# Whey on top of yogurt - only AFTER I've eaten some **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [December 2, 2015, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whey-on-top-of-yogurt-only-after-ive-eaten-some/739243 "2015-12-02T19:59:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Briny\_Deep](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/briny_deep/32/17188_2.png) [@Briny\_Deep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Briny_Deep)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whey-on-top-of-yogurt-only-after-ive-eaten-some/739243/1 "2015-12-02T19:59:59Z")
First – I’ve googled this repeatedly and only found approximately one million very general results on the order of “What’s that watery stuff on top of my yogurt?” It’s whey. It happens. You pour it off or stir it back in or drink it, I don’t care. But here’s the thing. I buy Greek Gods brand greek-style yogurt in quart containers, and whenever I open a fresh one there is never any whey. I scoop out a serving, and then the next day the scooped-out area is completely filled with whey. Why not when I first open the container? It’s not a case of freshness. I’ve bought two containers with the same datestamp, and gone through one over the course of a few days, with the whey experience above, and then opened the second container to find no whey on top. Until the next day, after I’ve scooped from it, of course. I’m beginning to suspect the surfaces of the filled containers are sprayed with silicone micro-particles, or something, to prevent whey from forming, until I remove the coating by spooning some out. What’s up with that? ---
**Author:** ![Ignotus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/ecc23a/32.png) [@Ignotus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ignotus)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whey-on-top-of-yogurt-only-after-ive-eaten-some/739243/2 "2015-12-02T20:05:14Z")
I think it’s pretty much the same thing as when you dig a hole in damp sand. Water from the sides will seep in and fill the hole. ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whey-on-top-of-yogurt-only-after-ive-eaten-some/739243/3 "2015-12-02T20:10:00Z")
Yogurt contains a _lot_ more whey than what you see at the top of the container. If you drain yogurt on a cheesecloth for 12 hours or so, you end up with Labneh, or [strained yogurt](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strained_yogurt), which is the consistency of cream cheese. I think when the container is full, the yogurt is saturated with whey, because there’s no place for the whey to flow down to. But when you scoop out a serving, you create a low point. Whey in the yogurt above that level will drain into that low point. ---
**Author:** ![Lemur866](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lemur866/32/434_2.png) [@Lemur866](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lemur866)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whey-on-top-of-yogurt-only-after-ive-eaten-some/739243/4 "2015-12-02T20:15:19Z")
Yes, it is simple physics. Dig a hole in sand, and water seeps into the hole. Imagine a yogurt cup of wet sand. The sand doesn’t all sink to the bottom and the water float to the top. It stays mixed together. Dig a hole in the sand and water seeps in. You can make yogurt thicker by letting it drain through cheesecloth: [Strained yogurt - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strained_yogurt) You might also notice on older yogurt that whey has formed on the sides of the container, and there might be a thin film of whey on the top. It doesn’t separate further because the force acting to separate the whey from the solids is gravity, and the solids are already resting on the bottom of the cup. Where are they going to go? ---
**Author:** ![ZipperJJ](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/zipperjj/32/211_2.png) [@ZipperJJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZipperJJ)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whey-on-top-of-yogurt-only-after-ive-eaten-some/739243/5 "2015-12-02T20:23:23Z")
FWIW I have been storing my cups of Chobani upside-down in my fridge, to let me quickly see which ones are new and which need eaten, and then I turn them back rightside-up and open them, there is whey to mix in. ---
**Author:** ![barbitu8](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/839c29/32.png) [@barbitu8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/barbitu8)\ **Post date:** [December 2, 2015, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whey-on-top-of-yogurt-only-after-ive-eaten-some/739243/6 "2015-12-02T21:46:08Z")
I also eat Greek God Greek yogurt. It’s the cheapest and best IMHO, at least at Walmart’s. Greek yogurt has no whey. That’s what makes it Greek yogurt, BTW. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Briny\_Deep](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/briny_deep/32/17188_2.png) [@Briny\_Deep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Briny_Deep)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2015, 12:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whey-on-top-of-yogurt-only-after-ive-eaten-some/739243/7 "2015-12-03T00:18:04Z")
> [@scr4](#): > > I think when the container is full, the yogurt is saturated with whey, because there’s no place for the whey to flow down to. But when you scoop out a serving, you create a low point. Whey in the yogurt above that level will drain into that low point. You guys are so smart. 🙂 The damp sand metaphor also makes a whole lot of sense. I was pretty sure it was some vast conspiracy involving weird chemicals sprayed on top, I must admit. Or maybe magnets. ---
