7 Best Yogurts for Baking, Cooking, and Marinading

To harness the full range of flavors and textures that yogurt can bring to your grilling, baking, and cocktail-making, it’s important to understand the strengths and limitations of the yogurt options in your local dairy aisle. Products range from thick and spreadable to light and drizzly. We tasted several; here are our recommendations.

Skyr

Icelanders have been making skyr for centuries. Technically a strained cheese, this yogurt is thicker than Greek-style yogurt and has plenty of acid and a bold, tangy flavor. Our editors prefer Siggi’s plain whole-milk skyr, which can take the place of crème fraîche or sour cream in most recipes.

Australian yogurt

Australian-style yogurt, also unstrained, tends to be creamier than traditional American yogurt, but less so than skyr or Greek-style yogurt. Especially when spooning over grilled vegetables or toast, we opt for Wallaby Organic’s Aussie Smooth whole-milk yogurt.

Dairy-free yogurt

The dairy-free yogurt section is not what it was five years ago; nowadays, you’ll find a variety of yogurts made with cashews, pea protein, and oats. For baking, our editors love the plain coconut milk yogurt from So Delicious, which has a smooth, pillowy texture and pronounced coconut notes.

Greek-style yogurt

Greek-style yogurt gets its thick, creamy texture because the whey — the liquid containing whey protein, one of the main proteins in milk — is strained out. It can be overwhelming to choose between the contenders in this category because Greek-style yogurt is so popular, but our favorite is Cabot’s 10% milkfat offering, which is full of rich, buttery flavor. Use it in savory dips, for marinating chicken breasts, or to add a little heft to soups.

French yogurt

You’ll often find French yogurt in little glass pots perfect for topping with fresh fruit, granola, or nuts. St. Benoit Creamery’s unstrained, creamy yogurt also shines in savory contexts, like sauces and salad dressings.

American-style yogurt

With a mild flavor and creamy-but-not-thick texture, Dannon’s whole-milk yogurt is a good example of the yogurt style common in the U.S. We love its clean, refreshing finish and satisfyingly luscious texture — perfect for mixing with chile oil and dried mint leaves for drizzling on top of manti.

Indian yogurt

When it comes to thinner, slightly sweet Indian-style yogurt for curries or lassis, Associate Editorial Director Chandra Ram prefers Desi Natural, which is technically a dahi, also known as curd.