How to make Chia Seed Pudding

Chia pudding is one of the easiest recipes you can make to serve as a healthy breakfast or whenever you want a pick-me-up snack or treat.  

Make this 2-ingredient easy chia pudding recipe and enjoy it in as little as 30 minutes, or make a big batch overnight if you're into meal prepping.

Then, flavor or add your favorite toppings or make one of my healthy flavored chia seed pudding recipes (suggestions included).

Why You'll Love This Recipe

• Great for meal prep: A larger batch of delicious chia seed pudding in the fridge ensures easy breakfasts or snacks—like making a chocolate coconut chia pudding in 5 minutes.
• The base recipe allows for flexibility: Choose your preferred chia seed pudding ratio and type of milk.
• Experiment with different flavor combinations: Like chocolate chia pudding or adding fresh berries, make every batch exciting.
• Comes without added sugar: Choose your sweetener of choice.
• All variations are dairy-free and gluten-free. Plus, you can easily adapt them to be low-carb or Keto.

Ingredients

See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.

Here's all you need to make the base of a chia pudding:

• Chia seeds
• Your milk of choice (like oat milk or light coconut milk)

How To Make It (The Base)

See the full recipe with exact measurements in the recipe card.

Well, as mentioned before, It's ridiculously simple.

Step One (Picture 1 above) - Place the suggested amount of chia seeds into a sizeable bowl or jar. Pour your choice of milk over the seeds. Then, stir until well combined.

Step Two (Picture 2 above) -  Let it sit for 2 to 5 minutes. Give it another stir to break up any chia seed clumps that might have developed—especially at the bottom. 

Step Three (Picture 3 above) - Store in a sizeable see-through mason jar(s) or a bowl(s) with a lid in the fridge until it has a nice, thick, pudding-like consistency. When ready, give it one more good stir. Take out the amount you need and customize your serving with your favorite toppings like fresh fruit or chocolate chips and sweetener of choice. 

Note: It thickens quickly, but I usually let it sit for at least 30 minutes to 2 hours or overnight if you wish to prepare it the night before.

The Perfect Ratio Of Chia Seeds To Liquid

You can make your pudding thin, thick, or super creamy. And I'll give you a couple of "chia seeds to liquid" ratio options.

I prefer a less thick pudding consistency, but I encourage you to experiment with it. It's just chia pudding.

You add more liquid if it's too thick for you or more seeds if it's too watery and pop it back into the fridge—ridiculously simple, no?

• For a thinner consistency, use two tablespoons of chia seeds for every cup of milk. It creates a lovely texture, primarily when you use plant milk like nut or oat milk. 
• For a thicker chia pudding, increase the amount of chia seeds. Try two tablespoons per half cup of milk or ¼ cup (4 tablespoons) per cup of milk. And for a larger batch, that equates to ½ cup (82 grams) of chia seeds per 2 cups of milk.
• For a creamy texture, blend the chia pudding once set but before adding sweeteners or toppings. This is a great option if you don't like the chia seed texture. 

Note on blended chia pudding: The bigger the batch, the better it blends in your blender. And you can go all the way until all seeds have entirely disappeared and you have a creamy concoction. Blending the chia seeds is not my favorite option. But it works great with a cacao or chocolate flavor reminiscent of my coffee chocolate mousse and is great if you also want to make a batch for your toddler.

Best Milk Options To Make Chia Seed Pudding

Any milk. However, I admit that I have never used regular dairy milk before because I don't care for its taste.

Go for unsweetened varieties, and some of my favorites are:

• oat milk (my daughter's favorite)
• cashew or hazelnut milk
• hemp milk (my favorite)

But I've also used:

• almond milk
• soy milk
• coconut milk
• pea milk

Topping Ideas

This basic 2-ingredient chia pudding recipe doesn't have much flavor on its own. But that's the fun part of this simple recipe.

It's pretty much a blank canvas to add whatever toppings and flavors you feel like eating on any given day.

Here are a few suggestions:

• Fruits: Frozen or fresh fruits in season.
• Seeds and nut butter: Try healthy hemp seeds, sesame seeds, (homemade) chocolate peanut butter, or almond butter for a creamy twist.
• Dried fruits: Coconut flakes, dried cranberries, chopped figs, or apricots are some of my favorites.
• Nuts: Walnuts, Brazil, almonds, or any other nuts you love.
• A lovely (homemade (compote) or jam: A couple of tablespoons are enough to add that sweet, mild flavor to the pudding.
• Additional flavors: Vanilla or almond extract, cocoa or cinnamon powder.
• A crunchy texture: Homemade granola or crunchy steel-cut oats add a lovely flavor and bite.
• Stir in a sweetener of choice: Pure maple syrup, honey, Stevia, or a sugar substitute like powdered Monkfruit—just a few suggestions.
• Protein powder: Especially if you want to enjoy it as a post-workout snack.
• Dark chocolate chips or shavings: To make it a lovely dessert.

Note: If using Monkfruit, try to go for a powdered version as that easily stirs and melts into the chia pudding without leaving a grainy bite or powder your regular Monkfruit sugar in a small blender or coffee grinder.

Recipe FAQs

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If you make one of my flavored chia puddings (see below the recipe), then let me know which one was your favorite. And don't forget to leave a starred review. Thank you!

Amazing Recipes To Flavor Chia Pudding

• I share below some of my favorite recipes. All you have to do is mix or layer it with your prepped basic chia seed pudding.
• It is best to make these concoctions on the spot—it takes less than 5 minutes.
• However, you can make them in advance and store them in the fridge or assemble them with the chia seed pudding as a meal prep option.

