This recipe for Chia Pudding is made with Greek Yogurt is deliciously creamy, totally healthy, and very quick and easy to make. The perfect make-ahead breakfast to grab on the go. Vegan-adaptable & Gluten-free. Video.
Write it on your heart that every day is the best day in the year.
Ralph Waldo Emerson
You have likely heard of Chia Pudding- a popular make-ahead breakfast made with chia seeds and milk, typically coconut milk, and a natural sweetener. After it sets, the chia seeds plump up, providing healthy fiber and nutrients. Chia pudding can be topped with various fruit, nuts and seeds- think of it like a grain-free version of overnight oats.
Perfectly creamy, our chia pudding recipe is made with Greek yogurt (or vegan yogurt) combined with fruit and spices. Store it in your fridge in single-serving portions for a very convenient “grab and go” breakfast. Looking for more make-ahead breakfast ideas? Try Overnight Oats and our popular Breakfast Cookies!
Table of Contents
Why We Love Chia Pudding!
- Chia Pudding is a great way to add chia seeds into your diet- healthy and full of protein, fiber, omega 3’s, antioxidants, and essential minerals.
- It is easy to make and can be made ahead! Perfect for busy mornings!
- Highly versatile, chia pudding can easily be adapted to your diet- make it vegan, keto, or vegetarian.
- Chia pudding can be customized with different toppings, spices, nuts and seeds- making it easy for the whole family to love!
Ingredients in Chia Pudding
Chia Pudding Ingredient Notes
- Chia seeds– the star of the show! Full of calcium, fiber, iron and omega 3’s.
- We add Greek yogurt to our chia pudding for a burst of probiotics- feel free to use plant-based coconut yogurt or cashew yogurt if you prefer.
- Milk- Almond, coconut or soy milk- and real milk works too.
- Sweetener- maple syrup, honey or coconut sugar all work well here!
- Vanilla – a little flavor enhancer!
See the recipe card below for a complete list of ingredients and measurements.
How To Make Chia Pudding (Step-by-SteP)
Step One– Choose your container. I like using a quart ball jar, a bowl with a lid works too.
Add hot boiled water and stir in chia. This starts hydrating the chia into plump and silky morsels. Let sit 5 minutes (just about the time it takes to add ingredients in Step two!).
Chia pudding is usually refrigerated overnight to plump up fully. The hot water speeds up the process allowing you to enjoy the pudding within an hour!
Step Two– Add honey or maple syrup, vanilla and salt.
Step Three– Mix in yogurt and nut milk. Feel free to use vegan yogurt.
Step Four– Refrigerate, covered, for at least one hour before serving. You can also store in 8 oz containers for 4 portioned servings.
Chia Pudding Variations:
Add spices and fruit if desired. Here are some of our favorite additions (see recipe):
- Golden Glow with turmeric, mango and dates.
- Mexican Cacao Dream with just a touch of ancho chili and cinnamon.
- Berry Happy with a hint of cardamom and fresh berries.
Chai Pudding FAQS
Believed to be from Central America, chia seeds were an essential ingredient used for food, medicine, and cosmetics in ancient civilizations. Chia is tiny black or white seeds from the plant salvia hispanica, a member of the mint family.
Chia seeds are high in antioxidants, fiber, minerals and omega-3 antioxidants. They may support heart health, promote strong bones, and improve blood sugar.
The mild seeds plump up in liquid, forming a gel around the seed. The texture is smooth and creamy and a bit reminiscent to tapioca, taking on whatever flavor they are paired with.
You May Also Enjoy
- Instant Pot Steel Cut Oats with Pumpkin and Walnuts
- Vegan Tofu Scramble
- The BEST Vegan Breakfast Cookies
- Rhubarb Jam with Chia Seeds
- Homemade Maple Granola Recipe (Vegan & Gluten-free)
- Vegan French Toast
Hope this chia pudding adds some ease and delight to your day!
