“Consumers’ taste buds are waking up to more mature flavors. There’s a saturation point that is reached when the majority of flavor profiles consumed are sweet ones, as sweet hides nuance. Once a consumer is ready to start tasting nuance in food, the desire for sweetness decreases and real flavor exploration begins. This is happening in the yogurt space. The sour, creamy carrier can be a vehicle for exploration of spices, herbs, texture and flavor.”
— LIZ MOSKOW
“Yogurt provides a carrier that can balance heat with cool and still have the ability to carry itself along with other flavors without losing its complexity. Chefs have the opportunity to make one-of-a-kind sauces and dips with spicy yogurt.”
— RICK PEREZ
“With so many varieties of high-quality, low-moisture yogurts, and with the rich, almost decadent texture, often without any fat, yogurt is an attractive ingredient for chefs. And younger consumers are more adventurous, searching out alternatives like lassi, unstrained yogurts and kefir for their healthy-yet-indulgent creamy cravings.”
— ROBERT DANHI
“The Greeks, Turks, Persians and Indians, among others, have long embraced using spicy yogurt. It’s about time we caught up. Operators can leverage this trend by menuing creative dishes incorporating flavorful spiced yogurt as dips, sauces and toppings.”
— CRISTINE SHIPLEY
“Yogurt offers an excellent opportunity to have a healthy-halo condiment for dishes. Try Greek yogurt with toasted cumin and coriander with a lamb burger, or yogurt with Espelette, honey, and smoked salt with a grilled half chicken.”
— KATIE SUTTON
