I’ve recently become obsessed with cashews. I’ve been adding them to smoothies, making sauces from them, and even using them in hummus. The greatest thing I’ve figured out how to make so far is homemade cashew milk. As somebody who is sensitive to both soy and almonds, learning to make cashew milk turned out to be a total lifesaver. This stuff is my new favorite “milky” beverage, and it’s super easy to make.
Why make cashew milk, besides the fact that it’s so yummy? Lots of reasons! Cashew milk is a non-dairy milk, which means it contains no lactose. In its most basic form, it’s made from filtered water and cashews. Cashew milk is easily digested by most folks who are lactose intolerant. Because you’re making it at home, you have total control over the ingredients– the sweetness level, the texture, the fat content and the overall flavor. For those who keep kosher, it’s a terrific substitute for dairy milk in recipes that you would like to keep pareve. I much prefer cashew milk to chemical-filled and preservative-laden non-dairy creamers. No strange additives in this milk, it’s all natural!
Cashew milk has lots of health benefits. Unlike dairy milk, it is cholesterol free. Cashews are high in B vitamins, copper and magnesium. They also have a lower total fat content when compared with other nuts. About 75% of the fat in cashews is unsaturated fatty acids, primarily oleic acid, the same monounsaturated fat found in olive oil. That means the fat found in cashews is heart-healthy, and can help lower your risk of stroke and heart disease.
Best of all, I’ve found cashew milk to be creamier than most other non-dairy milks. I love that it doesn’t taste overwhelmingly like cashews… in its pure unsweetened form it makes a fine substitute for plain milk. When using it on cereal or in my tea, I like to give it a touch of sweetness (throwing a whole date into the blender works great, or use honey, stevia or agave nectar). Adding a little vanilla and salt rounds out the flavor. I’ve also added cinnamon and nutmeg before, which gave a nice effect. Depending on what you plan to use your cashew milk for, you can experiment and adjust the ingredients to taste. A nut bag will help you strain the milk to achieve a thin, grit-free texture; if you don’t have one and don’t want to order one, a fine mesh strainer, clean tea towel or multiple layers of cheesecloth will work just dandy.
Have you made your own non-dairy milk at home? Would you like me to post more tutorials on other types of non-dairy milks like almond, coconut and oat milk?
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Cashew Milk
Ingredients
- 3/4 cup raw unsalted cashews
- 3-4 cups filtered water, plus more for soaking cashews
- 1 1/2 teaspoons honey or agave nectar, or one whole pitted date (optional)
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla (optional)
- Dash salt (optional)
NOTES
Instructions
- Place raw cashews in a bowl and cover with cold water. Allow to soak for at least one hour up to overnight, then drain and rinse.
- Combine soaked cashews and filtered water in a blender.
- For a whole milk texture, I use 3 cups of water to 3/4 cup cashews. For a thinner texture, feel free to add more water-- you can adjust the texture to taste. The more water you add, the lower in fat the milk will be per serving; however, you don't want to add too much liquid or it will turn watery. Best to add water in small batches till the texture seems right to you. Blend on low, then slowly raise the speed to high for 1-2 minutes till the milk is completely smooth and no chunks of nuts remain. If desired, add sweetener, vanilla and/or salt to taste, then blend again to combine (if using a date, make sure you blend till it's completely pulverized). Feel free to adjust the sweetness to taste.
- Strain milk through a fine mesh strainer, tea towel, cheesecloth or nut bag into a storage container. A nut bag will work best for keeping your milk smooth and chunk-free. I usually strain the milk into a quart mason jar, which works perfectly with the 3 cup to 3/4 cup ratio of water to cashews.
- If using a mesh strainer, you will need to agitate the solids a bit to let all the milk drip through. I don't scrape them (this can push the solids through the strainer), but I do gently stir and move the solids around to make room for the liquid to come through. Similarly, if using a nut bag, you will need to gently squeeze the bag till all of the milk seeps through.
- Once you're finished straining the milk, you will have a small amount of solids left. I like to mix this light cashew paste with sweetener and a little cinnamon-- we eat it like a pudding. You can also spread it on a piece of toast. It's delish!
- Transfer milk to the refrigerator and chill thoroughly. It should keep for 3 - 4 days if refrigerated. I usually shake mine a bit before pouring to make sure it's well blended.
- Use anywhere you would use milk-- in coffee or tea, on cereal, or as a milk substitute in recipes.
