Know Your Yo-Guru-t

Feeling overwhelmed by the choices in the yogurt aisle of the grocery store? knowing the variety between the different options will help you make a better judgment in choosing the type suites your needs.

There are 4 major types of yogurt widely available include:

Plain

This type is most suitable for children and kids. It is made by heating milk, cooling it, adding bacterial cultures then letting the mixture ferment until lactic acid is formed. The mixture contains decent amount of liquids makes it best choice for moistening baked products.

Greek

It is made through the same process of fermenting plain yogurt, but it is strained to remove some of the liquid after the milk has curdled resulting in more thicker mixture. Comparing to plain yogurt, it has a higher content of protein and fewer carbohydrates. The flavor is more tangier too.

Skyr

It is an Icelandic yogurt-like, low-fat, high in protein yogurt. It is made from skim milk after the cream has been removed then the milk is warmed with live cultures and strained from the whey after it has thickened. Skyr has the a similar sour flavor to the Greek yogurt and smooth mouthfeel.

Kefir

Kefir is drinkable yogurt sold in bottles. It is prepared using grains of a yeast starter to begin the fermentation process. It has thin consistency, and can be prepared from whole or low-fat milk. It may be suitable for people with lactose intolerance since it contain very low amount lactose.

Classification of Yogurt in term of fat content:

Whole milk yogurt: this the richest form of yogurt. It has 6 g to 8 g of fat per cup. Some brands of whole-milk yogurts called farm-style, come with a layer of cream on the top.

Low-fat yogurt: It contains anywhere from 2 to 5 g of fat per cup.

Nonfat yogurt: contains less than 0.5 percent milk fat by weight. It makes a good stand-in for sour cream.