Sunday, October 3, 2010

Artisanal Yogurt: The New Culture Club

Greek was only the beginning.
Now, equally luscious and nuanced artisanal yogurts are coming onto the market here. The success of thick Greek-style yogurt has encouraged small dairies to roll out French, Bulgarian, Icelandic and Russian styles, as well as yogurts made from the milk of small herds of organic cows, sheep, goats, and water buffalo. Yogurt tends to be less labor-intensive and more profitable than cheese, so it has become an important sideline for many small-scale cheesemakers.

What most unites the distinct varieties is that they tend not to contain stabilizers widely used by commercial makers, and are as a result liquid and silky. Most artisans use less sugar for their flavored yogurt than commercial makers, making them healthier but with a shorter shelf life. Longer fermentation yields a tangier flavor and more digestion-aiding probiotic bacteria. The bonus: While artisanal yogurts often taste richer and creamier than commercial varieties, their calories count is on par.
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3 comments:

Hans Georg Lundahl said...

That is MY culture club all right.

As for people who have been to say the least uncooperative when it comes to letting me have wife, children and a kitchen where to make artisanal yoghurt, I am getting into the mood of "do you really want to hurt me" ...

Hans Georg Lundahl said...

On a more serious note: French Yoghurt is Great (as the article you link to implies), but in Sweden you can buy half-liquid yoghurt with the culture still alive, in French stores the yoghurt you buy has usually no more bacteria and will not do for home made yoghurt.

Julygirl said...

The U.S. companies are now adding corn starch and other thickners. Even Activa recently started when previously they did not. YoBaby is the only one left that is real yogurt. There are a few brands in Natural food markets that are pure, but in the chain supermarkets the pickings are slim.I will have to try the Greek yogurt.