Icelandic Yogurt

Katie Trucco  

Out with the old and in with the…Icelandic? Yep, as soon as you were getting used to the Greek yogurt craze, another country has taken over grocery store shelves with their own take on a dairy staple.
I found a brand of Icelandic yogurt called Siggi’s, which makes “Icelandic style skyr.” Skyr is a protein-rich strained yogurt that has been a staple in the Icelandic diet for thousands of years. When skim cow’s milk is combined with live active cultures, skyr is formed. Then the water from the cow’s milk is strained, which creates the thick and creamy texture.
The understated label tells the story of why Siggi Hilmarsson decided to bring his native Icelandic yogurt to the United States. He wanted to make a yogurt that had a more subtle flavor than other more popular brands like Yoplait yogurts. Siggi’s is flavored not with processed sugars or aspartame, but with natural ingredients like organic agave nectar and Madagascar bourbon vanilla. It is the only yogurt that I’ve seen with only five ingredients, all of which I can pronounce. It also doesn’t contain any gelatin or artificial flavorings, and the cow’s milk used is free of growth hormones, or more scientifically known as rBGH..
So what does Icelandic yogurt taste like? The first time I tried it, I was not a huge fan. The thick and somewhat grainy texture made it feel like I was eating vanilla flavored toothpaste. However, I gave it another chance. I added some honey to it, which neutralized the bitterness and gave it a much smoother texture and now I can’t stop eating it! Plus, it’s 14 grams of protein—heads up, vegetarians!
Siggi’s comes in many flavors, such as vanilla, mixed berry, peach, strawberry, pomegranate, and blueberry. My honey technique tastes best with the vanilla flavor; the flavoring is sweet enough in the fruit flavors that you don’t really need to add anything else.
Siggi’s is available at Whole Foods. Try one and see if you are ready to jump from one foreign yogurt to another.