BlessedCP says
Can cashew milk be made with cashew butter? My jar is just cashews, nothing else. Thanks for your time
Ashley at ToriAvey.com says
Hi, Tori’s assistant Ashley here. I’m afraid this won’t work, you’ll need to start with whole, raw cashews.
Carol says
My daughter makes almond milk with almond butter!! Check for recipes online to see if it’s okay to do it that way!!
sharon says
any recipes for cashew milk that was forgotten and now tastes a bit tangy — hope I don’t need to throw out
Ashley at ToriAvey.com says
Hi Sharon, Toris’ assistant Ashley here. If you made the cashew milk yourself it doesn’t contain any kind of preservative and doesn’t have a lengthy shelf life. If it tastes off I wouldn’t recommend cooking with it.
Josephine says
Ok, I just want to tell you how glad I was to run into your website. I knew there was barely 2% of almonds in almond milk but I didn’t know how much cashews were in the cashew milk. So, when I saw your website and how simple it seemed to make homemade cashew milk, I gave it a try.
I must admit, it was easier than I thought. Since I have the vitamix, I didn’t even have to “strain” the cashews at all; it just pulverized the cashews completely. I didn’t add anything but raw cashews, one pitted date and filtered water and it was sooooo delicious. I can actually taste the cashews in my cashew milk, imagine that!
When I ran out of raw cashews, since I had roasted salted and unsalted cashews, I thought, why not, let’s try with the roasted cashews. I rinsed the cashews so it would remove all the saltiness. And guess what, folks, it was just as good!
After a few times, I decided to get a little greedy and put a whole cup of cashews with three cups of water. Well, I don’t know if it’s too much cashews and not enough water but it was definitely thicker. After sitting for a couple of days, it REALLY thickened up where I had to stir it up and add more water to my milk to drink it. Perhaps Tori can enlighten me about this situation.
So, now, I use whatever cashews I have, rinse it out, soak only 1/2 cup of cashews and use only three cups of filtered water. It seems like the best combination.
My other question for Tori is the fresh cashew milk doesn’t seem to last more than three days, tops. Has that been your experience? After a few days, I see some “swirls” on top of the cashew milk, too. Please advise. Thank you.
Tori Avey says
Hi Josephine! You are right, the shelf life is pretty short on cashew milk. That is why I tend to make smaller batches that can be used up quickly. As for the thickness issue, it’s really a matter of personal preference – you should use the amount that results in the thickness you prefer. Much like folks have a preference for skim, lowfat or whole milk, there is also a preference for richer or lighter nut milks. Go with what works for you! 🙂
David says
Hi Josephine,
If you don’t want it to thicken up strain the milk.
Its the pulp thats swelling and creating the thickness.
Hope this helps, Enjoy!
Joanne says
Hello Josephine, and Tori too,
The photo shows a mesh strainer being used for the milk but if you buy a Nut Milk Bag (health food stores, Amazon) and strain your milk through that it will get rid of all of the solids. This will help it to last an extra day or two and control the thickness too. The bag should last years if kept clean.
HTH
Kate Farrell says
Do you know the nutrition of this if I don’t use sweetener, and if I use 1 cup of cashew for 5 cups of milk? 🙂
Ashley at ToriAvey.com says
Hi Kate, Tori’s assistant Ashley here. My apologies, but we do not calculate the nutrition of our recipes at this time.
Angel says
This website lists all nutritional data, and from there is quite easy to work it out.
http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/nut-and-seed-products/3095/2
Jeremiah George Boateng says
God Richly Bless You, Sister Tori Avey For Pouring Into Us
Ross Jones says
I’ve just made my first batch and spilled it all over the work-top when straining it into the Mason jar. I used my Nutribullet blitzer as I don’t have a blender.It worked a treat and tastes fab.
Jasmine says
How do I calculate the calories of this homemade cashew milk?
Kathleen says
I make walnut milk… Soak the walnuts for 12 hours first rinse and sometimes I add a little coconut milk to make it creamier
Pamela Rondeau says
I use a handheld milk frother when I pour my cashew milk into my coffee. no separation AND is beyond luxurious!
Tori Avey says
Great tip Pamela!
Susan Roesser says
This cashew milk is absolutely delicious!! It will be my milk of choice as soon as I’ve used up the rest of my almonds. It’s so creamy, I love it!! I soaked the cashews all day & made the milk in the evening so I could chill it all night, then it’s ready for my granola in the morning.
