The best chia seed pudding recipe in 4 different delicious flavors to change things up and never get bored! Chia pudding is an easy breakfast or snack that’s satisfying and full of nutrition. Enjoy Chai, Green Matcha + Coconut, Banana Strawberry and Chocolate Chia Seed Puddings!
When I’m looking for a delicious, nutritious breakfast or snack, I turn to green smoothies, a simple açaí bowl, and this easy chia seed pudding. It’s a breeze to make, adult and kid friendly, easy to grab-n-go and packed with protein and fiber.
This chia seed pudding recipe is awesome because it satisfies my sweet tooth, and fuels my body with good-for-you ingredients. It’s made with all natural ingredients, tastes great and can be thrown together in minutes. Whip it up before bed and then let it set up in the fridge overnight. You’ll wake up to a tasty breakfast in the morning! I’m sharing a basic recipe for chia pudding, plus 4 ways to jazz up the flavor.
What Is Chia Pudding?
Chia seeds are edible seeds that come from a desert plant that happen to be jam-packed with nutritional goodness. They are rich in omega-3 fatty acids, carbohydrates, protein, fiber, antioxidants, and calcium AND they happen to make a delicious pudding. #winwin Simply mix them with milk and a sweetener and let them thicken up.
How Do You Make Chia Seed Pudding?
In the recipe card below I am sharing my go to base recipe for chia pudding and before the recipe card you will find 4 of my favorite chia seed pudding flavor combos. Take one and make it your own or come down to the comments below and let us know what your favorite flavor combo is!
This base recipe contains three basic ingredients: chia seeds, almond milk or other favorite milk variety and maple syrup (or another sweetener). That’s it! Mix all of the ingredients together in some type of container with a lid. Then, place the chia seed pudding into the fridge to set and thicken. It takes at least an hour for chia seed pudding to set up, so be sure to plan accordingly.
Oh! And if you like mason jars, I like making my chia pudding in either these or these.
Tips
- I like to make chia seed pudding with almond milk, but you can use any type of dairy or nondairy milk. Coconut milk is another favorite of mine.
- My sweetener of choice is maple syrup, which keeps the recipe all natural and vegan. You can swap out the maple syrup with stevia, honey, or agave.
- If you’re not a fan of the seedy texture, try blending the pudding in a food processor or blender after it’s set up to puree the chia seeds.
- These 4 flavor suggestions are simply guides. Feel free to add in any other favorite ingredients. Some fun ideas are fruit, nuts and granola.
- This chia seed pudding recipe will keep well in the fridge for up to 5 days. For best results, store chia pudding in a sealed airtight container. I like to portion the pudding into individual servings for a quick breakfast or snack option on the go.
Chai Chia Pudding
- 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk (or your favorite milk)
- 2 tbsp. chia seeds
- 1 tbsp. maple syrup (or your favorite sweetener)
- 1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
- tiny pinch cardamon + ground cloves
- 2 tsp. chopped raisins
Combine all ingredients in a wide mouth mason jar and stir well. Refrigerate for a minimum of 4 hours and up to 5 days. Enjoy with your favorite toppings.
Nutrients per recipe: Calories: 223; Total Fat: 9.5g; Saturated Fat: 1g; Cholesterol: 0mg; Carbohydrate: 29.7g; Fiber: 9.8g; Sugars: 16.5g; Protein: 6.8g
Green Matcha + Coconut Chia Pudding
- 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk (or your favorite milk)
- 2 tbsp. chia seeds
- 1 tbsp. maple syrup (or your favorite sweetener)
- 1 tsp. green matcha powder
- 2 tsp. shredded coconut
Combine all ingredients in a wide mouth mason jar and stir well. Refrigerate for a minimum of 4 hours and up to 5 days. Enjoy with your favorite toppings.
Nutrients per recipe: Calories: 242; Total Fat: 11.5g; Saturated Fat: 11.5g; Cholesterol: 0mg; Carbohydrate: 27.3g; Fiber: 12.2g; Sugars: 12.1g; Protein: 8.7g
Banana Strawberry Chia Pudding
- 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk (or your favorite milk)
- 2 tbsp. chia seeds
- 1 tbsp. maple syrup (or your favorite sweetener)
- 2 tbsp. chopped banana
- 2 tbsp. chopped strawberries
- dash of cinnamon
Combine all ingredients in a wide mouth mason jar and stir well. Refrigerate for a minimum of 4 hours and up to 5 days. Enjoy with your favorite toppings.
Nutrients per recipe: Calories: 236; Total Fat: 9.5g; Saturated Fat: 1g; Cholesterol: 0mg; Carbohydrate: 32.6g; Fiber: 10.6g; Sugars: 16.8g; Protein: 7.1g
Chocolate Chia Pudding
- 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk (or your favorite milk)
- 2 tbsp. chia seeds
- 1 tbsp. maple syrup (or your favorite sweetener)
- 1 tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder
- dash of cinnamon
Combine all ingredients in a wide mouth mason jar and stir well. Refrigerate for a minimum of 4 hours and up to 5 days. Enjoy with your favorite toppings.
Nutrients per recipe: Calories: 217; Total Fat: 11g; Saturated Fat: 2g; Cholesterol: 0mg; Carbohydrate: 27.4g; Fiber: 10.5g; Sugars: 11.9g; Protein: 7.5g
Give this healthy treat a try and you’ll be making it on repeat! It’s great for a snack, breakfast or even dessert.
