The best Chia Seed Pudding recipe in 4 different delicious flavors, so you never get bored! Chia pudding is an easy, satisfying breakfast that is nutritious and delicious. Choose from Chai, Green Matcha + Coconut, Banana-Strawberry, and Chocolate Chia Seed Pudding.
When I’m looking for a delicious, nutritious breakfast or snack, I turn to green smoothies, a simple açaí bowl, or this satisfying 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.
Make it before bed and let it set up in the fridge overnight and you’ll wake up to a tasty breakfast in the morning! Enjoy my basic recipe for chia pudding, plus 4 ways to change 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.
When chia seeds are mixed with a liquid (milk, in this case) they plump up and thicken the milk into a smooth and creamy pudding-like consistency.
What Does Chia Pudding Taste Like?
Chia seeds have no flavor and will take on the flavor of whatever add-ins you’re using. As for the texture, chia pudding is like a thick, creamy tapioca pudding, if you just mix the chia seeds with your milk. If you’re looking for a smooth pudding texture you can blend the mixture in a high powdered blender until smooth. The longer you leave the pudding sitting in the refrigerator, the creamier it will get!
Ingredients Needed:
This chia pudding recipe only requires 3 ingredients, plus optional mix-ins! Here’s what you need:
- Chia seeds – You’ll need 2 tablespoons of chia seeds. Once they soak in the milk, they will expand in size and become gelatinous. The texture of the mixture will become creamy and smooth, just like actual pudding.
- Milk – I like to use almond milk for this chia seed pudding, but feel free to use any milk variety that you prefer.
- Sweetener – 1 tablespoon of maple syrup sweetens the pudding perfectly! However, you can swap the maple syrup with any favorite sweetener – honey, stevia, or monk fruit.
- Mix-ins – Chia seeds will take on the flavors of whatever you mix with them to make an amazing pudding that you get to customize! The options for what ingredients to flavor your chia pudding with are endless! In the recipe card below, I’m sharing how to make four different tasty recipes – chai, matcha + coconut, banana strawberry and chocolate. Yum!
How to Make Chia Seed Pudding
Not only is the ingredient list short and sweet, but making the recipe is a breeze! For full, printable instructions, reference the recipe card at the bottom of the post. Here’s a quick rundown of how to make chia seed pudding:
- Prep – Combine all ingredients in a small jelly jar or a wide-mouth mason jar. You can really use any container with a lid, so you can store the pudding in the fridge without worrying about it spilling.
- Cover + chill – Once all ingredients are thoroughly stirred together, cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight. The longer the pudding sits, the thicker it will get! Letting it sit for at least 12 hours will yield the best results.
- Enjoy – Once the chia pudding is nice and thick, remove it from the fridge and give it a good stir. You can add a bit more milk, depending on the consistency you like. Taste and add more sweetener or any other ingredient that you want.
Customize Your Chia Seed Pudding
The 4 flavor suggestions listed in the recipe card are simply guides. Feel free to just make the base recipe and then add any other favorite ingredients or change your chia pudding up to your taste preference. Some fun mix-in and topping ideas: are fruit, nuts, and granola.
- Fresh fruit – berries, banana, peaches, mango, apple
- Nuts – almonds, walnuts, pecans
- Nut/seed butter – peanut butter, almond butter, cashew butter, coconut butter, sunflower seed butter
- Granola or cereal
- Other ideas – Feel free to change up the spices, add vanilla extract, shredded coconut, mix in a fun jam or spread
Tips
Here are a few tips that might be helpful when making chia seed pudding:
- I like to make this pudding with unsweetened 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, monk fruit or agave.
- If you’re not a fan of the seedy texture that chia pudding has, try blending the pudding in a food processor or blender after it’s set up to puree the chia seeds.
Is Chia Pudding Good for You?
Yes! Chia seeds have many health benefits as well as the fruit, toppings, and other ingredients used to make your chia seed pudding recipe. Here are some of the awesome health benefits of chia seeds:
- Great source of omega-3 fatty acids
- High in fiber
- Plant-based protein
- Good source of calcium, iron and antioxidants
- You can even use chia seeds as an egg substitute. If you are looking for an egg alternative for baking, chia seed eggs typically work great. Here’s a great tutorial for how to make a chia egg from Minimalist Baker.
Storage Recommendations
This chia seed pudding recipe is the perfect breakfast to meal prep! It 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.
Can You Freeze Chia Seed Pudding?
Surprisingly, yes! Chia pudding freezes very well for up to about 3 months! You can freeze it in freezer-safe jars or containers, thaw it in the refrigerator overnight when you’re ready to enjoy it and it will maintain great texture and flavor. If the pudding hasn’t completely thawed just leave it on the counter for 5-10 minutes. Give it a stir and enjoy! This freezer method works great for those of you that would like to meal prep chia pudding, but don’t want to eat the same thing days in a row.
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
If you make this delicious chia seed pudding, be sure to leave a comment and star rating below letting me know how it turned out. Your feedback is so helpful for me and our Clean & Delicious community (thank you!).
Chia Pudding (4 Flavors!)
Ingredients
Base recipe
- 1/2 cup unsweetened almond milk or your favorite milk
- 2 tbsp. chia seeds
- 1 tbsp. maple syrup or your favorite sweetener
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
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
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
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
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients in a small jelly jar or a wide mouth mason jar. Any container with a lid works great.
- Stir to thoroughly combine ingredients, cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight. The longer the pudding sits, the thicker it will get! Letting it sit for at least 12 hours will yield best results.
- Once the chia pudding is nice and thick, remove it from the fridge and give it a good stir. You can add a bit more milk, depending on the consistency you like. Taste and add more sweetener or any other ingredient that you want.