Love this recipe? Please let us know in the comments and leave a 5-star ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating below the recipe card.
Chia Pudding |60-Second Video
Chia Pudding Recipe
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 10 minutes
- Yield: 4 cups 1x
- Category: Breakfast, Dessert
- Method: stirred
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegetarian
Description
Delicious Chia Pudding with creamy Greek yogurt is totally healthy, deliciously creamy and so very fast and easy to make. The perfect make-ahead breakfast or snack to grab on the go. Vegan adaptable!
Ingredients
Chia Yogurt Base Mix
- 1/3 cup chia seeds
- 1/2 cup boiled hot water
- 3 tablespoons maple syrup, honey or coconut sugar
- 2 teaspoon vanilla
- pinch of sea salt
- 1 1/2 cups Greek yogurt (or vegan yogurt)
- 1 1/2 cups milk ( almond, coconut, soy, etc.)
See notes for 3 optional flavors.
Instructions
- In a bowl or quart jar, mix chia seeds and hot water. Let sit about 5 minutes. This starts hydrating the chia seed more quickly.
- Stir in vanilla, sweetener and pinch of salt.
- Add greek yogurt and milk. Whisk to combine thoroughly. (At this point you could divide into 4 smaller jars.)
- At this stage it will keep in the refrigerator for 4-5 days.
- Add preferred flavor and fruits to serve. Refrigerate at least an hour before serving.
Notes
3 Optional flavors:
Golden Glow
- 1 cup chia yogurt base mix
- 1/2 teaspoon turmeric powder
- 1/2 teaspoon ginger powder
- 1/8 teaspoon orange zest
- fresh cubed mango
- 2 dates
- toasted coconut flakes
Mexican Cacao Dream
- 1 cup chia yogurt base mix
- 2 teaspoons raw chocolate powder
- 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
- 1/8 teaspoon ancho chili powder
- 2 teaspoon maple syrup
- 2 teaspoon cacao nibs
- banana slices
Berry Happy
- 1 cup chia yogurt base mix
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
- fresh raspberries
- fresh blueberries
- fresh strawberries
- sliced almonds
If pre-making with fruit added: refrigerate and serve within 2-3 days.
Chia pudding is usually refrigerated overnight to plump up fully. The hot water speeds up the process allowing you to enjoy the pudding within an hour!
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 cup
- Calories: 258
- Sugar: 22.2 g
- Sodium: 80.3 mg
- Fat: 9.8 g
- Saturated Fat: 3.1 g
- Carbohydrates: 28.1 g
- Fiber: 4.9 g
- Protein: 15.1 g
- Cholesterol: 15.7 mg
Hot tip: try it with pure date syrup/molasses – lower glycemic index than any of the other sweeteners, high in B vitamins etc. and has a deliciously Carmel flavor.
Thanks Rachel!
Great tip. I will try it. I switched out the maple syrup for erythritol so looking forward to trying.
A delicious start to the day!
Great to hear Karen!
I followed this recipe to the letter but find it very liquid. I was expecting a fermer texture. Taste is good (doing the berry version) but quite liquid.
Oh weird, even with the greek yogurt? You could add more chia or just cut back on the liquid next time. I’m not sure what happened?
Sounds AMAZING 👏 🤩
Let us know how you like it!
Absolutely delicious. I saved this recipe of yours from 2022 and just found it again. It has perfect texture and flavour. My new favourite dessert. Just yummy.
So glad to hear this Susan! Thanks for the kind review.
For the Golden Glow, are you using fresh ginger and fresh turmeric?
Dried but fresh would be great!
I love to add cardamom to “milky” dishes. This is an easy recipe and a yummy way to increase eating chia.
Thanks Julia!
This is my favourite chia pudding recipe to date. The proportions of chia seeds to yoghurt and milk are just perfect, and I love that you’ve provided some flavour options that aren’t so common but still easy to make without needing to buy hard-to-find ingredients. Not that the base recipe needs flavour anyway, it’s truly delicious. Thanks!
