Soy, almond, rice milk... which one?
 

I really want to slow my intake of dairy products. So I was wondering which non-dairy milk was better- soy, almond, rice milk. Which one is better for our bodies and has the best flavor. Especially for coffee? I recently purchased the soy milk.. and I wasnt happy because I assumed (kicks myself) it was sugar free. But there was something like 8g of processed sugar. Can someone give me the healthiest/best tasting option pleeeeasse.

I generally buy unsweetened soy or almond milk. If you have a powerful blender, you can make almond milk fairly easily although I've never done it myself and tend to buy containers out of convenience.

I don't drink coffee but I tend to like almond milk the best.

ok. im going to purchase the unsweetened almond milk. I didnt know they sweetened the soy milk. I was upset haha.

Soya milk is cheapest, has the most variants (sweetened, unsweetened, forfitied with vitamins, flavoured etc.) and also the most protein. The sweetened varieties I've found have always been sweetened with apple juice, so I'm surprised to hear that yours had processed sugar, or that it had that much. My usual brand has 2.8g sugar per 100ml. Supermarket own brands are usually the cheapest. The flavour isn't usually all that fantastic (and varies - try different brands), but most people find it fine for most purposes, and some people really love it and will drink it straight from the carton. I find that it tastes odd in hot chocolate, where I prefer rice milk, and never saw the point of drinking it plain (apart from the chocolate version, which really is loaded with sugar). It tends to curdle more easily than dairy milk. With tea, give the water a minute to cool a little before adding it. With coffee, warm the soya milk before adding the water, say by putting the soya milk in the mug and then microwaving it for one minute. (However, coffee makes my nose peel, so I can't advise you about which plant milk tastes best with it.) With soup, I wouldn't recommend soya milk if you'e going to be reheating the soup, so if I'm making portions to freeze I use something else such as coconut milk.

I haven't tried almond milk as it's way out of my budget (I'm in the UK, less choice over here) but people speak well of it in terms of flavour. I don't think it's as nutritious. Other popular options are rice milk and oat milk, and you can even get things like hemp milk. Just try them individually, and if they don't work for you in one way, you may find they taste absolutely fine in another.

Anything else we can help with? Are you trying non-dairy yoghurts or ice-cream, for instance? The Uncheese Cookbook can be quite handy for making fake cheeses; I've not tried many yet, but her fake parmesan is one of my staples, I like doing variants on the fake ricotta, and I have a batch of fake feta in the fridge which has just finished marinading. Tofu is probably the ingredient she uses the most, almonds in various forms turn up a lot (say ground), cashew butter quite often, and things like nutritional yeast and miso for flavouring. If that's any help when you're thinking about flavour!

I'm guessing your Soy milk in the UK is cheaper here than in the US or maybe our almond milk is cheaper. It depends but generally, soy, almond and rice milk are all around the same price here. Hemp milk tends to be the most expensive. Generally our non-dairy milks are sweetened with cane sugar. I prefer unsweetened myself.

I'm soy sensitive, so although I used to enjoy it I don't drink it anymore. Rice milk I found to be to "thin" - kinda like non fat milk - and not so flavorful. So my current fav is unsweetened almond milk: creamy, nice flavor but not overwhelming and only 40 cals per cup. Occasionally for a treat I get unsweetened coconut milk - So Delicious brand. More calories (50 cals per cup), but thick and creamy and wonderful in coffee or on oatmeal -YUM!

I think the cheapest soya milk I buy is 88p a litre, for the nice stuff that's kept in the fridge, but the longlife stuff can be as little as 60p. Rice Dream is £1.28 per litre at Tesco, and almond milk is never under £3. I would absolutely love to have a greater selection of affordable plant milks available to me.

I find rice milk a bit thin and watery for general use as well too. As I said, it's lovely in hot chocolate, but I wouldn't bother with it for Béchamel sauce or what have you.

Personally, I like the taste of almond milk better than soy, an dI have never tried rice milk.

Unsweetened almond milk ROCKS! The only thing I use in my coffee now.

Wow Esofia! Name brand almond milk is about $2/liter here and I can get store brand for about $1.70. I did the conversion and $1.70 is about 1 pound (forgive me, I don't know how to do the character for it)

Yep, apparently you're better off modelling yourself on the Japanese or other cultures where they use soy in reasonable quantities. A block of tofu and the odd bit of soya milk in a week is fine and indeed good for you, but many people, especially Americans, are eating huge amounts of processed foods which contain soy, so if your soy levels are already too high for that reason, adding soy milk is not a good idea.

