I’ve had a bag of soy milk powder in my refrigerator for several months. I have no idea where it came from. I used it a couple of weeks ago to make one cup of soy milk for a smoothie. Meh, I wasn’t all that impressed.
But I hate waste. I have this perfectly good bag of soy milk powder. What to make? Well, how about homemade yogurt? How about a smaller batch approach to homemade yogurt?
I tried my standard method – heating soy milk to 180, whisking in agar powder, cooling, and the whisking in a probiotic (or vegan culture) once the temperature hits 110 (or below). It came out nice and thick. I refrigerated it for a couple of hours and then stirred vigorously. I liked the flavor.
But the process is rather long.
So I tried a short cut: I tossed all of the ingredients (below) in the blender. Why? Because I already had the blender out to mix the soy milk powder with water. So why not?
The flavor was excellent but it was very thin because the agar powder needs to be heated to thicken. So I used this batch in a very tasty vegan ranch dressing.
Then I decided to throw a culinary hail mary to see if I could find a middle ground: a quicker method with a nice, thick, creamy result.
It worked. Big time.
Big time.
Thick and firm. And delicious.
Here’s what I love about this recipe:
- Using soy milk powder saves money ($1.32 per batch, using this recipe) and I can just measure out what I need for smaller batches of yogurt.
- Using the blender to heat the milk removes the stovetop heating step. A time saver, I get the same thick (actually thicker) and creamy results that I do when I use the longer stovetop method to heat the milk.
I’m sure some of you want to know if you can use this blender method with ready-made soy milk (versus making milk with soy milk powder). I’m sure you can! You might need to let the blender go longer than 3 minutes to get over 170°F, though.
Give it a go! And let me know how it works for you.
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Soy Milk Powder Yogurt
If you have a multicooker with a yogurt function, this vegan yogurt is for you! I prefer yogurt to incubate for 14 hours because I like it tangy! You can adjust the time, but your results may not be quite the same. Though this recipe calls for sugar, make no mistake: this is a tangy, plain yogurt. If you want something truly sweet, use one tablespoon of sugar instead of one teaspoon. Better yet, just wait and add fresh or frozen fruit or syrup when serving.
Note: Not all soy milk powders are the same! I used NOW Foods Organic Soy Milk Powder for this recipe and the results were superb.
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups hot water
- 3/4 cup soy milk powder
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 3/4 teaspoon agar powder
- 1/4 teaspoon probiotic (15 million flora) or vegan starter culture
Instructions
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Add water, soy milk powder and sugar to a high-speed blender. Blend for 3 minutes (The temp will be around 166°F)
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Add the agar powder and blend for 30 seconds longer (the temperature will now be around 172°F)
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Allow the soy milk to cool down to 110°F (you can speed this process up by placing the blender carafe into a bowl of ice water).
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Once the temperature is down to 110°F, add the probiotic powder or vegan culture and whisk into the soy milk (don’t blend it)
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Pour the soy milk into two 16-ounce glass jars.
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Close the Instant Pot or Fagor LUX lid, set to sealing / pressure, and select the “yogurt” setting for 14 hours.
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Remove the jars from the multi cooker, cover with lids, and allow to cool on the counter before storing in the refrigerator. Though firm out of the mulitcooker, this is best served after two or more hours in the refrigerator.
17 thoughts on “Homemade Soy Milk Powder Yogurt”
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Very cool! I actually have coconut milk powder in the freezer right now and wonder how it might work out… Sounds like an experiment is in order.
YES! Let us know how it goes’, @BitterSweetVegan:disqus !
That sounds pretty neat…I’m inspired to try this…thank you!
You’re welcome!
I have this soymilk powder and use it in baking. It works great, doesn’t require refrigeration and doesn’t deplete my supply of liquid milk, which I use for in drinks and on porridge.
I haven’t considered it for baking. Good idea!
That’s so brilliant! Now I don’t have any excuse to enjoy homemade vegan yogurt 🙂
🙂
I’ve tried this three times, the first with probiotic powder and the last two with vegan starter culture. The first was beautiful and smooth but no tang, even after fourteen hours. The other two have been nice and tangy, but the texture is thick, grainy and almost dry. I like this method a lot, but I can’t make it work. What brand of probiotic works consistently? I’m sure that’s my issue.
Hi, @cyndirk:disqus! I’ve only used probiotic powder with this recipe: Ultimate Flora Probiotic (15 billion). If the texture worked the first time with probiotic powder I suggest trying it again and let it incubate for 16 to 18 hours. (I usually always go that long but when I made this recipe – and seeing how many people in the IP groups like it fast – I tried it doe 14 hours and it came out great for me).
Thanks, JL. I’ll change my probiotic, too. My experiments haven’t gone to waste; they just haven’t been what I was looking for.
I really want to make this, but I have an older model Instant Pot (pre-yogurt setting). Is there any way to do this in the older model? Thanks!
It’s not possible on the IP without the yogurt function, LC.
The soy powder doesn’t separate from the water after blending? I just mixed the powder with water and after a while, the powder settles to the top and bottom of the container, so you see three layers. Is blending the powder with hot water the secret to preventing the powder from separating from the water?
I haven’t had any issue with separation but I also use the soy milk made from powder right away, either to make yogurt or in a smoothie or in a recipe.
Yes I add the probiotics to the soy milk right away as well, but after a short while, the soy powder settles to the bottom and top… I stir it again a few times but the soy powder always separates from the water.
I mix the probiotics, pour into jars and incubate in the Instant Pot so I don’t see anything until 12 to 18 hours later. And it looks like yogurt.