Homemade plant-based drinks or “milks”

Let’s be clear, they are not milk. They are delicious drinks that can be used in similar ways as milk but they aren’t because they don’t come from a fucking mammal.

Having said that, they are nutritious, they taste amazing and they are naturally vegan and dairy-free so almost everyone can enjoy them.

They can be divided in three main groups:

• Nut drinks – almond, cashew, hazelnut, walnut, brazil nut, pecan nut, macadamia nut, etc.
• Seed drinks – sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds and hemp seeds.
• Other drinks – coconut, rice, oat, soy and quinoa.

Nut drinks

Nut drinks are the most straightforward to make, they’re all make the same way and it’s really easy:

1. Soak 1 cup of your desired raw nuts overnight
2. Rinse and add the nuts into a blender with 4 cups of water and a pinch of salt (1/2 a tsp)
3. Blend for 30 seconds to 1 minute until the drink is smooth and creamy
4. Optionally you can strain it through a nut milk bag/cheese cloth/clean T-shirt/strainer to separate the pulp from the “milk”

Seed drinks

The process for most seed-based drinks is the same but with more of water than nuts, so we’ll use 6 cups instead of 4.

1. Soak 1 cup of your desired raw seeds overnight
2. Rinse and add the seeds into a blender with 6 cups of water and a pinch of salt (1/2 a tsp)
3. Blend for 30 seconds to 1 minute until the drink is smooth and creamy
4. Optionally you can strain it through a nut milk bag/cheese cloth/clean T-shirt/strainer to separate the pulp from the “milk”

A FUCKING NOTE: Hemp drink doesn’t need soaking, so just skip that step.

Other drinks

The other type of the drinks are a bit special, so I’ll be posting the recipes separately to keep this simple.

• Oat drink – It can be prepared just like nut milks either with or without the soaking step.
• Rice or quinoa drink – Both have to be cooked before blending. Click here for the full recipe.
• Coconut drink – It can be made with dried coconut flakes or with fresh coconut. Recipe coming soon.
• Soy drink – This is the most complex of all. Give me a bit of time to write it and post it.

Variations

The texture of the drink can be adjusted to taste. To do it just play with the amount of water you use:

• By adding extra water you’ll have a lighter texture, a less intense flavour and more quantity for the same amount of nuts (good if you need to save a few bucks).
• By adding less water you’ll have a creamier texture and a more intense flavour. Some people like it like that and it can also be used for cooking.

Also, there are many easy variations you can make. Not feeling creative? Okay, here you have some ideas:

• Sweetened version – Just add a little bit of honey/maple syrup/stevia/a couple of dates/sugar to the blender. If it’s your first time or you’re a sugar addict it may help you to get used to the natural taste.
• Vanilla flavour – For some reason many people like to add vanilla everywhere 🤷 If you’re one of those, go ahead and add some drops of vanilla extract or vanilla powder to the blender.
• Chocolate – Who doesn’t like a chocolate drink? Well it’s super easy to make, just add cacao powder and, if that’s too strong for you, some sweetener like a couple of dates or honey.
• Mixed nuts – As easy as it sounds. Why almond drink if you can make brazilian-cashew-hazelnut drink? Go crazy with the combinations!
• Custom made – This list could go on and on forever and I think you already got it: add whatever you are willing to try. Cinnamon? Good! Matcha powder? Great! Protein powder? Okay! Chilly? Hmm… that’s up to you, but hey maybe you discover something great! (And if you do leave a fucking comment so we can all enjoy it!)

FAQ