So you know how if the world was made out of ideas collected on Pinterest, we’d all sleep in beds made of wooden shipping pallets held together with burlap and washi tape and we’d stay perpetually skinny by adding dollops of coconut oil and Greek yogurt into everything we ate (and by “everything,” I mean a diet consisting largely of smoothies)? I love Pinterest (sometimes I love it more than others…I tend to like myself a lot more when I pin in moderation); I love so many of the ideas and being able to save such fabulous creative ideas into one place. But it’s also easy to get burned by trends that seem to have all the answers.
Like Greek yogurt.
I love Greek yogurt–I’ve loved it for way longer than it’s made your skin silky soft and established world peace one 5.3-ounce container at a time. But I’m under no illusions that it’s going to change the world. I also totally get it if you think it tastes like baby vomit and are scared to admit it lest the throngs of Greek yogurt devotees come and flog you with the un-cool stick. Yeah, yeah, I just said “baby vomit” on a food blog. It’s gonna be one of those posts.
What Greek Yogurt Is:
- Before the Greek yogurt purists hit the comment button and furiously tell me that I am wrong and that TRUE Greek yogurt is made from full-fat milk and the stuff we eat from the grocery stores here in the US is not fit for dogs and we are stupid, stupid idiots for eating “Greek” yogurt, yeah, I get it, whatever. This post is about Greek yogurt purchased in major US grocery stores.
- True Greek yogurt has been strained twice, so it has twice as much protein as regular yogurt. Most Greek yogurt sold in the US is low-fat or fat-free, which does make it a great addition to a healthy diet–it’s a good source of lean protein and has all sorts of other dietary goodies like calcium and Vitamin D.
- Pretend Greek yogurt (more officially known as “Greek-Style Yogurt”) is thickened with pectin and doesn’t have the protein of double-strained yogurt.
- Greek yogurt is thicker, tangier, and generally not as heavily sweetened as yogurt you might be used to eating. I like the tangy flavor and the thickness makes it feel like I’m eating a treat, but some people compare it to eating plain sour cream.
- Speaking of sour cream, it’s a great substitute for sour cream and other fatty, creamy ingredients like full-fat buttermilk and mayonnaise. Check out this chart from Chobani that tells you how to substitute Greek yogurt in the kitchen:
- It may be more expensive than yogurt you might have bought in the past.
- It pretty much always contains live active cultures. You know, all that good bacteria.
What Greek Yogurt Isn’t:
- It isn’t going to negate all the other bad things you eat all day or make you magically lose 7 pounds by hanging out in your fridge.
- It is not a sure-shot with husbands. Mine looked at me like I gave him a sealed plastic container full of peach-flavored something horrible when I handed it to him.
If you go to the grocery store, you might feel overwhelmed with the Greek yogurt selections. Seriously, 3-4 years ago, I couldn’t find it anywhere and now it’s kind of taken over the dairy department. Which is awesome. But Greek yogurt can be really really good and it can be really, really bad–don’t judge all Greek yogurt on one or two bad brands.
I couldn’t possibly test all the flavors of all the brands in all the grocery stores in all the land, but I did try to track down all the brands I find at grocery stores where I usually shop. Because I’m not a total glutton (or glutton for punishment), I didn’t get every single flavor. I can tell you that even within my favorite brands, there are flavors I love (Chobani pineapple!) and others that I can’t stand (Chobani Strawberry!) I tried to stick with vanilla or honey if possible because they’re smooth and mild, but I got Fage peach because that was the mildest flavor I could find. Also, all the yogurt here was purchased with my very own money for testing purposes. I’m not being compensated in any way by any yogurt company, so I promise, everything I’m telling you is totally my own opinion.
First up: Chobani Honey!
Serving Size: 6 ounces
Calories: 150
Fat: 0 grams
Carbs: 21
Protein: 13
Weight Watchers Points +: 4
This yogurt was delicious and creamy, not too sweet, with a slight, pleasantly sour aftertaste. Grade: A.
Next…Dannon Light & Fit Greek Vanilla.
Serving Size: 5.3 ounces
Calories: 80
Fat: 0 grams
Carbs: 9 grams
Protein: 12 grams
Weight Watchers Points+: 2
This yogurt had a nice texture, but it tasted like a cup full of chemicals. The vanilla tasted like a vanilla candle, the yogurt was overly sweet, and it had an artificial sweetener aftertaste. Grade: C-.
