: Transfer the cashews and distilled water to a small saucepan. Bring the water to a simmer over medium-high heat. As soon as bubbles start appearing on the water’s surface, turn off the heat. Cover the saucepan with a tight-fitting lid and remove it from the stove. Set aside for 30 minutes.
- Make cashew milk: Transfer the cashews and water from the saucepan to the canister of a blender. Blend on high until a smooth milk forms.
- Add starter: Transfer the cashew milk to a medium ceramic or glass bowl. Add the starter yogurt and mix well to combine. (If using probiotic capsules, empty the powder into the bowl and mix.)
- Insulate: Place the bowl inside an unheated oven with the pilot light on, or inside the inner pot of an Instant Pot. For the Instant Pot, press the ‘yogurt’ button on the right, and set the timer to 10 hours. For the oven, set aside for 6 to 8 hours. The set yogurt will be thick, creamy, and tangy. Other warming options: Cover the bowl with a large dish towel, cling wrap or reusable silicone lid and wrap it inside a warming pet blanket, or place it on the countertop in warmer temperatures, or leave it next to a broiler for 6 to 8 hours.
- Storage: Serve immediately or refrigerate the cashew yogurt in an airtight container for up to two weeks.
Notes
- For thicker yogurt, use less distilled water (about 1 cup total).
- For tangier yogurt, ferment it for longer before refrigerating the yogurt. Refrigeration stops the fermenting process and the yogurt thickens as it cools.
- For a less tangy yogurt, use 1 tablespoon yogurt starter instead of 2 tablespoons.
- Do not use sweetened yogurt as a starter. This will slow down the fermentation process. Use any unsweetened yogurt with live active cultures, or probiotic capsules.
- Probiotic pill recommendations: See 'Shop Yogurt Essentials' in the blog post.
- Storage: Refrigerate for up to 2 weeks. Use homemade cashew yogurt as a starter for making more yogurt within 7 days of making.
Nutrition
This information is provided as a courtesy and is an ESTIMATE only. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased can change the nutritional information in any given recipe.
Ainsley says
I'm excited to try this recipe! Any idea how much protein this would have?
Thank you!
Nisha Melvani, RDN says
Hi! If you scroll down tp the bottom of the post there is a Printable Recipe Card with all the nutrition information.
Stephanie says
ps. I've made cashew milk with roasted, salted cashews before & it hasn't been bad, lol. What's your take on this for making yogurt?
Nisha Melvani, RDN says
I prefer to stick with raw nuts when possible due to AGEs. See here https://cookingforpeanuts.com/advanced-glycation-end-products/
Stephanie says
Hi Nisha,
Why do you heat the cashews before making milk?
Excited to try, thank you!
Nisha Melvani, RDN says
Soaking them in hot water makes them easier to blend and produces a smoother yogurt.
Sara says
Does any kind of vegan probiotic work or are there specific ingredients to look for?
Nisha Melvani, RDN says
I updated the post to include a link to the probiotic I recommend for yogurt-making. See the post now. Thanks.
Lana says
Thank you for the amazing recipe 😘
Nisha Melvani, RDN says
So glad you enjoyed it. Thank you.
Carrie says
What vegan probiotic do you recommend? I never thought of using my instapot! Thanks for the idea!
Nisha Melvani, RDN says
Bio-K + Daily Care
as says
nice recipe but, how is this vegan with using a diary yogurt as starter?
Nisha Melvani, RDN says
nondairy yogurt is the starter
Kori says
Could I make this with almonds instead? If so, are there any adjustments you recommend?
Nisha Melvani, RDN says
I have not tried this but it should work. I would use an almond yogurt starter.
Alice Wootton says
I sure enjoy your website. I have made cashew yogurt in the Instant Pot too. I use 1 cup raw cashews, 1 cup water, and 1 Tablespoon plain unsweetened yogurt (Kite Hill Greek Style made with almond milk and soy)
I just use my Vitamix to blend the cashews and water to make cashew cream, add the yogurt, pulse the blender until it mixes in and then put the mixture in a mason jar and directly into the IP bowl. I cover the pot with a glass lid and hit Ferment for 14 hours. It always turns out great. My yogurt doesn't come out very thick, but it tastes great. I'm wondering if simmering it as you do would make it thicker. Thank you for all you do.
Nisha Melvani, RDN says
Thanks for sharing your method. I will try it. Yes, it could be that the heat thickens it! Let me know if you see a difference! Have a great week.
Sheila Muniz says
Hi Nisha,
I’m wondering how I can do this in my instant pot without the “yogurt” button?
Nisha Melvani, RDN says
I have not tested this. The Instant Pot's yogurt setting incubates yogurt at a temperature of 110–115°F. This temperature range allows bacteria to multiply and thicken, resulting in smooth and creamy yogurt. I would set this temperature.
Chloe says
Would this work with almonds instead of cashews?
Nisha Melvani, RDN says
It certainly should. I would give it a try.
Violet Pickles says
I used the method where I soaked the cashews in filtered water overnight, and used Forager plain yogurt as the starter. My yogurt turned out more like kefir and I believe it’s because I didn’t mix the milk and yogurt enough. The yogurt kefir I do have is still tasty! I am excited to try this again because I see the potential in this recipe and I have store bought yogurt starter that needs to be used up. I used a heating blanket to keep the yogurt warm and it worked out great.
Nisha Melvani, RDN says
Great to hear. Glad you figured out a method that works for you.
Lakshmi Tipirneni says
is there a certain temperature that we need to add the starter yogurt to the cashew milk? Or room temperature is fine?
Nisha Melvani, RDN says
Room temperature worked great!
Pamela Roberts says
Thank you Nisha - this was a surprisingly successful attempt, until I dropped the pot as I was getting it out of the yoghurt maker. It’s amazing how far propelled yoghurt can reach!
I had to use a starter from dairy yoghurt since wasn’t possible to find non-dairy yoghurt that didn’t contain additives.
I will make another batch today since the small amount I could sample was delicious.
Nisha Melvani, RDN says
Sorry about your mishap! Glad it worked out and thank you for letting me know.
Robin (first email was mis typed!) says
I'm excited to try this! I'm wondering whether the same recipe would work but instead use coconut milk (prepackaged no additives) or almond milk (homemade, same technique as making cashew milk), or even sunflower or green pumpkin seed milk (again, same procedure as cashew milk.) Do you have experience with this or reason to think it would or wouldn't work?
Nisha Melvani, RDN says
Hi. Yes this recipe would work with these alternatives! As long as you have the probiotics from the store bought or previously made yogurt (or probiotic pills) and make sure these are thick enough for a creamy consistency, you should be good to go!
Natalia says
Hi Nisha 🌺 thanks a lot for this recipe? What is a reason for a first step - hot soaking? Why don’t we use normal soaking for 4 hours or overnight? Just curious)
Nisha Melvani says
Hi! It's just a quicker soaking method but you can leave them overnight in tap water instead.
Zoie says
Oo! Does that mean I could do the whole recipe with tap water, if I cold-soak overnight instead?
Getting hold of distilled water is a pain in the proverbial, and means yet another plastic bottle...
Nisha Melvani, RDN says
Yes you can! Filtered tap would be best and remember that tap water that is too cold or too hot might affect the process.