If you've ever wondered how to make chia pudding, this post is for you. Chia pudding is a great, customizable make-ahead breakfast with lots of options for different kinds of milk, flavours, toppings, and sweeteners, and with the right milk-to-chia-seed ratio, it sets perfectly every time!
Sometimes, I'm not sure if chia pudding is a breakfast or if it's a dessert. I think it might be both because I will eat it happily any time of the day. I think the key is to use whole milk (or skim milk with a splash of cream to make the pudding creamy). Straight skim milk can make chia pudding taste a little watered down. This chia pudding is perfect with any of the seasonal berries you can get your hands on. I love to add toasted coconut flakes, but I bet that vibrant green pistachios would also pair nicely.
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Ingredients to Make Chia Pudding From Chia Seeds
- Chia seeds are white or black. Both work just the same when you are making pudding, but the look is quite different, as you can see in the photo of the final pudding: chia pudding made with black chia seeds looks a little grey, but it's just as tasty. If you don't like the look of the black seeds, stick with white chia seeds
- Milk: I make chia pudding with whole milk (3.25 % milk) because it's a little creamier. Skim milk (fat-free) also works, and I use it sometimes. Chia pudding with skim milk isn't as rich.
- Honey: I like to use local honey with a lot of flavour, like a fall honey or even buckwheat honey.
- Vanilla: I always add a splash of pure vanilla extract to chia pudding for flavour.
- Toppings: I always add shredded coconut or coconut flakes (preferably toasted), as well as fresh berries (raspberries or strawberries). To make it pretty, you can add edible rose petals.
Substitutions And Variations
Chia pudding can be rather bland if you just combine chia and milk. Add a little sweetness and flavour to make it pop. You'll notice at the very least, I always add vanilla extract to flavour chia pudding. Yes, that technically makes it vanilla chia pudding, but it also helps the pudding taste less bland. Here are other ways to customize the flavour:
- Maple: Replace the honey with the same amount of maple syrup to make maple-flavoured chia pudding. I like to use a darker maple syrup for this
- Brown sugar: You can replace the honey with brown sugar. Add more or less depending on how sweet you want your pudding. Taste the milk before adding the chia seeds so you can adjust the sweetness before making the pudding.
- Milk:
- I like to make chia pudding with cow's milk because that's what I always have on hand. You can use whole milk or a combination of skim milk with a splash of cream, or you can use 2 % fat milk. You can also "make" whole milk by mixing together ~50 mL of whipping cream (35% fat) + 450 mL of skim milk (0.1% fat).
- You can use lactose-free milk to make chia pudding, or you can use non-dairy beverages like coconut milk, almond milk, or even oat milk. Stick to a milk or non-dairy beverage that you like to drink because it's a major component of the recipe! Coconut milk adds a ton of flavour. Canned coconut is much thicker (and has more fat) so I wouldn't use it in this pudding, unless that's what you are going for!
- Flavours:
- Rose water chia pudding: replace the vanilla extract with ½ teaspoon rose water (or add both vanilla and rose water)
- Orange blossom water chia pudding: replace the vanilla extract with ½ tsp orange blossom water (or add both vanilla and rose water)
- Orange or lemon flavour: in addition to the vanilla, you can also add a little lemon zest or orange zest
- Fruit toppings: Chopped fresh mango is also excellent, or chopped pineapple. Sliced golden kiwis are an excellent topping too.
- Nut toppings: I love to top chia pudding with coconut, but you can also top it with nuts (preferably toasted) like chopped pistachios, pecans, or almonds. You can also stir in some nut butter or even sesame paste (tahini) for added flavour!
- Yogurt: You can make chia pudding with yogurt. Replace half the milk with regular yogurt. I wouldn't use Greek yogurt because I find it too thick in this pudding, but that's a personal preference. You can also top the pudding with a dollop of Greek yogurt before serving!
Chia Pudding Ratio-Getting The Consistency Right
I like chia pudding that is not too thick. I don't like when it's gloopy or clumpy and overly gelled. For this reason, I prefer to use a ratio of 60 grams (⅓ cup) of chia seeds for every 500 mL (2 cups) of liquid.
Ratio: Add 60 grams (⅓ cup) of chia seeds for every 500 mL (2 cups) of liquid.
When you make a batch of chia pudding, stirring a few times in the first hour of gelling will help you achieve better consistency. Stirring breaks up the clumps so that the chia gels more evenly.
