Sugar Free Low Carb Strained Greek-Style Yoghurt: HOW TO MAKE IT in 2 easy steps.
Ever since I learned to strain yoghurt I have been enjoying it every day and I can never get sick of it. With mulberries, blueberries, or a strawberry compote, with added chia seeds or nuts, or everything at once…….mmmhhhhh, so good. So why do I strain yoghurt? Why not just buy Greek-style yoghurt? Simple. It is so good, healthy and filling that shop-bought doesn’t even come close. Plus straining removes carbs, which is what keto is all about.
When I first started keto, I spent a lot of time looking for foods that I could eat whilst minimising carbs. Ordinary yoghurt pots had always been one of my favourite desserts or snacks, but being loaded with sugar, starches, fruit and flavourings, they suddenly became a no-go-area. Greek or Greek-style yoghurt became an obvious low carb choice, but it was expensive, difficult to find and, to tell you the truth, I didn’t like it much.
Then I discovered how to strain ordinary, unsweetened whole milk yoghurt, and I haven’t looked back since.
My method uses the following basic tools, all of which can be found easily and inexpensively:
– a deep jug (mine is 16cm deep and 14cm in diameter)
– 2 elastic bands
– a muslin cloth or cheesecloth (the one I use was bought in The Range)
The process is ridiculously easy and quick:
- Pour plain, whole milk yoghurt onto a suspended muslin cloth and leave in the fridge for 3-4 hours.
- Scoop out the strained yoghurt from the muslin cloth, add a little pure stevia powder (U.S.option HERE) and serve.
Detailed instructions in the recipe….keep reading… 🙂
5 reasons to strain yoghurt
- Strained yoghurt contains fewer carbs than ordinary plain yoghurt and sometimes fewer than Greek-style yoghurt.
- It is a gazillion times more tasty than plain or Greek-style yoghurt.
- It is denser and therefore more filling.
- It’s super simple to make.
- It’s cheaper than buying Greek-style yoghurt.
Difference between shop-bought yoghurt and home-made sugar free low carb strained Greek-style yoghurt
Straining simply removes the whey from yoghurt. Whey contains lactose (sugar), so by removing as much as possible of it, you’re removing the carbs. Simple.
Now. There will be differences in carb content, depending on individual brands, but at least all you have to do is read the nutritional label. The question is: how many carbs are left in the yoghurt AFTER straining?
Finding out the carbs difference between normal whole milk yoghurt and its strained equivalent has been mission impossible. Hours spent scouring the internet have been fruitless. No clear ready answer available, I’m afraid. However, what I’ve managed to find out is the nutritional data for liquid acid whey (which is the type of whey resulting from strained yoghurt). From that I’ve been able to calculate the amount of carbs and protein in my strained yoghurt. Obviously, as yoghurts can be very different in terms of nutritional content, these values would need adjusting if you don’t use the same brand AND type of yoghurt that I do.
I use Onken stirred biopot yoghurt (and please note that I am not sponsored by Onken). 1 Kg tub.
Onken whole milk plain yoghurt comes in smaller pots, as well as a large 1kg tub. They look the same on the outside, but they are not. On the odd occasions when the 1kg tub wasn’t available, I bought the 500g pot and strained it. The curd-like consistency and more acidic flavour I obtained the first time, made me wonder if the yoghurt I had bought had gone off. On closer inspection, however, I discovered that the 500g pot contained fillers (the 1kg biopot tub does not contain anything other than yoghurt and live bacteria) and therefore different nutritional values (more carbs!). I no longer buy the 500g pot and I would advise you not to either. The 1kg tub gives the most low carb, luscious, creamy, filling, smooth, thick yoghurt you’ve ever tasted. The other Onken whole milk yoghurts are rubbish in comparison.
And now a bit of maths! The 1Kg Onken biopot yoghurt contains 4.1g carbs and 4.5g protein per 100g. I start off with a 1kg pot which is 41g carbs and 45g protein in total. After straining, which basically removes the lactose (sugar) and casein (protein), I am left with 650g yoghurt. If 100ml liquid acid whey = 5.1g carbs and 0.8g protein, then 350ml = 17.85g carbs and 2.8g protein removed in total. My 650g of yoghurt therefore contains 41 – 17.85 = 23g carbs and 45 – 2.8 = 42g protein. This equates to 3.5g carbs and 6.5g protein for each 100g of my strained yoghurt. Both protein and calories are higher in the final product, because it is more concentrated, but carbs are more important in keto world – right? I call that a result!
(Please leave a comment if you spot a mistake in my logic)
And there you have it: your very own delicious sugar free low carb strained Greek-style yoghurt.
Enjoy!
***UPDATE*** If you can get Lidl Greek-Style Yoghurt, try it! It tastes way better than Onken and even contains less carbs and less protein (personal opinion – I have no association with either company)
- Yield: 650g
- Serving: 100g
- Calories: 88
- Fat: 3.5g
- Net Carbs: 3.5g
- Protein: 6.5g
- 1 Kg whole milk fresh yoghurt (I used Onken 1Kg bio pot)
- ½ tsp pure stevia powder (U.S. option HERE)
- place a muslin cloth over a deep jug (mine is 16cm deep x 14cm diameter).
- place 2 elastic bands around the muslin, securing them under the jug handle.
- lift elastic bands as you press down into the centre of the jug with your fist to make a well for the yoghurt to sit into.
- tie knots with the corners of the muslin cloth so they won't touch the fridge surface.
- scoop yoghurt into the muslin well (if you find the well isn't deep enough, just press down the middle with your spoon to create more depth).
- place in the fridge to strain for 3-4 hours.
- scoop yoghurt away from cheesecloth into its original container.
- stir in stevia powder, cover and store for 3-4 days in the fridge.
- serve on its own or with berries, nuts, chia seeds.
Metric kitchen scales are an inexpensive yet invaluable gadget to enable accurate measurement of ingredients. Store them upright in a cupboard or over your worktop and they'll only take up a tiny bit of space. Click HERE for the ones I use in the UK. For U.S. option click HERE.
Hi, I’ve just strained 1kg of the Lidl Greek Yogurt (which is already my fav) but this is amazing! So thick and creamy, I’m obsessed. Do you know what the calorie and net carb content is for 100g – my brain can’t work it out..? Thanks 🙂
Hi Izzy, I don’t have a tub to hand, so I can’t be precise, but it would work out to be at least 1.5g carbs LESS (per 100g) than what’s reported on the label.