1. Kiwi-Spirulina Delight (Dairy-free, Vegan, GF, Paleo-friendly)

This first recipe contains delicious fresh kiwis and is sweetened with half a banana and just a tad of maple syrup (optional).

It's also infused with spirulina to add extra nutrients and antioxidants. If you like it sweeter, add a whole banana instead. It's best to eat this the same day or the next.

Ingredients you'll need for (2 servings):

• ½ teaspoon Spirulina (or matcha) powder
• 2 kiwis, peeled
• ½ of a peeled banana
• 1 tablespoon plant milk (I love hemp for this recipe)
• 1 tablespoon maple syrup
• Extra kiwi slices and coconut shreds for garnish

Directions:

1. Place spirulina, kiwis, banana, plant milk, and maple syrup in a small blender or food processor.
2. Blend until you get a smooth green liquid.
3. Mix or layer this sweet green goodness with up to 5 tablespoons of the base chia seed pudding per serving.
4. Garnish with extra kiwi slices and coconut shreds (highly recommended).

Note: Love kiwi? Then, also check out my Kiwi popsicle recipe and my Kiwi chia pudding with matcha.

2. Grapefruit & Almond Pudding (Dairy-free, GF, Paleo-friendly)

Grapefruit, almonds, and the floral notes of honey complement each other and add a delicious fresh element to chia seed pudding.

A little bit of honey goes a long way to balance out some of the bitterness of grapefruit.

This is my absolute favorite, and it's best to make this with coconut or almond milk.

Ingredients you'll need for (2 servings):

• 1 large peeled grapefruit
• 1 tablespoon coconut or almond milk
• 1 teaspoon of honey
• 1 tablespoon of almond butter, coconut shreds, and fresh basil leaves for garnish

Directions:

1. Place grapefruit, milk, and honey in a small blender or food processor.
2. Blend until you get a smooth orange liquid.
3. Mix or layer this sweet goodness with up to 5 tablespoons of the base chia seed pudding per serving.
4. Garnish with almond butter (highly recommended), coconut shreds, and fresh basil leaves (optional).

3. Berry Yogurt Pudding With Hemp Seeds (Dairy-free, Vegan, GF, Paleo)

You can choose any berries or a combo thereof. But I highly recommend throwing in a few frozen cherries to add a naturally sweeter taste.

I usually add a tad of honey or maple syrup—not much, though. And love drizzling this one with hemp seeds and tahini butter to add extra healthy fats and proteins.

Ingredients you'll need for (2 servings):

• ½ cup frozen berries (throw in some cherries, if you can)
• ¼ cup cashew yogurt (or coconut yogurt)
• 1 teaspoon of honey or maple syrup
• Top with hemp seeds, extra fresh berries, and a drizzle of tahini butter

Directions:

1. Place berries, yogurt, and sweetener in a small blender or food processor.
2. Blend until you get a smooth reddish-thick liquid.
3. Mix or layer this sweet red goodness with up to 5 tablespoons of the base chia seed pudding per serving.
4. Garnish with hemp seeds (highly recommended), extra berries of choice, and a drizzle of tahini butter or almond butter (optional).

4. Dark Chocolate Chia Pudding (Dairy-free, Vegan, GF, Paleo, Keto)

This is so delicious, and it's probably more of a dessert. Flavors of cacao, cinnamon, and chocolate mint work well here.

I also sometimes like adding extra collagen peptides (optional, of course), turning this chocolate chia pudding into a post-workout snack that's simply irresistible.

Ingredients you'll need for (2 servings):

• 1 ½ tablespoons cacao powder (you can also replace half of it with dark chocolate collagen peptides)
• ¼ teaspoon cinnamon powder
• ¼ cup cashew yogurt (or coconut yogurt)
• 3 teaspoons monk fruit sweetener (or more to taste)
• Top with dark chocolate bits, nuts, and chocolate mint leaves (optional) for garnish

Directions:

1. Place cacao powder, cinnamon, yogurt, and sweetener in a small blender or food processor.
2. Blend until you get a smooth, dark brown liquid.
3. Mix this sweet chocolate goodness with up to 5 tablespoons of base chia seed pudding per serving.
4. Garnish with dark chocolate bits (highly recommended), walnuts or pecans, and chocolate mint leaves (optional).

Try also this Chocolate Coconut Chia Pudding, Chocolate Chia Mousse, or Coffee Chia Pudding.

Note: love chocolate, cinnamon, and coffee-flavored recipes? Then try also my healthy coffee popsicles.

5. Basil Infused Lemon Pudding (Dairy-free, Vegan, GF, Paleo, Keto)

This delicious chia seed pudding is zingy and refreshingly citrusy, like my Lemon Chia Pudding.

A few fresh, sweet basil leaves are all you need to add a sweet, peppery taste that works surprisingly well in this simple concoction.

Ingredients you'll need for (2 servings):

• 1 lemon, peeled
• 4 to 5 fresh basil leaves
• ¼ cup cashew yogurt
• 3 teaspoons monk fruit sweetener (or more to taste)
• Top with extra Basil leaves and lemon slices for garnish

Directions:

1. Place lemon, Basil, yogurt, and sweetener in a small blender or food processor.
2. Blend until you get a smooth, light, yellowish-thick liquid.
3. Mix this citrusy sweet goodness with up to 5 tablespoons of the base chia seed pudding per serving.
4. Garnish with fresh basil leaves and extra slices of lemon (optional).

Enjoy these healthy chia pudding recipes! Now it's time for you to make them.

Note: Chia seeds contain many health benefits and are an excellent food source for adding omega 3, fiber, protein, and extra vitamins and minerals to your diet.