Dairy free milks have come a long way in the last few years. The good news is that they now work much better than they did. None of the non-cow-based milk alternatives is perfect, in that none of them will substitute for milk in all situations. However, if you mix and match you can usually find something to do the trick.
Soya Milk
Soya milk: love it or hate it you can’t avoid it. Lots of different brands are available in all sorts of flavours, all of which have one thing in common: they taste horrible (just my opinion: if they rock your boat then enjoy!). However, bog-standard unflavoured soya milk is pretty good as a substitute for milk in cooking most dishes: we’ve had success with bread, cakes, biscuits, custard, white sauces and so on. In sauces you’re best off if you can cook the sauce for a little while: this decreases the soya taste.
Now this is where the greatest degree of improvement has come. Soya Milk is no longer the same creature it was a few years ago. For one thing there are so many more brands out there. Big companies have become aware of a market they were missing out on. As a result, they have clearly invested substantial sums in research to improve on their product, or in some cases to create products which are new to them to increase their market penetration. Whether you approve of their motives or not, the benefit to us has been increased competition and (hooray!) better tasting soya milk. I used to think there was no such thing as a pleasant-tasting soya milk. Do I now love it? Well, that would be a slight exaggeration, but I am now prepared to use it on cornflakes… and that’s saying something!!
When cooking sauces with soya milk note that it’s already slightly starchy: if the recipe calls for flour or cornflour in the sauce to thicken it you should probably use slightly less than the recipe suggests.
Brands: Our current favourite is Tesco’s own brand Sweetened Soya. This obviously isn’t the best for savoury sauces, but it isn’t as sweet as many other sweetened soya milks. It uses apple juice and maltodextrin for the sweetness.
The economy versions can be a trifle watery.
Where to get it: virtually anywhere (Sainsbury’s sell half-litre cartons, which are more useful than the usual litre ones if you’re cooking for one).
Gotchas: don’t leave an open carton in the fridge too long since it can get truly revolting. Also, don’t add cold soya milk to a boiling sauce as it will split. Mixing a smidgen of cornflour with a couple of teaspoons of water and adding it to the sauce,then taking it off the boil for a few seconds before adding the soya milk helps.
Rice Milk
Like soya milk: it doesn’t taste wonderful but is useful in cooking. Rice milk comes into its own when cooking sweet dishes: this is what you use to make a stonking dairy-free custard.
Brands: Rice Dream (from Imagine Foods) is what we’ve used.
Where to get it: most big supermarkets and health food shops.
Gotchas: The most commonly available form of Rice Dream is slightly flavoured with vanilla. Don’t use it to make cheese sauce for lasagne, as vanilla-flavoured lasagne is Not Good. I speak from personal experience. Update Apparently, Provamel now make a non-vanilla flavoured Rice Dream, which should have significant advantages for cooking savoury dishes.
Oat Milk
Like soy milk, but with a less pronounced flavour. It makes decent cheese sauces, and can otherwise be used in most of the places where soya milk is adequate. Better than soya milk in sweet dishes (but not as good as rice milk unless you don’t want vanilla flavouring). Oatly claims that it’s heat stable, which is an advantage in cooking.
Brands: Oatly and Oat Milk (Pacific Foods, I think: I don’t have a website).
Where to get it: Not easy to get hold of: most supermarkets don’t stock it. Can usually be found in health food shops.
Gotchas: has a slightly dusty flavour, although it does taste better than plain soya milk (not that that’s hard).
Almond Milk
Not starchy, cooks nicely, a touch expensive. Makes great desserts due to its delicate almond flavour.
Brands: Can’t remember, but says ‘Almond Milk’ on the label.
Where to get it: Sacrifice three goats and turn around widdershins. Alternatively pester your local health food shop to order it in. Not easy to find…
Gotchas: it’s sweet, so only use for sweet dishes (again, NOT lasagne).
Sunflower Milk
I don’t know anything about this one: please comment if you have tried it!
Brands: Plamil White-sun
Where to get it: health food shops
Gotchas: please let me know if you find any!