So You Panic Bought… The Big Tub of Greek Yogurt
Kitchen notes from a practicing home-cooking poet as she goes
Jeesoo Lee — with photos by Christian Martinez
I have to confess that I don’t like greek yogurt on its own. I love tangy foods, but there’s something about greek yogurt I still can’t quite accept in my heart. When I really committed to learning how to cook and bake, I was shocked by how many recipes called for greek yogurt. It eventually became unsustainable and annoying to constantly buy single serving greek yogurt packages, so I took the plunge and started buying the two pound containers of plain whole milk (5%) greek yogurt. The brand doesn’t matter, but I’ve grown to slightly prefer Maplehill if it’s in stock. Fage, Chobani, Stonyfield, or whatever is still available will work. Here is how I’ve learned to use up greek yogurt three different ways.
OPTION 1: SNACK SIZE YOGURT BOWL
Plain 5% greek yogurt
Frozen berries or fresh fruit
Nut butter
Granola or anything slightly sweet and crunchy like cereal
Maple syrup or honey
This is the most obvious and least fussy way to make use of the two pound container you have sitting in your fridge. My bowl has about three generous spoonfuls because that’s my snack size, but dish out the portion that makes sense for you. I do not eat yogurt plain unless a generous amount of maple syrup has been vigorously stirred in first. I have tried the yogurt cups with honey and fruit compote mixed in, but it just isn’t the same as making everything to taste.
TIP: This might be taking things too far, but I add the expiration dates of the dairy products I have on hand into my calendar. There is nothing more sad than throwing out untouched foods because you forgot you had them. There is also nothing more annoying than thinking you have milk at home, only to find it expired two weeks ago.
OPTION 2: LEMON TURMERIC TEA CAKE (OR MUFFINS!)
Plain 5% greek yogurt
Flour
Baking powder
Butter
Eggs
Sugar
Lemons
Ground turmeric -- you can probably do without, as this is more for color than for flavor
This lemon cake will put a serious dent into your tub of GY. I’m linking you to my preferred version here, but you can find Alison Roman’s reposted on many recipe sites or in her cookbook, Nothing Fancy.
I decided to make this cake into a bite-sized versions using my muffin tin to quickly reduce the bake time, but if this is your first time, you should make this the proper way in a loaf pan — you deserve it! My sour cream expires tomorrow, so I used some of that in place of greek yogurt. But I’ve made this cake tons of times with greek yogurt, and there is practically no difference in taste or texture.
TIP: The recipe calls for ½ cup of sugar, but I think a little more than ⅓ is sufficient. You can add more lemon juice depending on how zingy you want your cake to turn out. Contrary to popular social media aesthetics, citruses don’t belong on the counter — stick them in the fridge!
OPTION 3: GREEK YOGURT DIP WITH SIZZLED SCALLIONS AND CHILE
Plain 5% greek yogurt
Olive oil
Scallions
Red chili pepper flake
Lemons
Anything you want to dip (carrots, chips, pretzels, boiled baby potatoes, blanched green beans, broccoli, truly anything!)
Cilantro optional
When we were told to stock up, one of my roommates panicked and bought an entire bag of multicolor carrots even though he is slightly allergic. The solution was to obviously make a dip that everyone can enjoy with their crunch of choice. The original calls for labneh, but I find that greek yogurt with lots of lemon juice is so much better. You can also find this recipe reposted on many different recipe sites. The recipe, as is, makes A LOT of dip, so I recommend halving the recipe or thirding or whatever makes sense for your living situation right now!
TIP: If your red-pepper flakes are a little old, the dip will not turn a bright orange color! That’s ok, and it should not affect the taste too significantly, but maybe consider getting some new flakes when social distancing is over.
Jeesoo Lee is a poet and editor learning to cook in Brooklyn.