CO YO Coconut Milk Yogurt
Product Description: From the manufacturer: “CO YO is a creamy delicious alternative to dairy yoghurt made from the creamy milk of the coconut with plant fed Probiotic cultures.
CO YO is made from the freshly squeezed cream from the whole flesh of the coconut. 98% pure coconut – in fact, it takes more than one whole coconut to make a small tub of CO YO.
100% dairy free, CO YO is gluten free, lactose free and soy free. And because it’s made from plant-based cultures, it’s suitable for both vegetarians and vegans.”
Ingredient List: CO YO is available in Natural, Mango, Mixed Berry and Raw Chocolate
Natural label: Coconut Cream, Stevia, Tapioca, Pectin and Probiotic Cultures
Raw Chocolate label: Coconut Cream, Chocolate (raw cacao, apple juice concentrate), Stevia, Tapioca, Pectin and Probiotic Cultures
Mixed Berry label: Coconut Cream, Mixed Berry (Apple Puree Concentrate, Puree of Blackberry and Raspberry, Water, Puree Concentrate of Raspberry and Strawberry, Natural Flavor, Pectin, Sodium Citrate, Fruit and Vegetable Juice (for color), Calcium Chloride), Stevia, Tapioca, Pectin and Probiotic Cultures.
Mango label: Coconut Cream, Mango (Mango Puree Concentrate, Water, Natural Flavor, Lemon Juice Concentrate, Sodium Citrate), Stevia, Tapioca, Pectin and Probiotic Cultures
Test Kitchen Overview: I came across CO YO at the Summer Fancy Food Show in NYC and it was love at first bite. And let me tell you how shocked I was because it is sweetened with stevia. And I cannot stand stevia. It truly tweaks my palate and I do not eat anything containing it. I took a bite of the Natural and was immediately struck by the luxurious texture and the very lightly sweetened and balanced flavor profile. And then I learned it was sweetened with stevia. Okay, live and learn. I would not have tried it if I had read the ingredients first. I took another bite and then, upon looking for it, detected a faint stevia-like taste, but the product was so fabulous, I didn’t care. This was a coconut milk yogurt I wanted to learn more about – and taste again. The Raw Chocolate intrigued me and I sampled that next and decided this could easily be a dessert treat for me. I asked for samples to be sent so that I could bake with it and you can see those results in our Gluten Free Lemon Coconut Yogurt Snack Cake.
Pros: Unparalleled texture. Satiny. Thick, but not gloppy thick like some Greek-style yogurts. Just pure luxury. Fabulous flavors. The Raw Chocolate and Natural are our faves. I hope you can see the amazing texture from these images above and below of the chocolate flavor.
Cons: Availability. For now this might be hard to find. Go to your local natural food store and advocate for them bringing it in. I apologize for getting you all excited about a product that has such limited availability but it is so fabulous I am sure that will change soon. (They are adding new locations constantly and the website is not yet up to date. CO YO is now available at Sprouts Farmers Markets, Earthfare, Haggens, Central Market and select Whole Foods, in addition to other locations).
Suggested Use: Eating right out of the cup or baking with it as we did in our Lemon Coconut Yogurt Snack Cake
Where to Buy: Use the LOCATOR function at COYO.us.
Price at Time of Review: The 5.3oz retails around $3.99 and the 12oz $6.49
Have you tried this product? Let us know what you think in the comments below!
Bakepedia received this product as a gift for review. All opinions are the reviewer’s own.
I bought a pot of the coconut yoghurt, opened it well within the use by date and found it was just solid from top to bottom. I went online to see if this was how it should be and it seemed not. So I looked at Co Yo’s website to see if I could ring customer services and ask if it was ok to eat or what I should do. To my surprise, there is no number, you can only email – not so good for a fresh food manufacturer I think.
Anyway, emailed them and got a reply 30 hours later saying all about how they had changed their tapioca starch supplier how they are testing to how much to put in and how I could should help them with their research. My question was ignored!
I emailed back to say I did not want to be part of their testing, I just wanted to know if my product was safe to eat and what my options were. I was amazed to get a reply with 2 paragraphs telling me off for not wanting to be part of their testing and 2 lines saying I could take it back to the store or they could send me a voucher if I wanted! What appalling customer service and this at £5 for a pot of yoghurt! No concern for my health nor that their product was faulty.
There has been a recent recall of their products and together with this experience, I would have NO confidence in the health or quality of their products.