Yogurt is so much more than an on-the-go breakfast food. As an ingredient, it adds great flavor and texture to all sorts of dishes. From decadent sweets and creamy condiments to the best marinade for tender grilled meats, yogurt’s culinary potential is boundless. We’ve rounded up our favorite recipes using yogurt.
All of these sweet and savory recipes work great with store-bought yogurt but making it yourself is simple and results in creamy, fresh-tasting yogurt that’s exactly as tart as you like. From that base, you can make variations like smoked yogurt or labaneh, a thick, strained yogurt common in Middle Eastern cuisine.
Yogurt is popular in India, where it’s made into a condiment called raita that is perfect for taming a fiery curry. The potential for flavoring raitas is virtually endless. Try cucumber and tomato or beets and asafoetida, a spice common in India. For a sweet-spicy twist, we love making raita with pineapple, coconut, and chiles.
When it comes to adding body to chilled soups, yogurt shines. Some of our favorites are a curried yogurt soup called kadi and a peach soup and a peach soup with ginger and carrots. Or use it to add tangy lightness to a spinach and chive soup topped with grilled scallions.
Yogurt’s creaminess makes it a great dessert base. Frozen yogurt gets a bad reputation as a trendy health food, but our spiced persimmon yogurt is as satisfying as any ice cream. If you can’t find persimmons, try our strawberry-rhubarb yogurt pops.
Find all these dishes and more in our collection of yogurt recipes.
Strawberry Rhubarb Yogurt Pops
Spinach, Chive, and Yogurt Soup with Grilled Scallions
Cured Fluke with Yogurt, Watermelon, Sunflower Seeds, and Togarashi
For a small donation, New Yorkers will receive curated listings and personalized food tours of businesses selling food from the seven countries now under restriction from the Department of Homeland Security
Yogurt Bundt Cake with Passion Fruit Sauce
Yogurt with Banana and Grated Coconut (Kela ka Raita)
Lotus Root in Yogurt Sauce (Nadru Yakhni)
Spicy Pineapple Yogurt (Kaitha Chaka Pachadi)
Grilled Yogurt-Marinated Lamb Shoulder Chops
Turkish Poached Eggs in Yogurt (Cilbir)
Cucumber Yogurt Dip (Tzatziki)
Red Leaf Salad with Ranch Dressing
Tagliatelle with Yogurt and Fried Onions (Rishta bi Laban wa Bassal)
Sweet Yogurt with Saffron and Pistachios (Shrikhand)
Spiced Persimmon Frozen Yogurt
Albanian Baked Lamb and Rice with Yogurt (Tave Kosi)
Mashed Eggplant Dip (Baba Ghannouj)
Rajasthani White Chicken Curry (Safed Maans)
Smoked Bluefish Pâté with Hardtack Crackers
Bangladeshi Spiced Yogurt Drink (Burhani)