How to Make Chia Pudding
260 Comments
Updated Nov 27, 2023
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Chia pudding is a creamy, delicious, and healthy breakfast or snack right at your fingertips. Not only is it super easy to make, but it’s also endlessly customizable with a variety of fruit flavors!
Many of you know that I’m a big fan of overnight oats when it comes to breakfast. But, there’s no denying that chia pudding will always remain my number one healthy breakfast option. I’ve been making chia pudding for over a decade (which you can see in my Youtube video below) and I keep the recipe interesting by constantly changing up the toppings and flavors.
Chia pudding is perfect for when you need a light meal or on-the-go option that’s surprisingly filling. Plus, it highlights my favorite powerful and nutrient-dense little chia seeds – and who can resist those?
There’s no denying that chia seed benefits are significant. But to sum it up — they pack a hefty nutrient punch with Omega-3’s, antioxidants, fiber, and healthy fats. That means they’re great for digestion (and keep things moving), they’re great for heart health, they help balance blood sugar and they’re great for bone health. Long story short, they’re good for you!
Chia Pudding Ingredients
Just two easy ingredients are all you need, plus a little sweetener if you’d like. Chia pudding is astoundingly easy to make!
- Chia Seeds: While black chia seeds are the ones you’ll find most often at the market, you can use either black or white chia seeds. Both offer similar nutritional benefits!
- Milk: You can use your favorite milk, whether that’s dairy or dairy-free. I personally like to use my homemade cashew milk, almond milk, or oat milk.
- Sweetener: A splash of maple syrup (or honey) and vanilla extract gives the chia pudding base a lightly sweet flavor.
Find the complete recipe with measurements below
How To Make Chia Pudding
I wasn’t kidding when I said this is the easiest recipe to make. Just make sure to have some jars on hand if you plan on meal prepping chia pudding for the week! Here’s how to make it.
Stir the pudding. Stir together the chia seeds, milk, maple syrup, and vanilla extract either in a large bowl (for one large batch) or individually in jars. Let it sit for 10 minutes, so it can start to gel. Then give it another stir.
Let the pudding chill and thicken. Cover the bowl or jars and allow the pudding to thicken for at least a few hours (or overnight) in the fridge. When you’re ready to serve it up, top it with your favorite fruits and nuts, or even layer a fruit puree at the bottom (like I did in the video below!).
Chia Pudding Tips
- Watch the portion size. It’s easy to go overboard on chia pudding and make it “Instagram-worth” (I’m guilty with these pics as well). But in doing so, you’re likely consuming a much larger portion. Try to stick to 1/2 cup milk to 2 tablespoons chia seeds.
- Adjust the ratios to suit you. Some people like a thicker chia seed pudding and some like a thinner version. Feel free to add more milk to make a thinner version.
- Get creative with toppings. Add a sprinkle of cinnamon, cardamom (chai spices) or cacao powder (for chocolate chia pudding). Use seasonal fruit both in whole pieces and in purees and don’t forget nuts and seeds. See more ideas below!
How to Store & Meal Prep
If you follow me on Instagram you’ll frequently see me meal prep chia pudding for the week. I’ll make the exact ratio in the recipe below, stir it all together in individual Weck Jars, top with frozen berries and then freeze.
It will last for several weeks (if not longer) in the freezer. Then, when I want a healthy breakfast I’ll just thaw it in the fridge the night before. So easy!
Chia Pudding Variations
As you might expect, the first few times I made chia pudding it was just the basic recipe – chia seeds, milk, maple syrup, and vanilla extract – soaked overnight. And not that there’s anything wrong with that, I still make it plain all the time.
But chia seed pudding can be an amazing and creative piece of breakfast artwork. It’s like an adult coloring book. Except there are no lines and the flavor combinations are endless! Here are few delicious ways to jazz it up.
- Blueberry Chia Pudding
- Chocolate Chia Pudding (or this mousse version!)
- Peanut Butter and Jelly Chia Pudding
- Eggnog Chia Pudding
- Pumpkin Pie Chia Pudding Mousse
- Pomegranate Chia Pudding Parfait
Helpful tip: Chia pudding has the texture of tapioca pudding. But if you don’t love that texture, you can blend up all the ingredients in a high-powered blender for a smooth texture. Check out the chia pudding mousse recipes listed above!
More Chia Seed Recipes You’ll Love
A bag of chia seeds really does go a long way! Here’s what else you can make with them.
- Chia Seed Jam – a much healthier alternative to store-bought jam
- Chia Seed Water – give your daily water a nutritional boost
- Ultimate Seed Crackers – the best homemade crackers with a variety of seeds
- Mango Date Energy Balls – the best bite-sized healthy snack
If you haven’t hopped on the chia pudding wagon, now’s the time to do so. Once you give it a try, let me know your thoughts in a comment below!
