Easy Homemade Cultured Cashew Yogurt

Cultured Cashew Yogurt has a super thick, creamy and velvety texture coupled with a deliciously nutty, tangy flavor. The best part is, it’s so stupid easy to make at home, you’ll never want to go for store-bought ever again.

Since going plant based, I think yogurt is the one thing that I miss the most. I tend to use it a lot in cooking and baking, but especially love adding a little dollop of the creamy, tangy stuff to my morning cereal. I’ve tried a couple of store-bought brands, but wasn’t really a fan of their taste or texture, or list of ingredients, for that matter. Most of them contain guar gum or some other kinds of gum, and my taste buds really don’t care for those at all. Plus, well, store-bought non-dairy yogurt also tends to cost an arm and a leg. 

So I decided to try and make my own at home. I thought for sure that making yogurt would be super complicated, with all kinds of technical and scientific operations, but really, I was way off: making cultured yogurt at home couldn’t be easier. All you need basically are 3 ingredients: cashews, water, and probiotics. Yes, the kind of probiotics that you take in the morning to keep your gut flora all happy happy!

And you don’t need no fancy equipment or anything, either. Well, in all fairness, a high-speed blender is really mandatory if you’re gonna make your yogurt really super smooth and velvety, but if you don’t have one, you could still get very decent results using a regular blender. 

This cashew yogurt is so thick, so rich, so creamy and velvety, it almost feels like I’m eating crème fraîche… If you’ve ever had crème fraîche, you know exactly what I’m talking about! 

For the time being, I’ve only experienced with cashews, but I know that other nuts and even coconut milk can also be used to make cultured yogurt at home. I’ll be sure to experiment with those, too. 

All I know is I won’t be buying commercial yogurt again anytime soon… 

Place the raw cashews into the container of a high-speed blender; add 1-1/2 cups to 2 cups op water and blend on high speed until creamy and smooth and the mixture becomes slightly warm, about 60-90 seconds. You don’t want the mixture to get too hot, just slightly warmer than your body temperature. This will help kick-start the probiotics and have them start doing their job faster. 

Stop to scrape the sides of the container, if and as needed, to ensure that no lumps remain in the cashew mixture. Like I said, if you don’t have a high-speed blender, you could always use a regular blender, only the finished yogurt won’t be nearly as velvety. 

Also, how much water you choose to use is entirely up to you. I like my yogurt on the really thick, firm side, so only added a cup and a half; if you prefer a softer, thinner yogurt, go ahead and add the full 2 cups.  

Once fully blended and slightly warm, transfer the mixture into a non-reactive mixing bowl, preferably ceramic or pyrex. Any kind of metal is to be avoided, as it may prevent the probiotics from doing their job. 

Now, open the probiotics capsules and empty their contents all over the surface of the cashew mixture. 

Make certain that your probiotics contain no PREbiotics, or this might not work. Alternatively, you could also use a couple of tablespoons of any non-dairy plain yogurt as a starter.

Stir delicately with a rubber spatula or plastic spoon (remember: do not use metal as it can react negatively with the probiotics and prevent them from doing their job) until fully incorporated.

Now cover the bowl with a piece of cheesecloth, a thin — and clean! — tea towel or even a coffee filter, and secure it with a rubber band. Place the bowl in a warm place, like a cold oven with the light on, or, during the hot summer months, you can simply leave it right on the countertop.

Let your yogurt stand for at least 6 hours, or up to overnight. The longer you let the yogurt rest, the thicker and tangier it’ll get. It’s perfectly fine to check and taste it from time to time – just be sure to remember the no metal rule! Also, with longer fermentation times, a soft crust may form on top of the yogurt. That is perfectly fine; you can stir it right in and it will eventually dissolve and blend in. 

Once the mixture has reached your preferred tanginess and texture, transfer it to the refrigerator to chill for a couple of hours before using. Your finished yogurt will keep in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to a week.

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4.69 from 22 votes

Cultured Cashew Yogurt

Prep Time: 5 minutes minutes

Resting time: 6 hours hours

Total Time: 6 hours hours 5 minutes minutes

Cultured Cashew Yogurt has a super thick, creamy and velvety texture coupled with a deliciously nutty, tangy flavor. The best part is, it's so stupid easy to make at home, you'll never want to go for store-bought ever again.

Servings: 8

Ingredients

US Customary - Metric

• 2 cups raw cashews
• 1-1/2 to 2 cups of water*
• 3 probiotics capsules**

Instructions

• Place the cashews into the container of a high-speed blender; add water and blend until creamy and smooth and the mixture becomes slightly warm, about 60-90 seconds. Stop to scrape the sides of the container, if and as needed, to ensure that no lumps remain in the cashew mixture.
• Transfer the mixture into a non-reactive mixing bowl and sprinkle the contents of the probiotics capsules over the surface. Stir delicately with a rubber spatula or plastic spoon (do not use metal as it can react negatively with the probiotics until fully incorporated.
• Cover the bowl with a piece of cheesecloth, a thin (and clean!) tea towel or a coffee filter and secure it with a rubber band. Place the bowl in a warm spot, like a cold oven with the light on, or, during the hot months of summer, right on the countertop.
• Let your yogurt stand for at least 6 hours, or up to overnight. The longer you let the yogurt rest, the thicker and tangier it'll get. It's perfectly fine to check and taste it from time to time - just be sure to remember the no metal rule! Also, with longer fermentation times, a soft crust may form on top of the yogurt. That is perfectly fine; you can stir it right in and it will eventually dissolve and blend in.
• Once the mixture has reached your preferred tanginess and texture, transfer it to the refrigerator to chill for a couple of hours before using.
• Your finished yogurt will keep in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to a week.

Notes

*The less water you use, the thicker and firmer your yogurt will be.

**Be sure that your probiotics contain no PREbiotics or this might not work. Alternatively, you could use a couple of tablespoons of any non-dairy yogurt as a starter.

Nutrition

Calories: 178kcal, Carbohydrates: 10g, Protein: 6g, Fat: 14g, Saturated Fat: 3g, Sodium: 4mg, Potassium: 213mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 2g, Vitamin C: 0.2mg, Calcium: 12mg, Iron: 2.2mg

Course: Condiment

Cuisine: American

Author: Sonia! The Healthy Foodie

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