We spoon up so much yogurt at breakfast, lunch and dinner that Americans spent $7.3 billion on the tart stuff last year.
Its creamy texture and good-for-your-gut benefits are draws. So are the varieties: full fat, nonfat and low fat; organic and conventional; honey sweetened or plain; fruit on the bottom or swirled throughout.
Among these cultured denizens of the dairy case, it’s Greek yogurt that’s getting lots of attention.
Retail sales in the U.S. of this thicker-than-regular yogurt increased more than 50 per cent last year. Such numbers, they say, have pretzel, salad dressing and cereal-makers jumping on the Greek yogurt bandwagon.
Greek yogurt’s appeal is easy to understand. It’s deliciously thick and creamy, it plays well in recipes, its ingredient list is simple (milk plus live cultures) and its tartness dovetails with our fondness for fermented foods (pickles, beer, etc.).
“If you’re using Greek yogurt in cooking, basically you can use it anywhere that sour cream is used,”says registered dietitian Sarah Krieger.
Subbing Greek yogurt for sour cream in many recipes cuts calories and sodium, while delivering more protein.
Its acidity also works well as a marinade for meats and poultry. “It’s great for baked fish or chicken.
If you’re using it instead of mayonnaise, you’re actually using less fat and you’re adding a little bit of protein and a little bit of calcium,” says Krieger, a St. Petersburg, Fla., mom.
She spreads yogurt on whitefish, then mixes dried herbs with breadcrumbs or panko to sprinkle atop before baking.
“With yogurt, almost anything goes — the possibilities of cooking with it are infinite,” wrote Arto Der Haroutunian in The Yogurt Cookbook: Recipes From Around the World (Interlink Books, $35).
The late author, restaurateur and artist suggested using it in place of cream, milk, buttermilk and sour cream.
“It makes an excellent marinade and goes well with vegetables, eggs, meat, poultry, cheese and grains,” writes Der Haroutunian, whose book boasts 200-plus recipes, including a garlic sauce (yogurt mixed with a crushed garlic clove, finely chopped green onion, a bit of salt and dried mint) for serving atop fried — we like grilled — slices of zucchini or eggplant.
Greek yogurt, like regular yogurt, can be temperamental in the presence of heat. If you’re using it in cooking, it will curdle if you cook it over high heat, says Krieger, who suggests using low heat or stirring Greek yogurt into sauces at the end of cooking for texture and creaminess.
Nutritional differences between Greek and regular yogurts are due in part to the number of times each is strained. Regular yogurt is strained twice to remove liquid (called whey); Greek yogurt is strained three times, which makes it thicker and sometimes tarter.
“Regular yogurt has more whey, that is more of the liquid where most of the lactose — also known as the carbohydrate — is found,” says Krieger.
“So when the whey is removed, you’re left with a higher concentration of protein. That’s why you’ll see more protein in nonfat Greek yogurt than of the same amount of regular nonfat.”
Greek yogurt in the kitchen
Plain Greek yogurt’s thickness works for dips, on spicy foods (chili anyone?) and baked potatoes and adds another flavour dimension to some condiments (say, Dijon mustard or sriracha sauce). Remember:
• Liquid (whey) can pool at the top of yogurt. Just stir it back into the yogurt.
• Because yogurt is acidic, use a nonreactive dish when marinating foods or storing yogurt.
• Overstirring yogurt may thin its consistency.
• It may be warmed gently, but do not boil. To stabilize yogurt for a dish that may be cooked at a higher heat, Der Haroutunian suggested stirring one to two teaspoons of flour into a little water, then adding to the yogurt before cooking. Or beat an egg into the yogurt before cooking.
Shopping tips
Check ingredients beyond milk and live cultures. Some yogurt makers may add thickeners such as gelatin or cornstarch to yogurts strained only twice rather than the usual three times.
SKEWERED CHICKEN (MURGH TIKKA)
Preparation time: 20 minutes
Marinate: Overnight
Cook: 10-15 minutes
Makes: 4 servings
Note: Adapted from The Yogurt Cookbook. The author suggests serving it with a tomato and onion salad, plus rice pilaf or the Indian bread chapati.
Two-per cent Greek yogurt was used in our testing.
2 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts or thighs
1 onion, roughly chopped
2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
1 Tbsp plus 1 tsp finely chopped fresh ginger
• Juice of 1 large lemon
1 1/2 cups plain Greek yogurt
2 tsp each: ground coriander, salt
1/2 tsp ground cumin
3 Tbsp chopped fresh cilantro or mint
Cut chicken into one-inch cubes. Put the onion, garlic, ginger and lemon juice in a blender; purée until smooth. Empty paste into a large non-reactive bowl. Add yogurt, coriander, salt and cumin; mix well. Add chicken pieces; turn until well coated. Cover; refrigerate overnight.
Remove chicken from marinade, discarding marinade; thread pieces on skewers. Cook on a grill or under a broiler, turning frequently, 10-12 minutes. Serve sprinkled with chopped mint or cilantro.
APRICOT AND YOGURT CUSTARD
Preparation time: 1 1/4 hours
Cook: 30-40 minutes
Makes: 4 servings
Note: Adapted from The Yogurt Cookbook, this dish has a firm texture, not unlike cheesecake. The egg yolks help stabilize the yogurt. We used two per cent Greek yogurt in testing.
4 oz dried apricots, soaked overnight in cold water
2 cups plain Greek yogurt
2 egg yolks
1 Tbsp brown sugar
2 Tbsp chopped pistachios
Heat oven to 325 F. Drain softened apricots; cut them into small pieces. Place in a 4-cup baking dish. Beat yogurt and yolks together in a bowl; pour over apricots. Place baking dish in a baking pan. Pour enough cold water into the pan to come halfway up the outside of the baking dish. Bake until set, 30-40 minutes. Allow to cool. To serve, mix brown sugar with pistachios. Sprinkle over top.
