Cold Start vs. Traditional Yogurt: Time, Cost, and Taste Compared
Sneak Preview: Wondering which yogurt-making method fits your style? Here’s a side-by-side look at cold start vs. traditional yogurt—covering time, cost, texture, taste, and equipment.
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Cold Start: Ultra-filtered only (e.g., Fairlife, Organic Valley Ultra)
Traditional: Any dairy milk (whole, 2%, skim, raw, pasteurized, organic)
Cold Start: No boiling/cooling; incubate immediately
Traditional: Heat to 180°F, cool 45–60 minutes, then incubate
Cold Start: $5–$7 per liter (ultra-filtered)
Traditional: $3–$6 per gallon (regular milk)
Cold Start: Container + warm incubator (Instant Pot, yogurt maker, warm oven)
Traditional: Same; any milk-heating method works
Cold Start: Creamy; strain for Greek-style
Traditional: Creamy; strain for Greek-style
Cold Start: Depends on milk brand; longer incubation = more tang
Traditional: Depends on milk choice; longer incubation = more tang
What’s the Difference?
- Traditional Method: Heat milk to 180°F (to rearrange the protein for thicker yogurt), then cool before adding a starter.
- Cold Start Method: Skip the heating step and go straight to incubation using ultra-filtered milk.
Both methods produce good yogurt—the difference is time, cost, and convenience.
Note: This post addresses yogurt made from dairy products. Making yogurt with nut or grain milk is a different game and a topic for another day.
What Ingredients Are Required?
Milk and Starter: What’s Different
Cold Start: Use ultra-filtered milk (Fairlife, Organic Valley Ultra). Some ultra-pasteurized milks may set, but results vary. Ultra-filtered and ultra-pasteurized aren’t the same—check the label.
Traditional: Works with any dairy milk although ultra-pasteurized can be temperamental because a lot of the good bacteria that yogurt-bodies like have been killed off by the high pasteurization temperatures.
Starter Cultures (both methods): Use the same types—plain yogurt (store-bought) with live cultures, freeze-dried starters, or homemade yogurt.
In the name of doing thorough investigative work, I tried making yogurt with chocolate ultra-filtered milk. The result was yogurt with a somewhat softer texture than yogurt with unflavored milk. My grandkids loved it with Redi-Whip on top.
Time: Which Method is Faster?
⏳ Cold Start: Saves time! Skip the heating/cooling process and start incubation immediately.
⏳ Traditional: Heat milk (15-20 mins), then wait 45-60 minutes for it to cool.
Bottom line: Cold start is quicker; traditional takes longer but is more flexible.
Cold Start Method: Watch the Process
Watch how I make Cold Start Yogurt step by step:
Traditional Method: Watch the Process
See the traditional yogurt process from heating to incubation:
Cost: Which Is Cheaper?
💲 Traditional Method: Regular milk is much cheaper—$3–$6 per gallon.
💲 Cold Start: Ultra-filtered milk costs at least twice as much ($5–$7 per liter).
Verdict: Traditional wins for budget.
Equipment: Do You Need Special Tools?
Both methods need a container and a warm place to incubate. Options include:
- Instant Pot (Yogurt mode)
- Yogurt maker
- Warm oven
No Instant Pot? Any heat-safe bowl or dish will work.
Texture & Thickness
🔹 Both methods can yield creamy yogurt. Factors like milk fat, incubation time, and straining matter more than the method itself.
🔹 For extra-thick yogurt, strain it (Greek-style) as shown below.
Taste
🔹 Flavor depends more on milk choice than method.
🔹 A longer incubation = tangier yogurt either way.
Milk Skin: A Cold Start Advantage
Traditional yogurt can develop milk skin when cooling. Cold start avoids this issue entirely since the milk isn’t heated.
Conclusion
Both methods make spoonable, delicious yogurt. The trade-offs come down to convenience and cost:
• Traditional: Budget-friendly and works with any milk, but takes longer.
• Cold Start: Faster and easier, but requires pricier milk.
Which Method Is Right for You?
✔ Want to save time? Cold Start
✔ Watching your budget? Traditional
✔ New to yogurt-making? Cold Start
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Try both and see which one you enjoy most.
If you’ve never made yogurt, check out Five Things you Should Not Do When Making Yogurt.
Questions? Email me: Paula at saladinajar.com. Hope to see you again soon!
One of the best yogurt making posts I have read! I do have a question though.
I use Fairlife milk and the cold start method. I add a can of sweetened condenced milk and my 1/8 cup of starter and let ferment for 8 hours (in yogurt setting in Instant Pot with glass lid).
More times than not, the finished yogurt has a very thick skin on the top that creates large clumps in the yogurt after being stirred. The amount of whisking it takes to smooth them out, destroys the proteins and thins the yogurt terribly.