Next…Fage Peach
Serving Size: 5.3 ounces
Calories: 120
Fat: 0 grams
Carbs: 17 grams
Protein: 13 grams
Weight Watchers Points +: 3
This yogurt was thick, creamy, and didn’t taste fat free. The texture was smooth and silky, the yogurt was tangy with no weird aftertaste,and the peach wasn’t gummy or over-processed like a lot of fruit flavors in yogurts. Also, the fruit comes in a separate compartment,
so you can add as much or as little as you like. A+
Greek Gods Vanilla Honey
Serving Size: 8 ounces
Calories: 280
Fat: 14
Carbs: 33
Protein: 8
Weight Watchers Points +: 8
Tangy, creamy, multidimensional, distinct, clean honey and vanilla flavors that didn’t taste fake in any way and were well-balanced. This was probably the best-tasting of all of them (um…duh–it has 14 times as much fat as any of the others). I took a peek at the ingredients list and it had whole milk, sugar, honey, vanilla, and whey and pectin. So a lot more natural than some of the other options and you could taste it. That said…take a look at the serving size and the protein content. This isn’t actually Greek yogurt, it’s Greek-style yogurt (notice the pectin?) It’s also probably not something you want to eat every day if you’re trying to lose weight. But it’s a delicious, creamy treat–I’m giving it an A-, just because it’s misleading and more like ice cream than a healthy breakfast alternative… 🙂
Oikos Vanilla
Serving Size: 5.3 ounces
Calories: 120
Fat: 0
Carbs: 19
Protein: 12
Weight Watchers Points +: 3
This was creamy and smooth with a slightly gritty after-feel. This had a strong artificial vanilla flavor that I wasn’t too keen on. Grade: B.
Voskos Vanilla Bean
Serving Size: 5.3 oz.
Calories: 130
Fat: 0
Carbs: 21
Protein: 11
Weight Watchers Points +: 3
This was hands-down my least favorite. It was grainy with an artificial vanilla taste and a weird, unpleasantly sour aftertaste. In fact, I checked the expiration date a few times to make sure it wasn’t spoiled, but the expiration date was a few weeks off. I couldn’t eat more than a few tastes. Grade: D-. And that’s because I’d feel like a jerkface for giving it an F.
Yoplait Greek 100 Vanilla
Calories: 100
Fat: 0
Carbs: 11
Protein: 13
WW Points: 2
The yogurt was thin and had an artificial flavor and chemical aftertaste. It didn’t taste a whole lot different from non-Greek diet yogurt. Grade: C-
I know that’s a lot of info, so here’s a little chart of how the different brands of yogurt stack up nutritionally. Happy Monday to you!
and here’s the chart from Chobani so you can print it out and hang it on your pantry door:
But… is Chobani really Greek yogurt or Greek Style Yogurt? I’m looking at the label on my Chobani Key Lime and it says it has pectin in it.
Did the recipe change or was there a “correction” in labeling.. or a truth in labeling issue?
Or maybe just because it has lime in it, it needed pectin, too? Any ideas?
This post was written a few years ago…chances are very good things have changed since then–I should re-do everything!!!
Thanks for the Chobani chart. I’m lactose and eat a lot of yogurt. Chobani is my favorite. I don’t eat any Yoplait, since one of the ingredients is palmitate, which is made from palm oil. I’m very allergic to palm and coconut. I agree with you on
the other yogurts. I have not seen Voskos.
You need to try the Liberte Vanilla Bean Yogurt. They do both Vanilla and Vanilla Bean, and the Vanilla Bean is by far the best yogurt I have ever tasted.
Their Strawberry and Coconut are to DIE for!
I am diabetic- and cannot do all the HIGH sugar in yogurt-i have other stomach issues so i cannot have fat. I love yogurt, and use it as a replacement in many recipes- but gave it because of the sugar counts.(most well over 20g)
I was delightfully surprised when i found a light no fat Greek yogurt with only 8 g sugar! It is (of all things) Supervalue which is Wal mart’s brand. I hate shopping there but i cannot find any place else that has LOW sugar/carb yogurt.
Blueberry has 8g sugar,Strawberry has 7g.
They have other flavors too. I am thrilled to have SOMETHING that i can eat and use in recipes. Being a diabetic means really controlling your overall carb/sugar intake, and these are perfect. They come in packs of 4,and since they are already measured out- i can use one for a midday snack.Don’t confuse it with Super value low fat Greek yogurt-it is LOADED with sugar. 24g sugar is 2 WHOLE teaspoons of sugar per unit- That is WAY too much sugar!!!Most yogurts have even more than that. I am so happy to be eating and using yogurt in recipes again!
The thing I don’t understand about Fage, Kirkland, other high protein (2.5g/oz or more) Greek yogurts is: How do they get such high protein and yet not have the consistency of cream cheese?
By my math for my homemade strained yogurt, with numbers pulled from nutritiondata.self.com (which closely mirrors USDA numbers – some micronutrients are listed on n.s.c that aren’t on the USDA site) and accounting for the difference in weight/volume after straining, my skim milk yogurt has only 1.89g protein per oz yogurt, and it’s thicker than sour cream when all is said and done. (Quick breakdown: nutrients of milk at start minus nutrients of drained whey; remaining nutrients divided by ounces of finished yogurt.)