More Delicious Treats:
- Blueberry Lemon Oatmeal Muffins
- Matcha Berry Protein Smoothie
- Pumpkin Chip Energy Bites
- Peanut Butter + Jelly Energy Bites
I’d love to know if you make this (or any) recipe! Tag @clean_and_delicious on Instagram and be sure to subscribe to our mailing list to receive more healthy, delicious recipes straight to your inbox.
Chia Pudding (Base Recipe)
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk or your favorite milk
- 2 tbsp. chia seeds
- 1 tbsp. maple syrup or your favorite sweetener
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients in a wide mouth mason jar.
- Stir together until everything is well combined. Refrigerate for a minimum of 4 hours and up to 5 days.
- Top with your favorite toppings and enjoy!
Emilie
Hi Dani, I mixed up the chocolate chia pudding yesterday and it’s in my fridge right now, just waiting for me to gobble it up when I get home from work tonight. I can’t wait!!
Emilie
Hi Dani, I have to comment again how much Mike and I enjoy these chia puddings. When I tell him I’m making some, he always requests the Chai option. He loves raisins and the spice combo makes him very happy. Of course, my favorite is the chocolate, but I just tried the Green Matcha and Coconut. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but it was a very good combination.
Thank you for all the “love” you put into every recipe. : )
Raquel
Hi Dani,
I made your chocolate chia pudding. I added black currents and coconut for flavor. I also added collagen gelatin as a thickener,
It was delicious!
I enjoy cooking healthy meals for my family! I love watching your videos to get new ideas!
-Raquel 🙂
Dani
That sounds great! Thanks so much for sharing.
Veena
I looove coconut so instead of matcha I added a tablespoon of unsweetened dried coconut with full fat coconut milk and it was deeelicious! Thanks Dani for sharing your amazing recipes
Connie
Where do you get your full fat coconut milk
Dani
You should be able to buy it at most grocery stores. It comes in a can:)
LILLY DERAS
THANK YOU FOR SHARING THIS DELICIOUS RECIPE
Dani
It’s my pleasure. So glad you enjoyed!
Stephen
Hi Dani.
I have a question so the banana strawberry chia pudding it says that it needs to be refrigerated 4 hour and 5 days dose that mean 4 hour ready to eat and can be stored up to 5 day or dose that mean I have to wait 5days and 4hour to consume it? From stephen
Dani
Hi Stephen, sorry for the confusion. They need to sit for a minimum of eight hours before they are ready to eat!
Trisha
Wow just discovered this after seeing Meghan markle makes chia pudding each week.. looks delicious will make one later today.
Dani
Awesome! Enjoy.
Kathy
Made this today. It was in the fridge overnight. But it’s runny – not a pudding or yogurt consistency but a drink consistency. I followed the directions exactly. I will have to do a web search to see what went wrong. Disappointed
Dani
Hmmm, that’s weird. Did you use whole chia seeds?
Ann
I have used coconut milk in the recipe and I find it to taste like sour milk. Is that just the flavor of chia seeds?
Dani
Interesting! I have no idea! Is there any chance that any of your ingredients were bad?
Janet
I eat a Keto like diet. What can I use I place of the syrup that’s low carb?
Dani
You can try using stevia or erythritol in place of the syrup.
Kim
Dani;
Hi,your chia seed pudding recipes look so good and tastey.I am a type 2 diabetic and i am lactose intolerant,and i am going to copy down your 4 chia seed pudding recipes and then i am going to try these pudding recipes at home after i go grocery shopping and then i will let you know what i think of your puddings and how much i love eating them.I use coconut milk,cashew milk,almond milk,natrel milk,fruit,yogurt,avocado,dragon fruit,chia seeds,almond paste,pumpkin puree,protein powder,stevia powder in my healthie smoothies,but I am not sure about using these ingredients in chia puddings.
I heard that chia seeds are healthy,and it will help to lower blood sugar and lose weight.
I am a chocolic but since being diagnosed with diabetes in january 2012 i had to cut out my sweet treats and chocolate and other baking recipes that had sugar in them.
I love tropical,chocolate,pumpkin smoothies,and i would like to try making and eating your healthy chia seed pudding recipes.
What chia seed pudding recipes do you recommend that i make at home?
Kim
Dani
I don’t think you can wrong with any of them Kim! I say pick whichever sounds the most delicious to you and then go for it! Can’t wait to hear your thoughts.
michelle
Can I use ground/sprouted flax/chia seed mix? Or for this to gel, must it be only whole chia seeds? Thanks!
Dani
That may work – just be sure its ground up first.
Kelly
Hi. Is honey or agave syrup an option to replace maple syrup?
Dani
Yes. Both will work!
Ursula Melia
Hi Dani, I made a variation of these puddings today by adding lots of chia seeds to home made apple and plum stew and then mixing it with vegan ready made raspberry joghurt. That also tasted really nice. Thank you for all your great videos. They give me lots of ideas to play with using what I have at home. Though I will try the chocolate chia pudding next week, it just sounds too tempting!!!
Dani
Apple and plum stew sounds fabulous! So glad you are enjoying all of the videos. I look forward to hearing what you think of the chocolate chia pudding 🙂
Cathy Schmidt
I am not a fan of whole chia seeds, they always seem to get stuck in my teeth. Can you ground the seed and then add the milk or with that not allow the consistency of pudding?
Dani
I have tried that and really don’t like the consistency of the end result. I honestly would not recommend it.