This vegan and dairy-free cultured cashew yogurt is a breeze to make. It’s thick and tangy and delicious and filled with great-for-you probiotic cultures.
I love this cashew yogurt so much, it has pretty much replaced the quick, non-cultured yogurt I’d blend up in the past to eat or add to various dishes.
I loved yogurt in my pre-vegan days and I’ve never really been able to wrap my head around storebought vegan yogurts, which just don’t taste right and their texture is almost always completely off. Call me picky.
So the last time I bought a cashew yogurt off the shelf that had live cultures, I decided to try making my own. Partly so I didn’t have to spring six bucks for a small tub of yogurt, and partly so I didn’t have to rush to Whole Foods each time I needed some.
I also wanted a thicker yogurt, and the storebought ones are too thin for my liking.
I loved the result, and I started to make my own, using some of the storebought yogurt as a starter.
This is really a very simple recipe — all you need are the cashews and the starter (any vegan yogurt with live bacterial cultures will do), a bowl, and a blender, and you’re all set. The result is a thick, creamy, tangy yogurt that tastes gorgeous.
I love eating this yogurt by the spoonful, but I especially love stirring in some berries, or using it to top granola. It also works great in Indian curries, raitas and biryanis, when the recipe calls for yogurt.
Try making some today. It takes minutes, and it is, like any homemade yogurt, a gift that keeps on giving. You’ll never need storebought again.
Homemade Cultured Cashew Yogurt
Ingredients
- 1 cup raw cashews or cashew pieces
- 1 cup filtered or distilled water (this helps the cultures grow faster than chlorinated tap water would)
- Either 1 tbsp vegan yogurt to use as a starter. Be sure to use one with live, active cultures. Or you can use probiotic pills, see next ingredient
- 2 vegetarian probiotic pills (instead of the vegan starter. I've linked to the brand I use)
Instructions
- Place the cashews and water in a blender and blend to a very smooth paste.
- Place the cashew paste in a ceramic or glass bowl. Microwave for 10-15 seconds or until slightly warm. You can skip this step, but I like that it gives the bacteria a head start.
- Stir in the starter or, if using probiotic pills, open the capsules and empty the powder into the cashew paste. Cover the bowl with cling wrap and place in a warm spot, like a cold oven with the pilot light on, or, in hotter temps, on the countertop.
- Let it stand for six hours or overnight. The set yogurt should be very thick and tangy.
Nutrition
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Recipes to try with vegan yogurt:
Cucumber Raita
Mushroom Biryani
Tofu Tikka Masala
Hi Vaishali,
Thank you for sharing your recipe! I’ve made cashew yogurt twice and it came out great! The first time, I didn’t pay close enough attention to the water amount or the time (I let mine ferment for 12hrs, which was super tangy and perfect for avial), then I did it for 9hrs and it was just right (for my preference). The only change I made was to use one probiotic pill (renewlife ultimate Flora). I used the IP yogurt setting and did a water bath, and this helped set my yogurt (I’ve had issues in the past using the oven or finding a warm enough spot).
Again, thanks for this recipe. It’s helped me veganize a few Kerala style dishes.
Left mine for 6 hours, very bubbly on top but didn’t thicken. Thoughts?
It will thicken when you refrigerate.
hi, I love Forager brand cashew milk and coconut cashew milk products. My fav is the plain yogurt which is perfect for recipes including raita and curries, cornbread and biscuits. I thought why not use it as a starter isn’t that the old way? and stir it into the last of Forager milk before it can go bad.
How does that sound? With the shortages right now and long lines at WF I am going to try it.
thanks so much
peace ~
Yes, you can definitely try it, although the yogurt might not be very thick.
I accidentally bought unsalted ROASTED cashews. Will they work?
Hi. I’m writing again as looks like my cashew yogurt spoiled. It now has pink, brown and white mold growing on the top. I left it in oven with light on for 22 hours a it wasn’t getting thicker or tasting tangy like yogurt does. I used a plain coconut based yogurt with live cultures as a starter. I used 1 Tbsp. Was that enough? Was my cashew cream possible too warm and killed the starter? Please advise as there have been so many wonderful reviews. I would like to try making it again. Thank you.
