Best non-dairy yogurt?

June 21, 2021 12:19 PM

I'm reluctantly trying/being forced into Whole 30 with a friend. I will probably just lie to said friend this month, but I did buy some cashew-milk yogurt and it is super-gross--the texture, the taste (really artificial). Immediately thrown out. For people who know about these things: what is your favorite brand/type of non-dairy yogurt? I need it to be unsweetened. (And note I love regular plain whole milk yogurt.) Thank you!
posted by namemeansgazelle to Food & Drink (25 answers total)

This is my favorite brand: The Collaborative . The plain might not technically be Whole30 friendly, though, because of the corn starch. In general, I find coconut yogurts to be much creamier than those make with nut “milk.”
posted by katie at 12:24 PM on June 21, 2021 [2 favorites]

I'm hesitant to recommend it because it's cashew-based and you didn't provide the name of the kind that you hated, but I like Forager brand.

My son prefers the Silk brand of yogurt.

You could try making your own using whatever nondairy milk you like best. It's actually quite easy to do.

You didn't mention if you've been without dairy products for a while but if not, you might try purposefully removing all dairy from your diet for a week or longer before trying nondairy options to "reset" your taste buds. It could be that you need a little time to acclimate. If it's allowed in your diet, you could also try blending some of your favorite regular yogurt in with a new brand while you adjust.
posted by mezzanayne at 12:44 PM on June 21, 2021 [1 favorite]

Best answer: Every non-dairy yogurt I have ever tried is gross. There was ONE (1!) ever that I liked ok, but it was super-pricey and I don't remember the name. My point is you might be better off finding something else entirely for the month.
posted by aniola at 12:49 PM on June 21, 2021 [7 favorites]

Oatly offers oat milk and (unsweetened) oat milk-based yogurt. I have more or less replaced the dairy part of my diet with their stuff; I'm an omnivore, but do not miss cow's milk.

I would avoid almond-based products, because of the environmental costs of how they are manufactured.
posted by They sucked his brains out! at 12:51 PM on June 21, 2021

Agree with aniola that unsweetened plant -based yogurt is disgusting. I hate to yuck anyone's yum, but there, I said it. Silk plain yogurt is the closest / best I've found but even that does have some added sugar.
But don't despair, milks and cheeses are easier - it's the unsweetened yogurt that is so tough.
posted by Viola Swamp at 12:56 PM on June 21, 2021 [3 favorites]

I doubt it's available outside the UK, but for UK peeps, Alpro Plain No Sugars is really good and is very similar in taste to double (heavy) cream. I use it in sauces, and when it's poured over strawberries, it's exactly like cream.
posted by essexjan at 1:12 PM on June 21, 2021 [1 favorite]

My wife likes So Delicious.
posted by kevinbelt at 1:15 PM on June 21, 2021 [1 favorite]

Seconding the recommendation for Oatley Plain. I put it over cut-up melon or strawberries, and I sprinkle a bit of stevia sweetener on it. I think it might be slightly sweetened (7 grams of sugar per serving), but it's not overly sweet at all. It has a really nice texture. I can't say that the flavor is fantastic, but it does go well with fruit.
posted by alex1965 at 1:22 PM on June 21, 2021

Agreed that plant-based yogurts are mostly gross. I don't love the flavor of coconut yet the Siggi's coconut-based non-dairy yogurts are my favorite I've tried so far. The texture is really good - not as thick as a greek yogurt but not slimy or weird. Unfortunately they don't have an unsweetened option and I haven't seen the plain in my local stores so I've only tried the flavored ones; on the other hand they have more protein than most non-dairy yogurts. I had a bad experience with Forager non-dairy yogurt being so gross that it put me off even trying other kinds for a full year into the elimination of dairy from my diet. The Siggi's has been a recent and welcome discovery.
posted by misskaz at 1:31 PM on June 21, 2021 [2 favorites]

I've tried Harmless Harvest's plain coconut yogurt a couple of times and was happy with it. Though it might be worth mentioning that I've never just eaten it as-is, it's always been subbed for yogurt in a recipe or made into an herbed yogurt sauce.
posted by darkchocolatepyramid at 1:32 PM on June 21, 2021

Do you need to eat yogurt? I like other plant milk products, but this is one more vote for avoiding the yogurt. Oatly is better than the nut-based products for so many reasons, including taste, but you can't eat that while doing Whole 30.
I normally have yogurt for breakfast, but this morning I just made a larger serving of fruit and berries because I had stuff that needed to be eaten, and it was surprisingly filling and nice. I think if you put a sprinkling of chopped nuts or almonds on top, or swirl of tahin stirred with lemon, you will get the sense of depth or contrast you might miss, though I didn't miss it today.
posted by mumimor at 1:55 PM on June 21, 2021 [1 favorite]

