Glass of milk next to a bowl of Greek yogurt

Greek Yogurt and Milk: What You Need to Know

ByCraig Brockie Last updated

How Greek yogurt and milk are related

Greek yogurt is milk that has been cultured and then strained. Under the FDA yogurt standard, 21 CFR 131.200, yogurt is made from milk, skim milk or cream, cultured with Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. bulgaricus and Streptococcus thermophilus, and soured to a pH of 4.6 or lower. Greek yogurt goes one step further: much of the liquid whey is drained off, leaving a thicker, higher-protein food.

That straining takes a lot of milk. In a lab study of Greek strained yogurt, 1.8 to 2.75 kilograms of acid whey came off for every kilogram of finished yogurt (Karastamatis et al., Foods, 2022). Put simply, it takes roughly 3 to 4 cups of milk to make one cup of thick Greek yogurt. Home straining in a cloth or mesh strainer is gentler than factory centrifuges, so your yield depends on how long you drain it.

Greek yogurt vs milk: nutrition side by side

The table compares plain products per 100 grams, using USDA FoodData Central lab data. “Not listed” means USDA has no lactose value for that entry.

Per 100 gCaloriesProteinFatLactoseCalcium
Whole milk613.2 g3.3 g5.05 g113 mg
Nonfat milk343.4 g0.1 g5.09 g122 mg
Greek yogurt, plain, nonfat5910.2 g0.4 g2.54 g110 mg
Greek yogurt, plain, whole milk979.0 g5.0 gNot listed100 mg
Regular yogurt, plain, low fat635.3 g1.6 gNot listed183 mg

A few patterns stand out:

  • Protein roughly triples per gram. A 170-gram container of plain nonfat Greek yogurt has about 17 grams of protein, while a cup of whole milk (244 grams) has about 8. Straining keeps most of the milk protein while removing water.
  • Lactose drops by about half. Greek yogurt has roughly 2.5 grams of lactose per 100 grams, compared with about 5 grams in milk. Per serving, a container of Greek yogurt has around 4 grams and a cup of milk around 12.
  • Calcium goes down, not up. Regular low-fat yogurt has more calcium per 100 grams than Greek yogurt. Acid whey carries away lactose and minerals along with water; a review in the Journal of Dairy Science describes it as a source for recovering both (Rocha-Mendoza et al., 2021). A cup of nonfat milk has about 299 mg of calcium, versus about 187 mg in a 170-gram container of nonfat Greek yogurt.

For everyday eating, both count the same way. MyPlate counts 1 cup of yogurt and 1 cup of milk each as 1 cup from the Dairy Group, with a general target of 3 cups a day for adults.

Why it matters for gut health

The biggest gut-related difference is the live cultures. Yogurt is cultured by definition (FDA yogurt standard, 21 CFR 131.200), and its bacteria carry their own lactase. A review in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition concluded that the lactose in yogurt is digested more efficiently than lactose from other dairy foods, because that bacterial lactase survives the stomach and keeps working in the small intestine (Savaiano, 2014).

That matters if milk bothers you. The NIDDK says many people with lactose intolerance can have 12 grams of lactose, about a cup of milk, without symptoms, and suggests trying yogurt, which is lower in lactose than other milk products. Greek yogurt has less lactose still. For the details, see is Greek yogurt lactose free?, and for choosing the milk you drink, see best milk for gut health.

This is general information, not medical advice. A milk allergy is a separate issue from lactose intolerance, and neither milk nor Greek yogurt is safe for someone who is allergic to milk.

Choosing milk to make Greek yogurt at home

Saucepan of warm milk beside empty glass jars

Almost any cow’s milk will make Greek yogurt. The choice mostly changes texture, richness and how much whey you drain off.

  • Whole milk gives the richest, creamiest result. USDA lists plain whole-milk Greek yogurt at about 5 grams of fat per 100 grams.
  • Low-fat or nonfat milk makes a leaner, tangier yogurt with the most protein per calorie.
  • Ultra-pasteurized milk works for many people and skips the heating step some recipes call for. See using ultra-pasteurized milk for the trade-offs.
  • How you heat the milk matters. In the Karastamatis study, milk held at 90°C (194°F) for 5 minutes formed a firmer gel that released less whey than milk heated for only 16 seconds, which means more Greek yogurt from the same milk (Karastamatis et al., 2022).

Once the milk is cultured, hold it at a steady temperature until it sets (our yogurt temperature guide covers the ranges), then strain it to the thickness you like. The full method is in how to make Greek yogurt.

Mixing Greek yogurt and milk in the kitchen

Greek yogurt and milk work well together, because milk loosens yogurt that is too thick to pour. Some simple ways to use them side by side:

  • Thinning for smoothies and sauces: start with 1 to 2 tablespoons of milk per half cup of Greek yogurt and add more until it pours. Our Greek yogurt smoothie guide uses this trick.
  • Overnight oats: a mix of half milk and half Greek yogurt gives a creamy, tangy base with more protein than milk alone.
  • Replacing milk in recipes: Greek yogurt can stand in for some or all of the milk in pancakes, muffins and quick breads, usually thinned a little. See can I use Greek yogurt instead of milk?.

What to do with the whey

If you make Greek yogurt from milk, you will end up with a jar of cloudy, yellowish whey. Its main component is lactose, at up to 3.5 percent in acid whey from Greek yogurt plants, with small amounts of protein (Menchik et al., Journal of Dairy Science, 2019). Researchers are studying it for uses from fermented drinks to growing lactic acid bacteria (Rocha-Mendoza et al., 2021). At home, it can go into bread dough, smoothies or soups; our guide to recipes using whey from yogurt has ideas.

Related topics

Sources

Craig Brockie is the founder of Ultimate Health Solutions, the company behind Ultimate Gut, and the author of Ultimate Health, The Ultimate Gut Health Guide and The Unlimited Probiotics Guide. After injuries and chronic health problems in his twenties that conventional care didn’t resolve, he began researching health on his own and has studied natural health for 30 years. He is not a medical professional, and his articles are general information, not medical advice.

Similar Posts