Make fresh nut milk

Make your own fresh nut milk with a blender

If you cannot or do not want to drink cow's milk, you used to be able to opt for soy milk. Nowadays there is a much larger choice of plant-based lactose-free alternatives to milk in the supermarket. Drinks can also be made from nuts, such as almonds and hazelnuts.

If you buy a nut milk in the supermarket, don't expect to consume a lot of nuts. Almond and hazelnut milk are made from water to which a nut extract is added. A carton of almond milk contains only around two percent of almonds. When you take a look at the ingredients list, you will see that a healthy nut drink from the supermarket is not as pure as it often says on the package. Emulsifiers, stabilizers, sugars and flavourings; all additives that you find in a nut milk from the supermarket.

If you really want it purely natural, you will have to make the nut milk yourself. And luckily you can do this yourself at home if you have access to a good blender.

Make your own fresh nut milk

The full recipe can be found at the bottom of this article, but in a nutshell; This is how you make nut milk at home:

• Buy unroasted (raw) nuts
• Let the nuts soak for one or two nights
• Drain and rinse the soaked nuts
• Blend the nuts together with fresh water
• Strain the homemade nut milk
• Sweeten if necessary
• Cooling

The steps are the same for every type of note. Here are some tips for choosing nuts for your homemade nut milk.

Buy unroasted nuts

Unroasted nuts, sometimes also called raw nuts, not only stay fresh much longer. They also absorb much more water and are therefore easier to blend. Unroasted nuts also give a much better taste to the nut milk.

Provide fresh nuts of the best quality

A rancid nut will make a rancid nut milk. Since a homemade nut milk consists of only two ingredients, nuts and water, choose the best quality nut you can afford.

Nuts without membranes

Buy nuts without the skin or remove the skins yourself. You can easily remove the membranes by soaking the nuts and then rubbing them dry between a clean tea towel. Without the membranes, the nut milk will have a finer texture and a better taste.

Soak the nuts overnight

Soaking the nuts makes the nuts much softer and provides a creamy taste and silky texture when blending. Soaking the nuts also removes the phytic acid and enzyme inhibitors. This makes the nut milk much more nutritious and easier to digest. The length of time the nuts need to be soaked depends partly on their size. For a peanut, an hour or six weeks is sufficient, for the larger cashew nut you quickly need double that. You can never soak the nuts for too long. Soaking the nuts for 48 hours will ensure an even creamier and softer result.

Blend and strain the nut milk

After soaking the nuts, drain the soaking water and then rinse the nuts well under cold running water. Place the nuts in the blender jar and add fresh water. The blender is the most suitable device for making nut milk. A blender ensures a soft and sweet end product.

After you have blended everything, it is best to pass the mix through a sieve. The nut milk tastes better after straining. If you have a high-speed blender, you don't necessarily have to strain, but it is recommended. Unstrained milk will separate easily and you will therefore have to stir the nut milk before consuming it. So always sift.

What to do with the pulp you have left after sieving?

When you make your own nut milk, you will produce a by-product, the nut pulp. Don't throw it away, because the pulp is very tasty and can be used for many other dishes. You can freeze the pulp in a bag and add it to your smoothies later. You can use it in your recipes when baking bread or add it to oatmeal porridge. Or you can make the crunchiest granola yourself.

What you can also do is spread the pulp on a baking tray lined with baking paper and place it in the oven at a low temperature for a few hours until it is completely dry. The dried nut pulp can be stored in the freezer for a few months and you can use it in your homemade baking.

Using your homemade nut milk

You can use the nut milk you have made yourself for anything you would normally use nut milk from the supermarket or cow's milk for. You can use the milk in your bowl of cereal, in coffee, in pancake batter, milkshakes and much more.

Of course you can also just drink the milk straight. Homemade nut milk has a much better taste and quality than nut milk from a carton and is at its best when you drink it ice cold.

Homemade nut milk recipe

Ingredients

• 1 part nuts
• 2 parts water, plus water for soaking
• Optional: Sweeteners, such as honey, sugar, agave syrup or a date, for example.

What do you need

• A bowl, container or sieve to soak the nuts in
• A sieve
• A clean tea towel or cheesecloth
• Measuring cup
• A blender, for example a high-speed blender.

Step-by-step plan for making nut milk

1. Soak the nuts: Place the nuts in a large bowl or container and add enough water to ensure that the nuts are submerged by 2 to 3 cm, i.e. a finger's pastern length. Then cover the bowl or container with a cloth and leave it to soak for one to two nights. This can be done at room temperature. The nuts will absorb water and soften slightly. The longer you soak the nuts, the creamier your milk will ultimately be.
2. Drain and rinse: Drain the soaking water and rinse the nuts well with cold running water.
3. Combine the nuts and water in a blender: Combine one part of the nuts with two equal parts of water in a blender.
4. Blender at high speed: First pulse a few times to chop the nuts into smaller pieces and then let the blender run at high speed for about three minutes. The nuts should be chopped very finely and the water should be white and opaque in the end.
5. Strain the just blended nut milk: Place a sieve lined with a cheesecloth or clean tea towel over a measuring cup, bowl or container and pour the mixture into the sieve. You can wring out the pulp on the cloth later to squeeze out the last bit of nut milk.
6. To add a sweetener: Taste the milk. If you prefer your homemade nut milk a little sweeter, add a sweetener of your choice, for example sugar, honey, agave syrup.
7. Store in the refrigerator: You store the nut milk in the refrigerator in sealed containers. The milk will then remain good for up to four days. You can use the nut pulp that is left over for other things.