I’m weaning myself off of soy milk. Not only because I’ve discovered a connection between my consumption of soy milk and how (icky) I feel, but also because of a post about carrageenan by Rachel that I found disturbing enough that I was inspired to make a change in the way we eat. Carrageenan is extracted from seaweed and is used as a thickener in all kinds of food products (vegan and otherwise) – like commercial nut milks and ice creams. Please read Rachel’s post to see why one should reconsider consuming products that use carrageenan.
But giving up soy milk meant that I needed to find an alternative milk not only for my morning cereal, but more importantly, for my cup of coffee. I love the creamy-nuttiness that soy milk gives to my lattes. In my quest I’ve made almond, cashew, hemp and hazelnut milks – and now, peanut milk. Almond milk is pretty great; not so wild about hemp or hazelnut milk. Peanut milk…well, I’m still experimenting. (Sadly, it doesn’t seem to work well with coffee…) If there’s a theme (and there isn’t) running through my VeganMoFo posts, it could possibly be peanuts…and chocolate. I’m going to dedicate several posts to how to use peanut milk and its byproduct – peanut meal – but let’s start with the easy basics. Made just like any other nut milk you’ve tried.
Peanut Milk
INGREDIENTS
- 1 cup unsalted peanuts
- 1 1/2 cups filtered water
DIRECTIONS
- Soak peanuts in water overnight. Drain and rinse thoroughly. Place peanuts in a high-powered blender and add water. (I found it perfect as is, but if you like, add a pinch of sea salt and a hit of vanilla or sweetener of your choice.) Blend for about 1 minute.
- Pour mixture into a nut bag that has been placed in a sieve over a large, deep bowl. Squeeze to get out as much liquid as you can. Transfer peanut milk to a container and store in the refrigerator. Scrape the peanut meal out of the bag and into a container; store in the refrigerator until ready to use.
Is it my imagination, or do I sense some low calorie peanut butter cookies coming on? PB2 Be warned! I never even thought of peanut milk. Totally blending today. Have you tried cashew milk in the coffee? It’s the creamiest of the milks of course because the cashews dissolve entirely, but then again, you know how obsessed I am with cashews….
We’ve tried ’em all in coffee…Almond milk comes the closest to success for me, but Kel isn’t loving it. I think pecan milk is next :-)!
YES! Dan drinks a not-coffee barley type drink nearly every day, but can only do it with Soy, he doesn’t dig it with anything else….
I am pretty sure Edensoy is made without carrageenan. Plus it has kombu which helps make the beans more digestible and adds minerals. I am excited to see what you make with the peanut meal!
Oh that’s a great tip! I’ll check it out, thanks! I can’t wait to see what I make w/ peanut meal, too ;-)!
Well that’s an interesting idea! I wonder if raw peanuts would work, too.
Yeah…I wonder, too. Since peanuts are legumes and not nuts, the process may be more like making soy milk (which I think is more of a hassle to do at home). Interesting, though.
This is such a great idea. I love almond milk, and I bet peanut milk would taste just as good. @Lisa, Raw peanuts should definitely work for this and they would probably need to be soaked.
Thanks, Joshua. I’d love to try the raw peanut milk, too, if you think it would work. Must be a whole different flavor, huh?
Due to the way peanuts are, I think what’s left over would be better to use as a butter spread or used to create a peanut sauce or soup. However, these are my two cents. I’ve read twice already about a article on carrageenan from Rachel’s blog. Can I get a link to that?
Thanks, Joshua. I’ve got some recipes coming up that utilize the peanut meal, interested to hear what you think. Did the link to Rachael’s article not work in my post? Dang! Here it is: http://rachelinveganland.com/2012/07/19/why-care-about-carrageenan/
Thanks for the link. Sometimes my eyes don’t want to cooperate.
I’ve got the same problem :-).
I’ve started using many different kinds of nut and seed milk, and they are great in combination like almond and hemp and cacao powder — chocolate milk, yum! Dr. Weil also posted a caution about carageenan recently.
I think that’s probably the key – combining different nuts/seeds to get the flavor I’m seeking. Chocolate milk sounds wonderful!
We’re on the same wavelength today with these peanut posts! I’m definitely going to try this one, you know I’m a homemade nut milk junkie
🙂 I do! Someone suggested trying raw peanuts…what do you think?
I’m off soy too, and other processed milk subs because of the carageenan. I’m just using coconut milk from the can in my coffee, which is working just fine. Good luck with your experimenting! And I agree with Somer–I bet there’s some yummy peanut cookies in our future… 🙂
Oh, coconut milk in coffee is wonderful! I forgot about that! Well…MAYBE cookies are coming…
You’re such a tease…! 🙂
I’ve been resisting making nut milk at home – out of sheer laziness, honestly. Looks like it’s time to get over myself. Thanks for sharing this – we’ve also had a tough time with the coffee thing, and we never agree on what works best. I’m sure there’s a perfect one out there somewhere. I think the best one I made was almonds and a couple of dates. Hmmmm… I’d completely forgotten about that. Thanks!
