How to Strain Yogurt for Soup and Other Things

Broccoli and potato soup is one of my fallback recipes. I end up making it often, when I’m low on ideas or haven’t been to the store lately. I generally have the ingredients to make this soup. It takes well to all kinds of seasonings and is great garnished with some shredded cheese or a dollop of sour cream.

This time, I decided to garnish with strained yogurt instead of sour cream. Both are similarly tart, but yogurt seems healthier somehow. Strained yogurt is simply yogurt from which the liquid has been strained. It has a thickened, spreadable quality, and it can be blended with other flavors to make a dip or spread. Some people call it yogurt cheese.

You will need something to strain the yogurt through. I always use a coffee filter, and it works well. A muslin towel would also work.

I tuck the filter into a funnel suspended over a glass or into the top of a tall glass, secured with a rubber band. I then fill it with plain yogurt and put the whole contraption into the fridge to sit, preferably overnight. The liquid will drip out and can be discarded. The resulting yogurt cheese can be stored up to 2 weeks. Use it wherever you might use cream cheese or sour cream, or just spread it on your toast in the morning.

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