So nice to hear this Bethany!
After trying “Golden Glow” I was motivated to try “Mexican Cacao Dream” with the other half of the plain chia base I had left. I didn’t have the exact ingredients on hand–and didn’t want to go out and get them on a cold snowy day– but I used similar ones, so I think it still gave me a good approximation of the result. I used cocoa instead of chocolate powder, shaved artisan dark chocolate instead of the nibs, a dash of chipotle in lieu of the ancho, and dried cherries instead of the bananas. Just like the “Golden Glow”, this version was EXCELLENT! Thank you Feasting at Home for these chia pudding recipes! I’ll definitely be making them again.
Yummy! That sounds so good.
Let me preface this review by saying I’ve made chia pudding several times and was just not a big fan, and also that I do not care for the earthy flavor of turmeric. However, I decided to go out on a limb and try the Golden Glow version of this chia pudding and IT IS SOOO GOOD! I didn’t have dates so I substituted golden raisins instead for that extra sweetness. I’m also not a huge fan of sweet vanilla-y flavor so the orange zest and kick from the ginger was a really welcome alternative to the usual chia pudding recipes. I’m excited to try the other options!
So great to hear this Leslie! Glad you gave it a go. 🙂
I have always stayed away from chia pudding because I didn’t care for the texture. This recipe has totally changed my mind! I originally made it so I’d have something to accompany fresh berries. It is so delicious that I eat it just the way it is! I made it vegan with almond milk and coconut yogurt. Thanks, Sylvia, for giving me a yummy way to up my omega 3’s.
So glad you gave it a try Arlene!
Simple and so delicious ( addictive) and I have yet to try the extra flavours,but I will.
Thanks Veronica, glad you enjoyed this one!
Simply love this recipe!!
Nice! Thanks so much for letting us know!
Yum! I was hesitant to try because I’m not usually a fan of plain Greek yogurt. I used Fage 0% and it was really a good breakfast treat. I added a few chopped walnuts. Thanks for a great healthy breakfast option.
So glad you gave it a try Margaret!
had 4% kefir in the fridge so used that with oat milk. My first test was delish and it might be a little too wet but we’ll see; will add berries and granola!
Kefir sounds yummy!
Today I made your recipe for the golden glow chia pudding. It is DIVINE. My goodness! More of your recipes please always. Thank you for all the energy it takes to bring us all JOY!
So happy you enjoyed. Really appreciate this Bernadette!
Just made it and it couldn’t have been easier! Taste and texture are excellent. I will definitely make it again.
Great to hear Davina!
So amazingly delicious! Thank you for sharing your recipe. This is going to be a new staple in my house.
Great to hear!
Hi! Looks so good. And where did you buy your jars ?! They are cute.
These are Weck canning jars. They are available from many sources in different sizes.:)
This was our first time trying chai pudding. We made the Berry Happy. I added a little homemade granola on top. Delicious!
So glad you enjoyed!
Excellent recipe. Creamy and delicious! I added 1 Tbsp flax seed.
Perfect Maria!
Absolutely love it
Thank you so much.
Great to hear Monica!
This was really easy and so fast! I added simple blueberries and strawberries. I think I would do a touch less nut milk so it would be a little thicker, just my personal preference! Would recommend!
Glad you enjoyed it Ashley!
This was really fast and easy to make!!
I recommend this recipe 🙂
Thanks Jeffrey!
These look amazing! Could you use coconut cream with the nut milk or is there another non-dairy substitute for the Yogurt?
Yes, Kelly, coconut cream would work too! It’s a lot more calorie-dense, but, yes it tasty. Have you ever tried vegan yogurt? Like coconut or cashew yogurt? Perhaps a little lighter, with probiotics. 🙂
I’m going to use SO coconut yogurt so may not even need milk added.
I bet that will be great!