The only non-dairy yogurt I like is Kite Hill plain/unsweetened almond milk. I tried Forager cashew milk and it was way too slimy for my taste. I have similar struggles with oat and coconut. Kite Hill has the least fakeity texture and flavor for me.
posted by mandymanwasregistered at 2:06 PM on June 21, 2021

Agree with the Siggi’s non-dairy yogurt that misskaz suggested, but it’s definitely sweetened. But so good!
posted by bananacabana at 3:10 PM on June 21, 2021

I’ve done whole30 a couple of times and I’d recommend trying a coconut chia pudding as an alternative—mix coconut milk and chia seeds and give them a few hours to absorb it. If you want to be fancy you can chill the can of coconut milk and take off the cream layer first, then use it like a whipped cream topping after rehydrating the chia. On whole30 you need to watch out for grains, starches, sugars, and carrageenan and a lot of non-dairy yogurts contain some or all of those ingredients.
posted by music for skeletons at 3:17 PM on June 21, 2021 [3 favorites]

homemade chia seed pudding is the best non-dairy sub for yogurt. I use half almond or cashew or whatever non-dairy milk, and half coconut milk (the kind of the can) with 3 tablespoons of chia seeds for each cup of liquid. then soak them overnight.

It's not really LIKE yogurt, but it tastes good, and unsweetened non dairy yogurt is one of the few foods in my entire life that I have actually spit out of my mouth.
posted by euphoria066 at 3:30 PM on June 21, 2021

I unfortunately have to +1 the folks saying that unsweetened non-dairy yogurt is uniformly disgusting (although I haven't tried Oatly's version yet) and you should find a solution that involves just giving up yogurt for a month. I'm lactose intolerant and just buy the lactose-free plain yogurt, which doesn't help you. The sweetened/flavored versions do hold up much better in non-dairy yogurts.
posted by serelliya at 4:09 PM on June 21, 2021

If you have an instant pot, homemade non dairy yogurt strained is really really good. I use whatever non dairy milk and a vegan starter culture. I get my starter from http://culturesforhealth.org.

Store bought stuff is gross.
posted by Arctostaphylos at 4:53 PM on June 21, 2021

Can it be flavored? I like So Delicious unsweetened vanilla. (I love So Delicious sweetened vanilla.)
posted by Dolley at 5:46 PM on June 21, 2021

Cocojune is $$$$ but soooooo good. I say this as someone who frequently consumes and enjoys dairy yogurt.
posted by the_blizz at 5:59 PM on June 21, 2021

It’s $$ and might be tough to find and is definitely different than dairy yogurt, but the plain Cocoyo Living Coconut yogurt is *chef’s kiss* splendid. It’s full of live cultures, which makes it sort of effervescent as you eat it. Not a quality I knew I wanted in a yogurt, but now I’ve seen the light.

I might have to go buy a jar tomorrow.
posted by moonbeam at 8:13 PM on June 21, 2021

…. This is a bit of a cheaty answer but don’t do a fad diet because your friend pressured you into it. Or if you have your own reasons to do it and want to, modify it so you can have decent yogurt (in direct answer to your question, nope haven’t seen such a thing). They add sugar and all kinds of crap to make alternatives to dairy palatable (to some degree, for some people), but if you’re a fan of plain yogurt (I have four tubs in my fridge right now, I would cry for months if the world got rid of it), it’s hopeless.
posted by cotton dress sock at 8:35 PM on June 21, 2021 [7 favorites]

Cocoyo is really nice. At one point it even came in a chocolate flavour. If you can’t buy it, it’s also very easy to make.
posted by Jubey at 4:43 AM on June 22, 2021

Seconding Cocojune. It's amazing and I don't even usually like coconut!
posted by beyond_pink at 7:16 AM on June 22, 2021

Yoggu! I get mine at Whole Foods. It's no sugar and is made with coconut cream, so it's rich and smooth. I discovered it doing a Whole 30 diet, but actually strongly prefer it over dairy yogurt now.

I find all other nondairy yogurts too sour and gelatinous.
posted by figaro at 2:58 PM on June 22, 2021

So Delicious Coconut milk Yogurt is my favorite. I like it more than dairy yogurt.
posted by nayantara at 6:11 AM on June 23, 2021