Soy Yogurt

Name: Soy yogurt, also spelled soya yoghurt — a plant-based yogurt made by fermenting soy milk with live bacterial cultures, giving a thick, tangy, creamy, dairy-free alternative. It is sold plain, sweetened and flavoured.

Description

Soy yogurt appeared as a dairy alternative in the 1980s and 1990s, in response to demand from vegans and people avoiding dairy, and is one of the older plant-based yogurts, with newer ones made from coconut, oat and almond. It is made by adding cultures such as Lactobacillus and Streptococcus to soy milk, and sometimes thickeners such as starch or pectin.

Plain soy yogurt has a mild, slightly beany taste and a creamy texture, and is the plant-based yogurt closest to dairy in protein, since soy milk is high in protein. Many brands are fortified with calcium and vitamins, but check the label.

Main nutrition value

Soy yogurt provides plant protein and live cultures, and, when fortified, calcium, vitamin D and vitamin B12, with less saturated fat than full-fat dairy yogurt.

How best to be consumed

Soy yogurt is used like dairy yogurt.

1. Eat plain with fruit, nuts, seeds, honey or granola.
2. Blend into smoothies, dips and dressings, or use in marinades.
3. Choose unsweetened, fortified types with live cultures, and little added sugar.
4. Use in baking in place of dairy yogurt or buttermilk.
5. Keep refrigerated, and use by the date on the pot.

Overconsumption could cause…

Soy yogurt is healthy in food amounts.

1. Soy allergy, which can be serious in some people, particularly children, so anyone allergic must avoid soy and check labels.
2. Possible effects on thyroid medicine absorption, so people taking levothyroxine should leave several hours between it and soy foods, and soy can matter for people with low iodine intake or an underactive thyroid.
3. Added sugar in flavoured and sweetened soy yogurts, which can be as much as in dairy desserts.
4. Low calcium and vitamin B12 in unfortified products, so check the label.
5. Additives and thickeners in some brands.

GroupsPlant-Based Dairy AlternativesSoy FoodsLegume familyFermented

Made fromSoy Milk

Related foodsEdamameExtra-Firm TofuFermented TofuFirm TofuMisoNatto

Wikipedia — Soy yogurt, used for origin, naming and history: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soy_yogurt