So are these companies starting off with protein fortified milks? Are they adding proteins but not listing them on the ingredients? Is there some sort of nutrient math I’m not accounting for? What’s the deal?
I am thrilled to see the comments about Costco Kirkland brand yogurt. I used to only by Fage until I tried the Kirkland brand. I am full-blooded Greek and the Kirkland plain yogurt tastes exactly like my Yiayia (grandmother) used to make. It is thick and very creamy.
Ooops .. I meant to type .. “I used to only BUY.” 🙂
I found hair in Light & Fit Cherry Greek yogurt today, 6 Sep 2013. The numbers from the top label are: Sep 14 2013 ME 16 52.
Liberte greek yogurt? YUCK! Granted they were WONDERFUL before the company was bought by Yoplait in 2010 and then in 2011 by General Mills. Now they have changed the formula. And sadly most of the yogurts mentioned above are just regular yogurt with extra protein and thickeners added. True Greek yogurt is strained to reduce water content, thus concentrating the yogurt. The producers can get away with this because there is no legal standard for Greek yogurt. To tell the difference, just look at the ingredients. If protein is added to the product it is just regular yogurt that has been adulterated.
I love greek yogurt! I am presently waiting for a yogurt machine to arrive so that I can make my own with fresh fruit. This is mainly to cut my yogurt cost. One morning I was out of milk for my cereal but had a container of vanilla yogurt. Yep! I did. It was delicious!!! Now when I want a crunchy treat that feels “forbidden” I just ad Cheerios to a 1/2 cup of vanilla yogurt and am perfectly satisfied.
Just a tip for all the other greek yogurt lovers, a little apple, cinnamon, and heated caramel will make the greatest thing you’ve ever tasted!
I will have to agree with that. Noosa Yoghurt is amazing. Just tried the mango one last night. I thought I had died and gone to heaven!
Noosa Finest Yoghurt is hands-down simply the BEST-tasting (yummiest) yoghurt in the US and probably second-best in the ENTIRE world after Queensland Yoghurt which it is a clone-copy!! This is SO MUCH better than Chobani and all the other Greek and so-called Greek yogurts. SO MUCH BETTER!!!
I LOVED this: “Before the Greek yogurt purists hit the comment button and furiously tell me that I am wrong and that TRUE Greek yogurt is made from full-fat milk and the stuff we eat from the grocery stores here in the US is not fit for dogs and we are stupid, stupid idiots for eating “Greek” yogurt, yeah, I get it, whatever. This post is about Greek yogurt purchased in major US grocery stores.” HILARIOUS! This was a great post. I agree with all the grades you gave the yogurts. Good job!
I want to let my 11 month old try greek yogurt but i can only find nonfat or low fat. He needs a whole milk full fat variety. Is there a brand i should be looking for?
Finding full-fat true Greek yogurt can be hard. I don’t think I’ve ever seen it in a normal grocery store. You might have to go for full-fat non-Greek yogurt (Greek Gods, Liberte, Stonybrook Farms) or the baby yogurts like YoBaby. You also might find it in specialty grocery stores and I even some farmer’s markets may carry it. If all else fails and you’re super determined, you could make your own. I’ve never done it, but there are lots of people who do! 🙂
Chobani Apple Cinnamon is to die for. It tastes like Apple Pie alamode!
When I was younger, I did not like yogurt at all. To me it had a bitter after-taste and was not a treat. As I got older, I started to develop a taste for it … my favorite being vanilla. I tried all different brands, eventually settling on a couple of flavors of my grocery store brand, and one or two from Yoplait or Dannon. Then Greek yogurt became popular… so I had to try it. I bought a container of Chobani vanilla… and hurried home to taste it. “Yucky” was the only word that came to mind at the time. I didn’t like the consistency, nor the flavor. It had a dry gritty feel to it, and was sour. I didn’t give up though, instead trying each Greek yogurt that was on the market. I would choose one fruit (usually strawberry) and vanilla. One after the other they ended up in the garbage…. that is, until I tried Dannon Oikos yogurt. I loved it and still do! Due to some medical issues, and preference, I eat quite a bit of yogurt… probably 3-5 per day. Although my preference is still vanilla, I do enjoy all of the Oikos fat free flavors, as well as the regular ones too.
One more thing….Just like anyone, I have people in my life who dislike yogurt and refuse to eat it. I have recommended to many of my yogurt haters that they try the Oikos yogurt… even if they had tried Greek yogurt before and hated it. Out of all the people that I referred to this product, only one has come back disliking it.