**Author:** ![Squink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@Squink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Squink)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2015, 12:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whey-on-top-of-yogurt-only-after-ive-eaten-some/739243/8 "2015-12-03T00:30:58Z")
[**Syneresis**](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syneresis_%28chemistry%29). ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2015, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whey-on-top-of-yogurt-only-after-ive-eaten-some/739243/9 "2015-12-03T00:50:51Z")
Okay, so suppose I scoop out a serving of yogurt, then smooth out what remains so it has a level surface with no “hole in the sand”. Then, no loose whey on top? (I don’t eat yogurt, actually, and never have any around, but I see much the same thing with cottage cheese.) ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2015, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whey-on-top-of-yogurt-only-after-ive-eaten-some/739243/10 "2015-12-03T01:48:50Z")
> [@Briny\_Deep](#): > > I was pretty sure it was some vast conspiracy involving weird chemicals sprayed on top, I must admit. Or maybe magnets. You could easily test the hypothesis. Next time, scoop out an even layer off the top, leaving a fresh flat surface. See if any whey comes out then. ---
**Author:** ![tadtooornamental](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@tadtooornamental](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tadtooornamental)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2015, 2:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whey-on-top-of-yogurt-only-after-ive-eaten-some/739243/11 "2015-12-03T02:22:35Z")
> [@barbitu8](#): > > I also eat Greek God Greek yogurt. It’s the cheapest and best IMHO, at least at Walmart’s. Greek yogurt has no whey. That’s what makes it Greek yogurt, BTW. 🙂 Greek yogurt contains _less_ whey than regular, but it still contains some- that’s what makes it scoopable in texture. When you remove all of the whey, you end up with something much ore cheese like in texture. BTW, I do buy Greek Gods on occasion, but Walmart’s own brand (Great Value) plain Greek yogurt is pretty outstanding as well. I buy the big tubs of it, about a buck cheaper than the Greek Gods brand large tubs. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Controvert](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/dec6dc/32.png) [@The\_Controvert](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Controvert)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2015, 6:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whey-on-top-of-yogurt-only-after-ive-eaten-some/739243/12 "2015-12-03T06:23:49Z")
> [@Senegoid](#): > > Okay, so suppose I scoop out a serving of yogurt, then smooth out what remains so it has a level surface with no “hole in the sand”. Then, no loose whey on top? > > (I don’t eat yogurt, actually, and never have any around, but I see much the same thing with cottage cheese.) > [@scr4](#): > > You could easily test the hypothesis. Next time, scoop out an even layer off the top, leaving a fresh flat surface. See if any whey comes out then. There are those that look at things the way they are, and ask whey? I dream of things that never were, and ask whey not? ---
**Author:** ![the\_diego](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7bcc69/32.png) [@the\_diego](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/the_diego)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2015, 8:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whey-on-top-of-yogurt-only-after-ive-eaten-some/739243/13 "2015-12-03T08:10:32Z")
So when a spider sits beside you, don’t run awhey. ---
**Author:** ![DSeid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dseid/32/20194_2.png) [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2015, 1:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whey-on-top-of-yogurt-only-after-ive-eaten-some/739243/14 "2015-12-03T13:35:42Z")
> [@Squink](#): > > [**Syneresis**](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syneresis_%28chemistry%29). For those who did not click the link this is a separate hypothesis than the low point one. The idea is that the yogurt consists of many spheres of proteins with fluid trapped inside. Actually they are large spheres made up of aggregates of smaller ones: larger casein micelles which consist of various numbers of smaller of aggregated casein submicelles. The implied hypothesis is that scooping out yogurt breaks apart some number of those micelles without enough mixing to re-suspend them. I suppose if someone wants to bother they can take a cup of yogurt of the same sort that they have observed the pooling after scooping to occur in and give it just a few stirs with the spoon without scooping and return to fridge and then report back after seeing if much separation occurred the next day. Of some minor note is that “whey” seems to have two overlapping meanings in this discussion: the liquid (aqueous) portion left behind after milk has been subjected to synereresis (e.g. coagulation) consisting of water, one sort of proteins, lactose, and various other compounds, and specifically one component of that aqueous portion - the whey proteins, which do not have hydrophobic tails and therefore do not form micelles like casein does. ---
**Author:** ![barbitu8](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/839c29/32.png) [@barbitu8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/barbitu8)\ **Post date:** [December 3, 2015, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whey-on-top-of-yogurt-only-after-ive-eaten-some/739243/15 "2015-12-03T20:10:18Z")
> [@tadtooornamental](#): > > Greek yogurt contains _less_ whey than regular, but it still contains some- that’s what makes it scoopable in texture. When you remove all of the whey, you end up with something much ore cheese like in texture. > > BTW, I do buy Greek Gods on occasion, but Walmart’s own brand (Great Value) plain Greek yogurt is pretty outstanding as well. I buy the big tubs of it, about a buck cheaper than the Greek Gods brand large tubs. Thanks for the tip. I will try that next time. I always buy the big tub.