How to Make Chia Pudding
Description
Video
Ingredients
Individual Serving
- ½ cup milk (dairy or dairy-free)
- 2 tablespoons chia seeds
- 1 teaspoon maple syrup
- ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- Optional toppings: fresh fruit, nuts and seeds.
Larger Bowl (4 servings)
- 2 cups milk (dairy or dairy-free)
- ½ cup chia seeds
- 1 to 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- Optional toppings: fresh fruit, nuts and seeds.
Instructions
- Add the chia seeds, milk, maple syrup, and vanilla to a bowl or jar and stir together. Let sit for 10 minutes, then stir again once the seeds have started to gel.
- Cover the bowl or jar and place in the refrigerator for at least one hour. Chia seeds can also be made overnight for breakfast the next morning.
- Stir the chia pudding before serving and add your favorite fruit, nuts, seeds and spices.
Lisa’s Tips
- The nutritional information is for an individual serving.
- If you notice your chia seeds aren’t starting to gel and thicken after 15 minutes, you may have dud chia seeds. This can happen in they’ve been sitting in your pantry a while. Just grab a new bag of chia seeds.
- You can always add more milk for a thinner texture, if you feel your chia pudding is a bit too thick.
- I layered my chia pudding on top of a strawberry fruit puree, which was simply fresh strawberries pureed in my food processor. That’s it!
Nutrition
©Downshiftology. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited.
Recipe originally posted August 2016, but updated to include new information.
Looks so good. Can i use soy milk with stevia?
Thank u.
Yep, that’s fine!
Hi Lisa,
How long can I keep this recipe in the fridge please? 😊 And how many chia puddings do you typically get out of it? Just trying to meal prep.
Warmest Regards,
Elly
It will last about 5 days in the fridge. But, you can also freeze it for several weeks :)
Love this – healthy and easy!
Can you use regular milk?
Yes, no problem!
What would happen using kefir instead of milk? Very curious.
You could use that!
Excellent, quick and easy recipe. I love to meal prep this for a busy week.
I am 10 days post op from my hysterectomy.
I researched before my surgery and focused on anti inflammatory food. That is how I found downshiftology and this recipe. First, chia pudding is amazing. Second, I feel that this recipe made my recovery 10 times better than I was expecting. It does all the things. Thank you Lisa.
Welcome to the Downshiftology community Katie! Glad you’ve found what you were looking for and hope you continue to enjoy my recipes to come :)
Love love love
When making a batch of chia pudding, do you freeze it as individual servings? And if so, do you freeze it with the fruit puree and fruits or just the pudding alone? If I choose not to freeze it how long can it be stored in the refrigerator?
You can either freeze or refrigerate with or without the fruit toppings. As for storage, the base recipe will last for 4 to 5 days in the fridge.
On Whole 30 and was about to lose my mind if I ate one more egg for breakfast, just popped this in the fridge sans maple syrup and looking forward to trying something new in the morning.
Hope this gives you a breakfast refresher :)
a welcome switch from morning yogurt!
My current favourite is chia, milk, vanilla, maple syrup, cinnamon, pecans and blueberries! Mmmmm!
Love your recipes Lisa as they are easy practical and nutritious as well as Gluten Free!!
That’s definitely a classic flavor combo! Glad you’re enjoying all the recipes as well Donna :)
Making it right now! Can’t wait! But mine looks a little liquidy. I know I can add more chia seeds but I’m going to wait a bit longer before I add them. I’m doing the overnight recipe. If it’s not thicker tomorrow morning I’ll add more before I go to work. I have fresh blueberries to pour over it! Thank you for what I hope is a great tasting breakfast! I love your page and all the great hints and recipes…and so happy your patio plants took and look so beautiful! 🙂
They need some time to thicken up, so be patient! Hope they turned out perfectly this morning :)
You have great recipes, was wondering about Paleo recipes do you have any?
Of course! If you hover over the recipe button in the top navigation bar, you will see a section for “special diets”. With that you will see a section for paleo :)
Thank you for sharing your wonderful recipes with us, love them! Being from Europe I checked your metric measurements to be sure, and this somehow doesn’t seem to add up. Instead of giving the amount for half a cup, it looks like that this is the amount for a full cup. Not sure how this can happen, as it surely is generated automatically. Thank you, Lisa!
Thank you! It’s unfortunately calculated automatically, but I’ve just manually fixed it. :)
I’ve been trying a few recipes like overnight oats.
I’m about to do the Mayo and chia pudding.
The recipes are simple with good instructions.