Some even claimed it to be like a creamy parfait. The one thing I suggest is to make sure you stir it really well before eating it … and then you will get that creamy consistency. Good luck and hope you like it as much as I do! nb
We eat a ton of Greek yogurt. My french husband likes to put chocolate milk powder in it for a dessert. I buy the big tubs of plain, but for a long time I didn’t like the texture. It would separate and stirring it back up only did so much. Walmart started making their Great Value plain yogurt, and I love it. Smooth and creamy. Ingredients – cultured pasteurized nonfat milk. 1 cup serving has 120 calories, 0 fat, 9g sugar, 23g protein.
My first experience with Greek-style yogurt was not good but then I found Chobani pineapple. It has become my replacement for what used to be my favorite–Colombo Vanilla. Colombo was bought out by another company and then they took the Colombo brand off the market and I could not find a satisfactory alternative until I found Chobani.
This is a timely post for me! I know we can google these things, but I like to hear an opinion for a real person! So in your opinion, is greek yogurt (say Chobani or Fage) better than “regular” yogurt because its less processed and contains more protein?
a.) i love your writing style
b.) chobani pineapple yogurt totally rocks my universe.
Okay, I checked three stores to find the Chobani pineapple yogurt and you are right. It is the best. Now I want to buy an entire case of it.
Wow! You guys have a lot more greek yogurt flavors than I’ve seen in our grocery stores. We have the Chobani and Oikos and recently the Dannon came here. A couple months ago I tried making gyros with the greek yogurt dressing? Whatever brand of yogurt I used made the dressing taste horrible!! I wanted to gag. But recently I bought a 4 pack of blueberry on the bottom chobani I think… and it’s pretty good. I made the coconut lime banana bread the other day and didn’t have plain yogurt, so I used the blueberry. Worked pretty well 🙂
I served my mission in Poland and fell in love with European yogurt. I couldn’t even eat the yogurt here in the states for years after I got back. When Greek yogurt started being cool, I tried it, and some kinds were okay (especially the full-fat zoi) but it was soooo expensive. So, last year when my baby refused to drink milk and we had a bunch of whole milk around, I did a ton of research and started making my own yogurt. I love it because it so much milder than most of what you get at the store. Sometimes I strain it a few hours to make Greek-style yogurt (it’s still not authentic Greek because it’s not goat milk), or even longer to make yogurt cheese which is like cream cheese with a little tang, but most of the time we leave it drinkable. You can find the tutorial I wrote up at http://whatdowormssmelllike.blogspot.com/2012/04/how-to-make-yogurt-at-home.html. Enjoy!
I hate yogurt. I just can’t get past the texture and taste. I have tried all sorts of things. I gave Greek yogurt a try on the recommendation of my sister. Still couldn’t do it. My sisters’ kids all liked yogurt so I tried it on my girls. They won’t do it. I even tried freezing it but it is like they know. LOL.
I would like to try substituting it for sour cream but have a hard time finding plain yogurt. I will have to check out the Costco one people mentioned. Thanks for the post and information.
The Fage is by far my favorite, but where I live it is the hardest to find. I drive 20 miles to Super Target to stock up. I eat one every day! The blueberry/acai berry is my favorite.
I just made yogurt for the first time yesterday. I’m not a huge yogurt fan, but I needed to find some new ways to get dairy into my diet since my OB was a little concerned about my calcium intake (I offered to eat double or even triple my regular amount of ice-cream; she didn’t seem to think that was a good idea :). Anyway, I couldn’t believe how easy it was to make and how much better it is than the stuff in the store. If you are looking for a tutorial, Annie’s Eats has a very thorough one.
Nice to know there are other Fage lovers out there. I NEVER buy the flavored yogurt. I always buy plain and add how much of whatever I want in it. My hubby won’t touch it but if only he knew how often I use it instead of sour cream when I cook. I’ve found the best buy to be at Costco–the big 35.3 oz tub for less than $5. I used to hate yogurt because every brand I tried tasted fake. then I discovered plain, greek yogurt and a friend of mine suggested Fage. My first bite of this with some blueberries and granola I thought, “Yes, this is what yogurt is supposed to taste like!” Thanks for the post!
if you like greek yogurt or any yogurt you MUST try Liberte Mediterranee yogurt in COCONUT. OMG! Can I say? I’m from Europe and we have really awesome yogurts… all kinds of things in them and this yogurt was what I dream of in US. Took me 8 years to find yogurt I really like. Tastes like Raffaello, easily could be serve as a dessert… is that good 🙂 If you are not big coconut fun then vanilla and lemon are really good too 🙂
Great post! I love the substitution chart, very helpful. The best yogurt is the Friendly Farms Pineapple from Aldi Stores. 0 fat 14g protein 140 calories and half the price of regular supermarkets.
I love Fage, especially with honey. I also make my own with a powdered culture and powdered milk. In a pinch if I want extra thick Greek-like yoghurt I’ve taken a large container of plain yoghurt and strained it overnight in the refrig. Reduces it by about half but I have the thickness I want.