Why is this happening (and why only sometimes) and how can I prevent it?? It is really unpleasant.
Thanks in advance! 😊
Hi Lisa,
Thank you for your kind words about the article.
I don’t recommend adding anything but an unflavored starter to your milk before incubation. Although I haven’t specifically tried adding sweetened condensed milk before incubation, in my experience, adding any flavorings or thickeners can mess with the texture. What you describe sounds rather unappetizing. Can you add the milk after the yogurt is incubated?
I use ultra-pasturized milk to make my yogurt, and it sets perfectly. I use a cold-start method w/a sous-vide bath. I’ve tried this with a few different organic ultra-pasturized whole milks, and the results have been consistent. I just checked my carton, and it does not say ultra-filtered.
That’s great! Whatever works for you, keep doing it.
Fairlife jugs have 1.5 liters of milk (see the front label), not 1, as you state. This means it’s not quite as expensive as using regular milk, which is sold in 1-quart (1.06 liter) jugs. Nice, huh?
Hi Catherine,
You are right about the Fairlife jugs being 1.5 liters. However, I can buy my favorite pasteurized milk that I use for yogurt–a whole gallon, for the same amount as a carton of Fairlife. A gallon equals 3.78 liters. Both are 4 dollars and some change. Maybe it’s different where you live.
I bought an extra 3 quart Instapot just for yogurt. No chance it will taste like Mac and cheese. As I am pretty much homebound I have time for hot start and cool down. I like My yogurt sweeter than regular (and am trying to put on a little weight) so I add a can of condensed milk right after the cool down. And maybe a dash of vanilla. My breakfast with fruit and bread from my Zo machine. Yogurt and bread shared with new neighbors across the street.
So that’s my preference in go-to yo.
Judy. Greetings from Mt Vernon, Texas
Hi Judy,
I thought about you when we drove through East Texas on our way home about a month ago. Sounds like you’re doing great. I think your yogurt may be against the law with a can of condensed milk in there. WoW! I can only imagine how delicious it is.
Since I use my Instant Pot to make yogurt, I cool the milk after heating it by sticking the inner pot inside a Dutch over that is half full of ice cubes. I whisk it and let it sit for 9 minutes. Then I take it out of the ice bath and let it sit on the counter for another 9 minutes. At that point, it has reached approximately 110°. So only 18 minutes to cool!
Hi Diane,
I like your method. Quick with no extra dirty dishes. Brilliant!!
Excellent post Paula. I got here today when researching the cold start method of making yogurt after recently watching how to make homemade yogurt on the Mary’s Nest YouTube channel. Mary mentioned the cold start method, but she hasn’t publicly published a recipe yet.
Hi Kurt,
Thank you for your kind and encouraging comments. Cold start is easier but in my area, I would have to pay double to get the right kind of milk. It’s not worth it to me, but it is worth it to many people.
Do you know how many generations are possible with homemade yogurt as your starter?
Hi Cindee,
That is a good question. The answer is not clear cut. The experts(?) say 3-4 times is the max before you buy new yogurt to use as starter. In my own experience, you can get many more batches than that if you want to take your chances. I’ve gone for months before I got a bad batch. I talk about starters in detail in this article about slimy yogurt. You might find it interesting. Hope it helps.
FYI: I have started using a “traditional” starter so I don’t have to buy yogurt anymore. It works out great as long as I make yogurt at least every 7-10 days.
More good info to know. Thank you Paula.
Great post! Now, thanks largely to your advice, I’ve made my second, successful batch of cold start yogurt. I think my cold starts are every bit as good as my previous hot start batches. But the ease of the cold starts make them my choice from now on. Either method produces yogurt that’s better than any commercial products I’ve tried. I use an Instant Pot for both. Before, I typically ate Brown Cow, Aussie, and other whole milk organic products. As I typically add homemade jams/preserves/syrups to my yogurts, the lower sugar contact of the U/F whole milks doesn’t seem to affect the outcome. So far, I’ve used Cultures for Life’s Traditional starter, and will try their Bulgarin next. I’ll also try YoGourmet’s starter, which produced more of a Greek yogurt in my hot starts.
For the cold start yogurts, I pour 1 C. water in the Instant Pot and place 5, 8-ounce jars in the pot, each with 6 ounces of cultured milk. I then set the IP for 8.5 hours. Those Oui jars look interesting. I know that the Oui yogurts are packed 5 ozs. in weight to the jar, but do you know how much they hold in terms of fluid ounces? Thanks!
Hi Jimmy,
Thanks for your kind words. I love the Oui jars, especially since I found the blue plastic lids. If filled to the very top, they will hold 5.4 oz. or very close to 5/8 of a cup.