Hi Lorraine, it definitely sounds like the yogurt went bad–it may have been a problem with the commercial yogurt starter you used. Don’t heat the cashew cream too much–20 seconds in the microwave is fine. It should be very lightly warm to the touch, not even lukewarm and certainly not hot. Also make sure you mix in the starter or probiotic powder thoroughly into the cream before setting it aside.
The yogurt will thicken as it forms, but it’ll get even thicker after you refrigerate.
I started this cashew yogurt last night. It’s been in the oven with light on for 15 hours. It has thickened slightly but is not tangy at all. It’s also is getting some reddish brown spots on top. Should I leave it ferment longer? How long can the yogurt stay in oven before it spoils? Thank you
This is the best yogurt recipe! I made it using cashews and almonds and it turned out amazing. Used only one probiotic capsule as mine are strong. Thank you for sharing!!
Hi Vaishali,
Thanks so much for this recipe- it’s my first attempt at a raw cashew yoghurt after years of playing around with other ferments. I left my cashew mix on my benchtop wrapped in a teatowel for 24 hours as 12 hours didn’t seem sufficient (it wasn’t very sour). This morning when I checked it though the whole thing had swelled and looked more like a sourdough starter- with large air pockets, and smelled quite ‘doughy’- I stirred it all through and I think it’s okay, I’m just wondering if this has ever happened to you or other first timers? Confession: I used 1 teaspoon of my coconut yoghurt starter and 1 teaspoon of my coconut keffir starters so ~whooops!~ if that’s what mucked it up. I think it tastes okay though- super tangy, and anyway, I’m sure that yeasty smell will dissipate in the fridge 😉 Just wondering what other peoples yoghurt looked/smelled like before that first stir & taste!
Hi Morgan, my yogurt does puff up a little when it sets but I’ve never experienced a yeasty smell. Not sure what could have caused that– could be the kefir or coconut starter.
Hi
I tried your recipe .. but the yogurt is runny and has a zingy taste. Did I add too much probiotic?
It should thicken upon standing in the refrigerator. You may have left it out for too long if it’s too tangy. The longer you leave it out, the more sour it gets, like any type of yogurt would.
If you add warm water to the cashews before mixing you won’t need to worry about heating it up after. Yoghurt likes a temperature of about 110 F. I used to make dairy yoghurt with powdered whole milk and added warm water so I wouldn ‘t have to heat up nthe milk.
Hi VAIS,HALI,
I am afraid, I did not succeed in making yogurt, but instead I made baked cashew cream. It tastes good but it is no yogurt. I used a different brand probiotic simple because I had them home. Instead of covering the pyrex bowl with a cheese cloth, I covered it with its own glass lid.
When it dd not ferment, I scanned other people’s post. It appeared a really warm env might encourage bacteria to ferment. So, I thought may be my oven’s pilot light did not generate enough warmth. After waiting for 12 hours, I turned on my oven to 200 degrees. After 6 hours when I checked it was baked cream.
Is cheesecloth essential? How warm must the env be? Could a different brand probiotic be the cause?
Thanks in advance for your insight.
Hi, six hours in a 200-degree oven will result in baked yogurt. You should NOT have the oven on when you place the yogurt in it. Depending on the weather where you are, it might take longer than 12 hours to ferment, so just be patient. You could have tried heating the cashew cream a little, for 30 seconds or so in the microwave, BEFORE adding the probiotic to create a warm environment for the bacteria. Also, there’s always a chance that the probiotic you used may not be active — some probiotics get less effective the longer they stand around.
Thank you for taking the time and responding. I wonder how one can check whether probiotic culture is active?
I had microwaved it but only for 15 sec for twice the amt of cashew+water as you recommended.
Thanks again,
Best yogurt ever. I’ve never tried store bought vegan yogurt, now I never need to.
Hello thanks so much for this simple recipe. I’m definitely going to try it! Do you think we could use cashew milk (or almond milk) instead of grinding the whole cashews to make this recipe? We get that readily here and it would save me a step… also how warm should the cashew blend/milk be at the time of adding the starter? Is it the same as what we use for setting milk yogurt? Thanks again for sharing ☺️
You can use cashew milk but you might get a different, probably thinner, consistency. And the milk should be lukewarm, not hot, so the way you do it for milk yogurt would be fine.