Vegans, the lactose intolerant, foodies, and health-nuts alike all know the struggle of finding delicious non-dairy food. It's especially tricky sometimes to find an allergen-friendly option that still tastes good and doesn't cost a lot more than all its other non-dairy competitors.
I've compiled a list of all the non-dairy beverages I have tried and will give a breakdown of the pro's and con's to each of them, i.e. why I like them or why I use them over another variety.
Also, this is a general note for those who are so often deceived by the "______ milk" nomenclature given to these drinks. There is no milk in any of these! They are simply called milks because we tend to use them as milk substitutes and they have similar consistencies.
Fun fact, in Spanish, they're not called milks. They're just called drinks, so this is how I tend to think of them in my head.
1. Oat Milk
Oat milk is easily my favorite non-dairy "milk." It's rich and creamy, just the right amount of sweet, and will forever remind me of Spain, where I discovered my enamor for this delicious liquid.
It's not high in protein or in fat. The only thing it has a lot of is fiber and carbs, which I guess you can expect considering it's made from oats. This is a good option for people who are allergic to nuts, dairy, or soy, but not for people who can't have gluten.
Oat milk is probably the best option in coffee, especially in iced coffee, mostly because it's a touch sweeter than all the other non-dairy milks I've had and has a subtle flavor of its own to compliment coffee beautifully, but, as I said, this is my favorite option of all of the ones I will list, so to me it's the best in everything (baking, cooking, coffee, cereal, dipping cookies, whatever you like milk-like products for).
If you're like me and struggle to find oat milk in grocery stores (a tragedy), here is a recipe to make your own! And another!
2. Almond Milk
Almond milk is a yummy, nutty option. It also tastes good in coffee, and, personally, I enjoy it in caramel and vanilla flavored coffees most. It's not tasteless (of course you can always get it in a flavored and/or sweetened version), but it's not an overpowering flavor.
Almond milk is an option for people who are allergic to soy or gluten (or dairy, duh) and is easy to find at most coffee shops and grocery stores.
It's shockingly low in calories, fat, and carbs, but it's very high in calcium.
3. Soy Milk
Soy milk is the easiest to find and usually the cheapest non-dairy option. It's available in lots of flavors and varieties, i.e. "light," sweetened, vanilla, chocolate, unsweetened. I find that it tastes okay, and I don't mind drinking it or using it when I can't find almond milk (or, *cries*, oat milk).
The qualm I have with soy is that, because tofu is also a soy product, it can be a bit of a soy overload. It's not recommended that vegans, like myself, get too much protein from one type of protein source.
However, one of my main reasons to promote soy milk is that it offers protein, and it's easy to find, so it's not a bad option. I just love my oat milk so much more.
It's also great in cereal and baking!
4. Coconut Milk
Coconut milk is thick, rich, creamy, and makes some really great ice cream and coffee creamer.
I usually find that it's almost always more expensive than other "milk" options, so it's rare that I put it in my shopping cart over almond milk. It has a few pro's to it, though, and those are that it's high in both B12 and calcium, two vitamins/minerals that the vegan diet tends to lack. But, it's also very high in saturated fat.
The most delicious non-dairy milk I ever, ever had was something I discovered at a grocery store in Spain. It was a mix of coconut and oat milk, and let me say I would happily shell out up to $8 to drink a glass of that stuff right now. The coconut flavor is usually pretty subtle unless it's sweetened, and due to the naturally sweet flavor of oat milk, it was highlighted wonderfully.
Seriously, I'm kind of drooling right now.
There we go! Four varieties of non-dairy milks that are good ideas in different ways. I'll probably always be partial to my oat milk, but I will happily drink any non-dairy milk I'm offered, but that's mostly because I'm not a picky eater. If it's vegan, I'm down for it!
Unless it's spicy. Then I don't want it.