Arda Molen says
What is the calorie of home made cashew milk, per 1 Cup?
jim smith says
im just getting into nut milk,( i cant find a milking machine that small though). im going to try this and add banana as a sweetener
Marni says
I make cashew milk all the time. It’s super easy. The only thing I don’t like is how much it separates. I would love to find a natural ingredient that would thicken it or keep it just bound together enough so that it is still mylk, but doesn’t separate and have to be shaken or stirred all the time when it’s added to coffee. In cereal it doesn’t matter, but coffee it definitely is noticeable. Now I will try to make thick cashew cream to dip fresh berries in!
karen says
I made almond milk yesterday and this time I added a teaspoon of vanilla, but prefer it plain. I’ve never been a fan of store bought almond milk, so when I made it the first time, I was surprised by how much better homemade is. I will try the cashew next week!
Holly says
Delicious, much more affordable than Blueprint and so easy to make! But…One cup of cashews has over 1,200 calories. How do we calculate the nutritional info? A 16 oz serving of Blueprint has 300 calories. Do you think they use fewer cashews?
Tori Avey says
I’m not sure how to calculate the calories Holly, but some of the solids do get strained out in the process so some calories are left behind with those.
Suzanne says
Hi Holly,
1/4 cup of cashews is only 200 calories, so using Tori’s recipe that would be only a total of 600 calories for the entire 3 cups of cashew milk. (less is you subtract for the milk solids you take out)
Khim says
Thanks – good to know the store bought ones may mix better because of addictives. I will keep experimenting till I get the right consistency.
Khim says
Hi Tori – I have another question about the separation of the milk from beverages like tea or coffee. When cow milk separates, it means it’s gone bad. My question is – is it ok to drink the cashew milk in chai when it separates? Is it because it’s not supposed to be heated to a boil? I find that when it’s cold it’s ok. Btw I just made my first cashew nut milk this morning – the plain taste is a good substitute for cow milk I have to say. If it’s safe to drink when it’s separated I would say it’s not a big problem. Thanks and love your site.
Tori Avey says
Hi Khim, in my experience homemade nut milks tend to separate even when they’ve just been freshly made, so I don’t think it’s a good gauge of whether the nut milk is good or bad. Nut milks are heavier and denser than regular milks, so they never mix in quite as smoothly unless they’ve been treated with additives like some store-bought nut milks are.
Elle says
I found that when you add half the water (2 cups water/ 1 cup soaked cashews) and blend first for a few minutes, then add the other half of the water (2 cups) and blend some more, you don’t need to strain. You end up with perfectly smooth milk this way..but you do need a good blender.
Barry says
Hello Tori,
I have started making cashew nut milk but have one problem with it.
I do strain it through a nut milk bag but when I add it to my coffee it separates out from the coffee within seconds and won’t stay mixed in.
Is this to be expected? I don’t understand why it won’t stay mixed in, in the same way that dairy milk does.
Regatds,
Barry
Tori Avey says
Hi Barry– nut milks do tend to separate when added to other beverages, particularly homemade nut milks. The particles that make up nut milk are larger than dairy milk particles, so some separation will always occur. If you’re looking for a product that won’t separate in your coffee, I recommend locating a good natural non-dairy creamer. I’ve had good luck with So Delicious Coconut Milk Creamer. Hope that is helpful!
Jeanne Petrus-Rivera says
Try it with a different brand of coffee. I think maybe the acidity has something to do with it. Sometimes mine separates out and sometimes it doesn’t. I’m always buying different types of coffee.
Karen says
What is the reason you soak? I throw almonds/cashews and water right in my vitamix get delicious milk. I never soak. Is that because it’s a vitamix? Also, I don’t strain my cashew milk. Again, maybe the vitamix does a better job blending it and doesn’t need straining? Although for sure, my almond milk needs it. (I’m lazy, so I’ve pretty much switched to cashew milk exclusively.) Thanks for the date idea for sweetness! Going to try that tomorrow!
Dani says
Soaking all tree nuts improves the amount of nutrition your body is able to absorb from the nut. For almonds especially, soaking also helps to release important enzymes prior to consumption that make digestion easier. By not soaking you’re decreasing the benefits, so always soak if you can! Happy milk making!