Make it! It’s very satisfying! I think that’s the thing – I don’t add anything to my almond milk and probably a bit o’ sweetness would help take the edge off.
I have made several home-made nut milks up to now, but never made peanut milk before! It sure looks tasty to me! Lovely pics too!
Sophie, I know you could come up w/ something delicious w/ peanut milk!
I’ve never tried or even heard of peanut milk. I think mixing several nuts is an awesome idea. I buy Fresh & Easy (a store on the Western side of the US) brand Almond Milk and it doens’t have carageenan. Plus it taste so good, it’s my favorite store bought plant milk. I have been way to lazy to make any myself but I really want to try to make my own almond milk yogurt for my parfait’s.
I’ll have to keep my eye open for other brands. I love making my own, but sometimes I don’t plan ahead and…no milk. Hate that!
I soak a large amount of almonds and freeze them for future use.
Works great.
The milk issue keeps me from going vegan. Soy milk makes me feel yucky too. And I like almond milk a lot, but it breaks me out something awful if I drink it regularly…
Maybe you should try other non-nut milks; I don’t support soy milk. Try coconut milk and rice milk and see what does for you.
Steve – I agree with Joshua – keep trying! It’s SO important to get off of dairy milk. Coconut milk is fantastic!
I love my cow juice and buy my drinking milk from a small local farm who claim to treat their cows humanely, but maybe I’ll give rice or coconut a try. I’m sure I’ve sampled them before, but never in a serious, let’s see if this will work long term sort of way. Thanks for the suggestion.
I’m worried about your health, Steve ;-). Not to freak you out or climb onto my anti-dairy soapbox…but there’s a link between dairy and cancer – that it can actually “turn on” cancer cells that already exist in one’s body. There are so many other reasons (health and humane), too, but I’ll let it go at that for now – don’t want to scare you off!
You may very well be right about the health consequences, but the simple fact of the matter is I don’t feel healthy or well when I forgo milk, whereas I feel happy healthy and strong when I drink milk. That’s hard to overcome with simple “facts”. The mind tries to tell the body something that goes against what the body is experiencing… The moral and environmental issues on the other hand… Well, I did say I’d give rice/coconut milk a chance !
I like almond milk but the peanut milk I tried had too much of a peanut flavor and it overpowered everything else. I’ll bet it would have been great in desserts, though! Thanks for the link to Rachel’s blog. I, too, blogged my discomfort with carrageenan but it seems most people regard it as just another seaweed and don’t think about it. They put it in everything, too.
I’m so glad I read Rachael’s post. It’s easy to give yourself a pass by saying, “it’s vegan,” and then not learning about the ingredients that make up that vegan product. Thanks, Andrea!
Paint straining bags (cheap from any store that sells paint) and a blender is all you need for making your own additive free milks. Awesome post!
I think I’m alone in having had no idea before reading this post that you could make milk out of nuts and water, but when I think of coconut milk it all seems to make sense… I like the sound of almond milk. Can you make milk out of sesame seeds? I know they’re very small but they seem sort of creamy to me.
Lorna, I haven’t heard of sesame seed milk, but if one can make milk out of hemp seeds – why not? There is tahini, of course, which is sesame seed “butter”…
I thought I’d had an epiphany in the shower this morning. I was thinking about these milk substitutes and I suddenly remembered how milky the water goes when making porridge, which led me to think ‘oats!’. Then I discovered that oat milk has been selling on supermarket shelves for years, and I had no idea….
Actually, I am impressed, Lorna! I never would have come up w/ oat milk on my own. You just might be a natural at this nut milk thing!
I’m sure you could make milk from sesame seeds! Or, if you love tahini, you do a small sample batch by adding a tablespoon of tahini to a cup of water and blending really well. That way you don’t have to strain it either. I make cheater almond milk when I run out of strained, and I forgot to soak my nuts the night before.
Don’t be afraid to add vanilla or your favorite liquid sweetener. They’ll take your seed milk to the next, delicious level 🙂
That’s an idea with the tahini, good thinking!
Milk that must taste like peanut butter and is healthy? Heaven 🙂
Cheers
Choc Chip Uru
I know, right?!
Don’t think I ever thought of making peanut milk. Pecan is awesome. Cashew is really my fav. But for the price, I usually make almond milk. Not a fan of hazelnuts in general, so the milk isn’t my fav either. I love store bought hemp milk, but I don’t dig it home made. Weird. I haven’t had soy milk is in so long I’ve almost forgotten what it tastes like 🙁 The one milk alternative I do not like – at all – is flax milk. I don’t known it’s possible, but the sliminess of the flax comes through in the milk. Ew.
I’m glad to hear about pecan milk – – that’s next on my list, but I’d never seen a reference to it. Pecans are my favorite nut. Almond milk is my favorite for now and it does make the most economical sense. Anyway, the quest is fun!
I think I need to try this! 🙂
I’ll bet you would come up with something totally unique and delicious, too!
What is the peanut meal like? Is it at all similar to peanut flour? I wonder if it is lower in fat than the peanut since it is blended up like that…hmmmm…interesting post!