I love to cook but hate doing it for myself so easy healthy recipes are just the ticket
Many thanks Lisa and Happy Birthday for the 31st August which is my brother’s birthday too. He’s in Seattle I’m in UK..
Happy to hear you’ve been enjoying the recipes Carolyn, and thanks so much for the birthday wishes. Hope your brother has a great birthday as wwell!
Thanks for the metric measurements! I just noticed that the 1/2 cup of milk should be more like 120g though, rather than 220g (given that one cup of milk is about 240g in metric)? :)
Good catch Olivia! I’ve sent a note to the company that does conversions, and have manually made the change. :)
I’m 57 years old, and I have some medical problems. I am learning to cook and eat better for myself and my family. I loved your video, and bought the things to make chia pudding. Help me please!
Happy to hear you discovered Downshiftology and are on your way to a better and healthier lifestyle Samee! If you have any personal questions, you can always reach out via the contact info on the website.
What is on the bottom of your chia pudding in the picture? It looks delicious!
It is just a strawberry puree – simply blend up some strawberries in a mini food processor and voila!
When I do weekly meal prep, this chia pudding is always on the list. Easy, healthy, and delicious topped with fresh fruit. Food Network was my former “go-to” for online recipes, but now I go straight to Downshiftology! I’ve made many of Lisa’s recipes and never had one fail. My husband and I also have autoimmune (and cancer) issues, so eating and living healthy is top priority. Lisa, your brainchild, Downshiftology, your labor of love, and positive healthy attitude is such a blessing to us all! Thank you!! xo
So happy to hear you and your husband have been enjoying all my recipes so far Deborah! Hope you continue to learn tons from Downshiftology, as well as enjoy the recipes along the way :)
I’m allergic to tree nuts so I wanted to try this recipe with the coconut milk, but I’m not sure which to use. The coconut milk in a can? Or the coconut beverage that is in the fridge at the grocery store? Thanks!
Use the coconut milk you find in the refrigerated section :)
This chia pudding recipe is so good! Thank you for posting it, the video was helpful too.
Glad the video was helpful Rachelle!
Chia seed pudding is an easy 5 minute recipe to make! Thanks to your work, I made this recipe perfectly.
Happy to hear your chia pudding turned out perfectly Vivek!
Absolutely DELICIOUS!
Glad you enjoyed this chia pudding recipe!
I bought a mixture of chia, flax and hemp. Do you think I could make a pudding with this?
Chia seeds are needed to make it gel up, but you can sprinkle in flax seeds and hemp seeds into the mix.
We decided changing our diet entirely with my husband and found your videos on YouTube and then started following you in Instagram. This was the first recipe we tried and we absolutely love this as breakfast! I make a big batch to last us for couple days and just grab my Mason jar and put in my purse. It also keeps me full for hours! Thank you for all the delicious recipes and all great ideas 😁
Happy to hear you and your husband are enjoying all my content and recipes so far Meral! This chia pudding recipe is definitely a staple in my kitchen :)
Why do chia seeds make me gag? Are there different kinds. I want to try this but can’t get the chia seeds down 😩. I want to love them
How about adding fruit yogurt to chia seeds and milk
Yes, you can do that as well!
Is maple Syrup an inflammatory food? If so does it cancel out the benefits of the chia seeds?
Hi Missy – most people consume sugar in many forms throughout the day. I wouldn’t focus on that, I’d just focus on incorporating more healthy ingredients into your meals, such as chia seeds.
Lisa I made the Cocoa chia puding it started gel but the Cocoa didn’t mix well. It got lumpy. Have a suggestion on how to desolve cocoa powder? Thanks
Hi Patti – It should dissolve, but I would make sure you’re stirring it well enough so that it’s all blended.
Can agave bring used instead of maple syrup?
Yes, you can use agave instead!
I loved it and it reminded me of the tapioca pudding that i used to love as a child.
Thank you 😍😍😍😍
This website introduced me to chia pudding. It’s now hands down one of my favorite things to eat for breakfast! Thanks to Lisa, I add chia seeds to my smoothies and oatmeal now.
Thank you for all the time you’ve put in to bringing us all these yummy, healthy ideas!
So glad to hear that Celia! Stay tuned for more chia seed recipes coming next year.
I’ve made your chia seed pudding countless times, and have taught my 10-year-old daughter to make it. We all love it! Thank you Lisa! We are big fans of yours. :) xo
Amazing! Gotta start them young on chia pudding :)
My chia pudding ended up tasting gritty. There were tiny black stone-like seeds in it that remained hard. I bought organic seeds at Whole Foods. Any thoughts on why this happened or how to prevent it?
Thank you.
Hi Anne – it sounds like the chia seeds didn’t soak long enough. They should turn soft, like tapioca, once they’ve absorbed the liquid.
