I myself detest yoghurt and don't have much experience, but it seems to me that in an Indian cooking phase I went through some years ago there were a lot of sauces that were made in a skillet or wok (called something else in India- kardhi, maybe?) with yoghurt and breaking wasn't a problem.
Yes, it may very well break and curdle under heat. The first suggestion is to use a full fat yogurt, because the extra fat does help protect the proteins. However, I realize that might defeat the purpose of a "healthier" mac and cheese. No matter what you opt to use, allow it to come to room temperature before you try heating it, and add in a bit of cornstarch to help stabilize it. You will need between 1/2 and 1 teaspoon of cornstarch per cup of yogurt- the lower the fat the more you will want to use. The other suggestion would be to use some of the pasta cooking water to begin the sauce, and add in the yogurt toward the end of the cooking. The starches released by the noodles into the water should help stabilize the yogurt, and the shredded cheese as well.
2 Comments