Different batches of chia seeds will gel and set a little differently when you turn them into pudding, so though I usually stick to the above ratio, occasionally, you might need to make an adjustment:
- If you find your chia pudding is too thick, add a little more liquid and mix well to break up any clumping.
- If you find that your chia pudding is too thin, add in an extra spoonful of chia seeds and stir well. Give it about 20 minutes to gel and absorb the liquid and you should be good to go.
Make sure you give enough time for the pudding to thicken first. I like to leave it overnight in the fridge to gel, and sometimes it can take 24 hours to achieve its final set. You've got to be patient and let the seeds do their thing before you make the decision to adjust with more liquid or more chia.
How To Make Chia Pudding At Home
Step 1-Combine milk, honey, and vanilla first (image 1) and stir well before adding chia seeds. Make sure to stir continuously as you add the chia to ensure it disperses without clumping (image 2). Stir really well before covering and letting sit for 1 hour.
Step 2-When you first add the chia seeds to the milk, most will sink to the bottom (image 3). After an hour and with another round of stirring, the seeds will disperse better throughout the liquid (image 4).
Step 3-After 1 hour, stir the chia pudding again to ensure there are no lumps and to evenly distribute the gelled seeds. Cover and chill overnight
Make Ahead Meal Prep Tip
If you like to meal prep, you can divide the ingredients in 4 to 6 resealable jars or containers for easy grab-and-go breakfast or snacks during the week. Prep the jars the night before and refrigerate overnight. Add the toppings to each jar the next morning et voilà!
Perfect Chia Pudding FAQs
For every 2 cups (500 mL) of milk, I add ⅓ cup (60 grams) of chia seeds. Whether you use white or black chia seeds doesn't seem to matter.
I leave chia pudding in the fridge to set overnight. It's best to consume chia after they have gelled, otherwise they may swell in your tummy and you may not feel great if consumed too soon because of this. Let it rest overnight and consume tomorrow for best results.
I hope you will give chia pudding a try. It's so easy and a real treat. Another great breakfast with no wait time is this coffee banana smoothie or this pumpkin spice shake.
If you tried this recipe for the best pudding (or any other recipe on my website), please leave a ⭐ star rating and let me know how it went in the comments below. I love hearing from you!
📖 Recipe
Perfect Chia Pudding
Ingredients
- 500 mL whole milk (3.25 % fat)
- 3 tablespoon honey or maple syrup
- ½ teaspoon pure vanilla extract or rose water or orange blossom water
- 60 grams chia seeds
Suggested toppings
- Fresh raspberries or any berry you like
- Toasted flaked coconut
- shelled unsalted pistachios
Instructions
- First, combine the milk, honey (or maple syrup), and vanilla (or orange blossom water or rose water) in a large resealable container. Stir until the honey is dissolved.
- Pour in the chia and give it a good stir. Cover and let sit about an hour at room temperature. Mix it again really well to evenly disperse the chia and then refrigerate it covered overnight.
- The next morning, the chia should have swelled and the pudding will be fairly thick but gloopy. Serve it in bowls topped with berries, flaked coconut, or any nuts and fruits you'd like.
Notes
- If you don't have whole milk, you can use 2 % milk or even skim milk. Lower-fat milk will make this less creamy; that's all!
- For a dairy-free option, replace the milk with almond milk, oat milk, or your favourite non-dairy beverage.
- I find chia pudding can take a full 24 hours to gel completely, so patience is key. I shake the container every few hours to keep it from clumping.
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Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated and should only be used as an approximation.
Eva says
Where can I buy rosewater..? Or how to make it?
suki says
Looks so good! 🙂
🙂
Shareba @ In Search Of Yummy-ness says
I tried chia seeds once, and they tasted mouldy, and the experience scarred my for life. Bleh! I do agree with you though, pants (and fitting into said pants) are overrated 😉
Janice says
I've never noticed a mouldy flavour, but I do add vanilla and other flavourful ingredients, so maybe I just don't notice it? I'd give it a try once more, but maybe with a new bag of chia 😉
Olivia @ livforcake says
Lol! No pants or plates sounds like the perfect catch for almost any guy I know. You can distract them from those minor details with your delicious desserts and puddings!
I've only ever had Chia in the form of dried seeds in my smoothies so I will have to try this, it looks delicious!
Janice says
I hope you have the chance to try chia pudding soon! It's so versatile and makes a lovely sweet treat 🙂