Imagine that you have bought a lot of yogurt at a discounted price, or the expiration date of the yogurt you have purchased is closer and you don’t want to throw them away. In such instances, you may wonder whether you can freeze yogurt. Yes, you can freeze yogurt. But, this depends on the purpose for which you intend to use frozen yogurt because, with the extended freezing time, the texture of the yogurt may change making it unsuitable for some purposes. Frozen yogurt is perfect to use when preparing smoothies and for baking purposes.
Both homemade and store-bought yogurt can be preserved by freezing. But, changes may occur in the texture, appearance, taste, and nutrition of yogurt. You should also keep in mind that freezing natural yogurt is not the same as preparing frozen yogurt. This review will provide you with a brief guideline you can follow when freezing yogurt.
Health Benefits of Eating Yogurt
Produced from the bacterial fermentation of milk, yogurt is considered as a highly nutritious food. It helps your body in various ways. It has been found by scientific research that eating yogurt can help reduce body weight. Vitamins and minerals contained in this healthy food also help decrease the risk of osteoporosis which is a common disorder within the elderly community. Vitamins, probiotics, and minerals in yogurt also improve your immunity against certain diseases. Probiotics in yogurt are also good for disorders in the digestive system such as diarrhea, constipation, and bloating. Given these benefits, you need to be careful when selecting which yogurt to eat because all types of yogurt are not god for everyone. Plain yogurt with no added sugar is the best. You can choose low-fat or full-fat yogurt depending on your preference and intended calorie intake. Also, make sure that you buy a kind that has probiotics in it. You can also make yogurt at home.
How to Freeze Yogurt Correctly?
If you are freezing an unopened container of yogurt which is perfectly sealed, there isn’t an issue. But, when freezing an opened yogurt container, you need to follow certain instructions.
In order to make sure that the constituents of the yogurt are evenly distributed, you need to stir it well before freezing. Then only your yogurt will remain the same even after freezing and thawing. This step is crucial especially when you are going to freeze fruit-based yogurt. If you don’t stir fruit-flavored yogurt well before freezing, fruits will drain to the bottom while yogurt will remain at the top of the container. So to prevent the ingredients from separating, you need to transfer the yogurt to an airtight container, stir well and seal it.
If you intend to freeze yogurt to use it for making smoothies or for baking purposes, you can also portion out the yogurt and keep them in ice cube trays for a few hours. After they get frozen, you can transfer them into a Ziploc bag, label the bag mentioning the date of freezing and put in the freezer again.
Another method is to freeze yogurt in scoops on a tray lined with a parchment paper until they become solid. As yogurt expands when frozen, make sure that you keep adequate space between each scoop. After that, you can store yogurt chunks in a Ziploc bag or an airtight container and freeze.
Yogurt frozen in this manner should be consumed within one to two months.
How does yogurt change when frozen?
Yogurt expands as it freezes. Therefore, you need to keep a little room in the airtight container for yogurt to expand.
How to Thaw Frozen Yogurt?
When you decide it’s time to eat your yogurt, take it out from the freezer and allow it to rest in the refrigerator overnight until it defrosts. If you are not ready to eat the full amount, you can thaw only the amount you need by scooping out the yogurt portions and letting them sit in the fridge. You should be careful not to defrost frozen yogurt at room temperature because it can result in spoiling the yogurt. After thawing, you may observe that yogurt is more watery than it was before. But, this won’t be a problem when you use thawed yogurt for making smoothies and baking purposes. If you don’t prefer the taste of yogurt after it is thawed, you can also eat frozen yogurt as it is.
Consuming Frozen Yogurt
Given the consistency and the taste of yogurt after freezing and thawing, it’s better to use frozen yogurt for making smoothies and baking. When making smoothies, you can directly add frozen yogurt cubes without thawing it. Frozen yogurt can also be used in making cookies. For uncooked dishes, it is better to use fresh yogurt than frozen yogurt.
Conclusion
Yogurt is a nutritious dairy product that many people love to eat. Some have made it a habit to eat yogurt daily whereas some people are used to add yogurt when preparing various drinks and food items such as smoothies, cookies and muffins. When there is a profitable deal for yogurt at the supermarket, don’t hesitate whether to buy it or not. We recommend you to buy it because you can freeze yogurt at home. You can just freeze the unopened container of yogurt or if it is already opened, you can transfer the yogurt to an airtight container, stir it well, seal the container and freeze it. You also can freeze yogurt in an ice cube tray and add the frozen yogurt cubes directly when making smoothies. Yogurt scoops also can be frozen on a tray lined with a parchment paper. Thawing of frozen yogurt can change the consistency and the taste of yogurt, hence may not be appealing for certain people. Therefore, it is highly recommended to use frozen yogurt for cooking purposes, not for direct consumption. This guide imparts all the necessary information you need to know about freezing yogurt.