It is VERY soft and fine and has a mild peanut flavor. I wondered about the fat content, too.
I have bought “peanut flour” before, and it had only 4g of fat per 1/4cp. I wonder if your peanut meal could be similar?
Probably the fat goes into the milk…that would be my guess.
Oooh, I love reading about other people’s experiments! I make cashew milk a lot and have tried a couple of other nut milks but not peanut as yet. I’m thinking it could make a great smoothie base with banana and cacao. mmmmmm…
I think you are spot on right – and you might see something along those lines coming up :-)!
Oh wow peanut milk!?! YUM!!! I would drink this like water! I use almond milk in my cereal/baking and anything else! This milk looks amazing and easy though.
It works quite well in the morning oats…
i havent ever tried peanut milk.. i like my coffee with coconut milk. any nut milk doesnt work for me in coffee.. but almond milk works really well in masala chai!
I does – I agree!
Hey Annie! I am with you on the soymilk and don’t use any at all – I think it was Gabby at the Veggie Nook who suggested blending coconut oil into coffee and I have since heard it it fabulous (though I have not tried it)! Good luck on your quest! X
I think it was Gabby – and it sounded like a really wonderful addition to coffee. Might be just the thing!
I’d LOVE to know! Good luck!
A lot of us vegans in India make peanut mylk to make yogurt out of it. When the mylk is cooked for a while (like soymilk is), the fats get emulsified well and the yogurt turns out deliciously thick and creamy. Yum!!
I tried making chai tea with the peanut mylk and it was kind of gross. Haha So basically all I ever do with it is make yogurt.
I’m really waiting to see what other recipes you use your peanut mylk with so I can get ideas to try more things with it. 🙂
The meal I just knead into Chapathi and bread doughs.
This is really interesting to me, Susmitha! I had no idea that peanut milk was kinda standard in some places. Peanut milk yogurt sounds delicious! Maybe you’ll share a recipe some time ;-)??
It’s standard only among vegans here in India, other people are surprised when we tell them about it. The thing is, yogurt/curds is a staple in traditional South Indian households. When someone wants to turn vegan, it’s the first replacement they look for. 🙂 And since vegan yogurts aren’t commercially available here yet, the peanut yogurt recipe is what we use to tempt people into turning vegan. haha
I have the recipe up on my blog. Will message you the link on FB. 🙂
Thanks, Susmitha!
I had no idea that peanut milk existed on this earth, thank you! I like almond milk and also coconut milk with my cereal. I am not a vegan but I like to try different options. Thank you for sharing this.
I was interested to read (from one of my readers) that peanut milk is pretty standard in her household in India. I think it’s great that you have an open mind :-)!
I drink almond milk and rice milk. Anything with peanuts is addictive for me. Did you say something about chocolate too? Are you going to make a chocolate peanut milk. PB cup milk. Oh Boy oh boy.
Thank you for posting.
I’ve got something chocolatey and peanutty and drinkable coming soon…
Yum yum yummo – I feel the same about soy… I haven’t banished it completely from my life (everything in moderation – as long as it doesn’t contain any horrible nasty additives) but my “default” milks are rice, almond and coconut. I made peanut milk a few times, but it’s annoying how it doesn’t work in coffee, huh? Great for milkshakes though!
Yes – absolutely – peanut milk is the way to go for cold bevs!
I never buy soy milk except to make butter because it curdles better. Otherwise, I’ve always been an almond milk gal and I’ve been making my own for about a month. I did end up buying some hemp milk (I can’t remember my reasoning), and I was shocked at how rich it was! It tasted like whole milk. I would recommend taking a stab at making your own hemp milk to see if that works in your coffee!
Hey Kristy! I have tried hemp milk – both the store kind and making my own – and, bummer, it just didn’t work. I forgot that I’ve also made my own brown rice milk, also a failure. Almond milk comes the closest and maybe eventually my taste buds won’t remember soy at all :-)!
Brilliant! It’s odd that this never occurred to me as I only consume a variety of non dairy milks—silly me—but yay for finding this recipe! ^.^
You’re welcome! So far it seems to work best in smoothies and puddings :-). I hope you’ll consider signing on for the Virtual Vegan Potluck. It’s a great way to connect w/ other bloggers. You can learn more here: http://virtualveganpotluck.com
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Oh wow! Sounds delicious! Anyone for some chocolate peanut milk over here?? That sounds like something I have to try after seeing this.
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Peanut milk… sounds amazing! Why haven’t I though of that? 😉
I know, right?! Now I want to make milk out of every kind of nut I can find ;-)!
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Wait. But how does your peanut meal look so dry and powdery? I was imagining the peanut meal to look more like mush after having all the water strained out. Does it dry out to that consistency?
It is very mushy – so generally I air dry it for several hours. In the case of the photo I put the meal into the food processor to fluff it up. Cheating? Well…that’s a pretty strong word ;-).
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Peanut milk is creative. I have made it, but never tried it with that little amount of water. I have used 1 cup of peanuts to 4 cups of water. Depending on what I am making, I don’t bother straining the milk either! http://goo.gl/KeBO84
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