Nancy’s Cultured Soy Isn’t So Cultured

In a perfect vegan world, soy yogurt would be creamy, fruity and satisfying. It’s too bad then that most soy yogurts usually taste pretty bland, too sweet or just have an overall nasty consistency. I’ve tried many types, from Amande (kinda tasteless) to Wholesoy and Co. (my personal favorite), but I’m always looking out for new kinds of vegan yogurts that can rival the taste and texture of its traditional milk-cultured counterpart.

Mango was slightly sweeter than the vanilla, though both still tasted like over-sweetened baby food.
Mango was slightly sweeter than the vanilla, though both still tasted like over-sweetened baby food.

I originally had high hopes for a new little yogurt in the nondairy aisle: Nancy’s Cultured Soy, since the packaging and ingredients looked good enough. This yogurt has an interesting and maybe slightly off-putting brownish color that made me think it had gone bad at first, but it turns out that the yogurt relies on brown rice syrup for its sugar content which probably lead to its curious coloring.

Brown yogurt, anyone?
Brown yogurt, anyone?

After getting past the odd hue, Nancy’s yogurt has quite the runny texture. I myself prefer yogurts that are a bit thicker, and in fact, I’m still hunting for a vegan yogurt that won’t fall if I turn it upside down on my spoon (used to love Yoplait custards when I was little!). The fact that it was runny definitely didn’t make me want to finish the whole container.

Pictured: the vanilla flavor, which is slightly less brown and sweet.
Pictured: the vanilla flavor, which is slightly less brown and sweet.

Aside from the undesirable texture, the actual flavor was also a massive letdown. The mango flavor was entirely too sugary for my taste (23g??), and the vanilla one was slightly less so, which still barred me from chucking in any addons like granola or cranberries since it would just make for a yucky sugar-rush. I thought the whole point of yogurt was to make you feel healthy?

A pretty good ingredient roster nonetheless.
A pretty good ingredient roster nonetheless.
Nutrition fact list reveal a good dosage of vitamin C and E, which should allow you to skip those supplements at least once a week, right?
Nutrition fact list reveal a good dosage of vitamin C and E, which should allow you to skip those supplements at least once a week, right?

Still, this yogurt is made with organic ingredients and has pretty good overall nutrition fact stats. I found I enjoyed using it in healthy shakes instead of eating it up solo. My quick fix involves an easy mix of a few tablespoonfuls with plain soymilk for a refreshing yogurt drink.

Mixing the mango yogurt with soymilk actually made for a yummy yogurt-y drink.
Mixing the mango yogurt with soymilk actually made for a yummy yogurt-y drink.

Overall, though I was not impressed with the sugary taste and brown appearance of Nancy’s yogurt, I wouldn’t mind buying it when it goes on sale as a smoothie ingredient, since it performed excellently then. The regular price is also pretty fair, at $3.99 for 24 oz. of yogurt at my local Whole Foods. No extra sugar needed!

Taste: Fair, but really, can't you do better?

Look: Fair, but really, can't you do better?

Price ($3.99 for large): Fair, but really, can't you do better?

Would buy again? Maybe.

So Delicious Minis Coconut Almond Bars Are EXACTLY That

I’ve always had an affinity for chocolate with nuts. Almonds & chocolate, peanuts & chocolate, macadamia & chocolate, raisins and chocolate, broccoli and chocolate… ok no, but I think you catch my chocolate-y drift. So you can imagine my glee and overwhelming palate-pangs of emotion when I first spied this particular product sitting in the frozen section […]

Cinnamon Snail, Cinnamon Donuts

Sometimes the universe astounds me: I’ve had really good food, really shitty food, and just plain ehh food at more brick-and-mortar restaurants than I can count. So I didn’t really expect too much from a vegan food truck– I mean, if a permanent building with a permanent kitchen can’t even turn out a decent entrée, why […]

Edo Pack Snacks, Chocolatey Fun

When I’m not near the city but still want to enjoy some yummy “fancy-ish” chocolate snacks, all I have to do is walk over to my local Chinese supermarket and check out their snack aisle. Surprisingly, there are puhlenttttty of cheap, affordable, unadvertised  vegan snacks to be scavenged in such a place, which makes it […]

I Lov-a Latta Baklava

Baklava is one of those things that looks super complicated to make— but really, it isn’t! With a few key ingredients and a lot of patience, you too can make this delicious treat that harkens from the Ottoman Empire and is native to Central Asia. Here is what you’ll need: – 1 packet Phyllo dough: […]