Doogh (dugh) is Iran’s everyday yogurt drink: plain yogurt blended with cold water – often sparkling – plus salt and dried mint. It’s savory, tangy and refreshing, and it’s served ice-cold with kebabs, rice dishes and other meals. Bottled doogh, especially the carbonated kind, is sold everywhere in Iran. It’s a close relative of Turkish ayran, which is usually still and without mint, and a savory cousin of India’s lassi.
The Ratio
Start with equal parts yogurt and cold water, about ½ teaspoon of salt per litre, and a teaspoon or two of crushed dried mint, then adjust. More water gives a lighter drink. For fizzy doogh (doogh-e gazdar), use chilled sparkling water and stir it in gently at the end so it keeps its bubbles.
Does Doogh Have Live Cultures?
Homemade doogh made from live-culture yogurt keeps the yogurt’s bacteria, since it’s just yogurt diluted with water. Bottled doogh is often heat-treated for shelf life, and some brands add preservatives, so check the label if live cultures matter to you. Doogh is a fermented food because of the yogurt, but there’s little research on doogh itself as a health drink.
Watch the Salt
Doogh is a salted drink. In one survey of 148 commercial samples, average salt was below the Iranian standard of 0.8 g per 100 ml (Mohamadi et al., 2021); in another, doogh averaged about 1.04 g per 100 g (Massomian et al., 2025). At those levels a 300 ml bottle holds roughly 2.5–3 g of salt – about half of the World Health Organization’s recommended limit of 5 g a day (WHO). Homemade doogh lets you use as little salt as you like.
Variations
- Herbs: dried pennyroyal (pooneh), thyme or a few crushed rose petals alongside the mint.
- Cucumber: finely grated cucumber for a more substantial drink.
- With homemade yogurt: see our homemade yogurt guide.
Doogh separates as it stands; stir or shake before pouring. It’s best the day it’s made. Related yogurt traditions: Georgian matsoni. In Azerbaijan, yogurt is cooked with herbs into a soup, dovga.