Two-ingredient Japanese cheesecake

Two-Ingredient Japanese Yogurt Cheesecake

This is the no-bake, two-ingredient cheesecake that took over TikTok: strained yogurt layered with crisp cookies until it sets up into something shockingly close to real Japanese cheesecake, cool and tangy instead of dense and sweet. The trick nobody tells you in the fifteen-second video is that you must strain the yogurt first, or you will end up with cheesecake soup. Do that one extra step and this actually works, first try.

You need

• 4 cups (900g) plain whole-milk yogurt (not Greek, regular yogurt strains down into the right texture)
• 1 1/2 sleeves (about 30 cookies, 200g) Biscoff/Lotus biscuits or graham crackers
• Optional: 2 tablespoons honey or sugar, if you want it sweeter
• Optional: 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Method

1. Set a fine-mesh strainer over a bowl and line it with a few layers of cheesecloth or a coffee filter. Dump in the yogurt, cover, and refrigerate for 4-6 hours, or overnight. You're looking to lose about half the volume in liquid whey; the yogurt should go from pourable to thick like cream cheese. This step is non-negotiable, it's what makes this set like cheesecake instead of melting into a puddle.
2. Once strained, taste the yogurt. Stir in honey or sugar and vanilla now if using. It should taste pleasantly tangy, a little sweet.
3. Line a loaf pan (about 9x5 inches/23x13cm) with plastic wrap, leaving plenty of overhang on all sides to fold back over the top later.
4. Spread a thin layer of the strained yogurt on the bottom of the pan, just enough to cover.
5. Lay down a single layer of cookies on top, breaking pieces as needed to fill gaps edge to edge.
6. Repeat: yogurt layer, cookie layer, yogurt layer, cookie layer, finishing with a yogurt layer on top. You should get 4-5 layers of cookies total depending on pan size. Press down gently after each layer so there are no air pockets.
7. Fold the plastic wrap overhang over the top to seal, and press a flat object (like a cutting board with a couple of cans on it) lightly on top to compact everything.
8. Refrigerate for at least 6 hours, ideally overnight. The cookies need time to soften and absorb moisture from the yogurt until they turn cake-like.
9. To serve, unfold the plastic, invert the loaf onto a plate, and peel off the wrap. Slice with a sharp knife, wiping it clean between cuts for neat layers. You should see distinct pale cookie-cake stripes running through the yogurt, just like a checkerboard cheesecake.