Just wonderful. It’s so easy to make so refreshing and so delicious. Now I’m a huge fan of chia seed
Because of you 😅 Thank you so much lisa
Welcome to the chia seed pudding team! Glad you enjoyed this :)
I speak about u like I know u. Im always saying to my family, I have just made Lisa’s pud, dinner etc. Made the chocolate chia pud today. Loved it!!
Professional video, finally. You have a kind call voice and I’m heading to the store to buy chia seeds now!!
This recipe is wonderful! The possibilities of toppings are endless. Fresh or as a frozen meal prep option – You are set for a healthy filling breakfast that fast and easy for several days!
Wasn’t sure I would like this. Made cashew milk then added chia seeds. Next morning added blueberries. So delicious have made several times since. Thank you.
Hi Sandra- Wonderful! Using cashew milk for chia seed pudding is my absolute favorite too :)
Hi! Your recipe looks great! My 5 year old daughter just tried chia pudding for the first time and LOVED it! Just wondering which size mason jar you used? Thanks very much! Can’t wait to try this!
Hi Jessica- I’m so glad your daughter is now a lover of chia pudding! You can find the link to the jars written in the post :)
I finally feel like I have mastered chia pudding at last!!!! This is so delicious and easy and nutritious! Thank you for a great recipe!!
Hi Kate- Amazing! Welcome to the chia pudding gang. Now you can experiment with tons of flavors :)
Hi Lisa, I am not found of sweet things, including fruits, is there anyway I can include superfood chia in some savory items?
Yes, absolutely. I frequently sprinkled chia seeds on my salads, add them to granola bars, use in smoothies, etc.
This was delicious! I added strawberries, banana, and some almonds. I will be making this several times a week. Can’t wait to try your other combinations. Thanks again for another great recipe!
Hi Bethany- Wonderful! Can’t wait for you to try other combinations :)
This looks amazing and I can’t wait to make it. For children, do you recommend unsweetened almond or coconut milk? No flavoring, correct? Also, do you prefer one over the other? I have never had unsweetened coconut or almond milk, so am unfamiliar with them. Thanks!
Hi Dorena- You can use either sweetened or unsweetened! But if you use sweetened, then you can omit the extra maple syrup in this recipe. Also, I normally use either almond milk or cashew milk! But any nut milks taste great with this.
Thank you so much for this recipe and for your amazing website! This recipe is a perfect example as to why Downshiftology has become my go-to website for weekly meal planning and recipe ideas. It’s SO simple and basic yet has a million variations to the ways you can twist it so you don’t get bored with the flavor profile. I am just learning to eat this way and finding fast and simple but healthy recipes like this that are also DELICIOUS is just so life changing. And OMG Cashew Milk- who knew??? The absolute easiest non-dairy item in the world to make. My husband saw it in the fridge and said “when I see that you are milking your nuts, now I know you’re serious.” Lol, it sounds so much more intense than it is, if he only knew. I am so grateful for the hard work you have done on this site for meal prep and truly teaching me a new way of eating. Thank you so much Lisa!
Hi Tiffany – Thrilled to hear you’re learning so many new things here at Downshiftology! As well as enjoying tons of my recipes. I’m happy to have you as part of this community and can’t wait to share tons more new recipes and exciting things coming your way in the upcoming years :)
I know I’m in the minority but I’ve been looking for a chia seed pudding to make with whole milk. (Old-school lover of tapioca.) I had a specific lighter result in mind and your ratio nailed it. I enjoyed it w berries. Thank you!
Hi Karen – So glad you enjoyed this chia pudding recipe!
Sooo Good!!!! Thank you!
Giving it a try for breakfast tomorrow will let you know how it turns out
Hi Evie – Hope you love this staple recipe!
I love this recipe!! This has saved me so many times in the mornings, especially working from home now. I tend to need something really quick in the mornings, and this does the trick. I make it using milk I’ve made using your homemade almond or cashew milk recipes! I’ve added matcha and maca powder to mix it up a bit – I like the matcha better than the maca mix. I haven’t tried the meal prep yet – I just make a big batch and leave it in the refrigerator since I’m typically going to eat it all within a few days. Thanks for sharing!
Hi Darlina – This is also one of my favorite breakfast meals to make with my cashew milk. I’ll definitely need to try it with matcha next time. But, if you eat this a lot, you can also freeze chia pudding! I always have a batch in there incase I don’t have time to make any :)
I made the chia pudding, but mine did not set up, even after adding a bit more chia. Any idea why☹
Hi Anita – Sometimes, it can be the chia seeds you have unfortunately. If they are too old, they might not gel up as well or it could be a bad batch.