I use unsweetened almond milk as I can't have products with soy.

I don't like neither, so I drink So Delicious Vanilla Coconut Milk. It's YUM.

I ♥ Almond milk. I have it everyday! :D

I am going to buy unsweetened almond and coconut milk and try each individually... see which one works best for me. I have never tried miso... i tried tofu before and I REAALLYYY dont like it. I dont know if i would care for fake cheese. Main reason im trying other milks is coz I consume alot of coffee and I know thats alot of saturated fat (I believe saturated fat isnt good for weight loss + I dont want to drink my calories). However, I definitely am someone who is open to trying new things... especially if it contributes to weight loss :D.

Miso is nothing like either tofu or soya milk, just as soya sauce is nothing like them either, though they all come from the humble soya bean. Tofu can take a bit of getting used to, you need to know how to deal with it and it can be incredibly different depending on how it's prepared. Not that I'm trying to convert you, I doubt your life will suffer because you're not consuming tofu.

Have fun experimenting!

I avoid soy, so I've got no useful opinion on that.

I like almond milk a lot better than rice milk.

I use coconut milk a lot... not the watered-down kind in the carton meant for drinking, but the canned stuff in the Asian food aisles. You can use it to make a milk-like beverage (http://www.thenourishinggourmet.com/...ilk-tonic.html) but mainly I use it in cooking and desserts, or in my coffee or tea.

I tried hemp milk for the first time recently because I got a free carton - it was the vanilla flavored sweetened variety so OF COURSE it tasted delicious, lol, but the texture was also really nice. I don't even know if an unsweetened kind is readily available.

I got super excited when I saw this thread! Coconut milk! I didn't eat much dairy in the first place, but I can't go a day without vanilla coconut milk. Yes, the carton kind.

My breakfast: 2c spinach, 1c coconut milk, a handful of frozen strawberries. Blend and enjoy!

I also love coconut milk. I usually drink either that (in the shelf stable packaging) or almond milk (unsweetened).

I've gotten quite use to soy milk in the last year or so, but it was a process. My doctor instructed me to get as much soy as I can think to eat/drink, as I'm perimenopausal. I don't drink or eat a lot of it, but it is a good substitution for dairy milk. I am trying to wean off of dairy for the most part, especially butter . Oy...

I recently tried Coconut milk & it was too conconutty for me :) so I decided to try Almond milk & it's perfect! I love it!

I like unsweetened coconut (drinking) milk the best.

I truly enjoy almond milk, but I can't stand the Almond Dream brand. Ugh. I do enjoy soy milk, also, but it really depends on the brand. I've never tried coconut milk, but after this thread, I think I'm going to try some. I'm lactose intolerant, so new dairy replacement ideas are always welcome! :]

I think when it comes to taste everyone will have an opinion. I personally have tried Almond Milk and don't like it but I have fallen in love with Natura Organic Soy Milk. I buy the Tetra 3 packs (200ml each) in Vanilla, Chocolate and Strawberry and they are really yummy. You could even try the vanilla in your coffee as well I would guess.

love almond milk and coconut milk.. there is also hemp milk and Oat milk out there, have yet to try them..

I love almond milk. :)

I am going to try to make my own coconut milk... I like the nourishing gourmet. I love making my own stuff :D.

I drink the Trader Joe's brand boxed unsweetened vanilla almond milk. If I have a big sweet tooth then sometimes I will get a carton of the SilkPureAlmond dark chocolate. I don't really care for soy milk. I get really bad stomach aches every time I try it, so I don't anymore.

I like the Silk brand of unsweetened almond milk. I agree with Ange Says Rawr, the Almond Dream isn't as good.

Nut milks are super easy to make. You just soak raw nuts and then blend them. Cashew milk is yummy. Especially with a vanilla bean added. You do need a good blender to use the vanilla bean though.

All that said, I have no idea how any of these would be in coffee. I prefer my coffee black and from a French press. I'm a coffee snob! :)

I use 1/2 cup of unsweetened vanilla almond milk in my iced coffee every morning. I think it tastes great and it saves me money and calories not having to go to a coffee shop to get my morning fix!

I'm another unsweetened almond milk fan. I put it in my coffee whenever I am home in the mornings. It only has 35 calories!

I was a cow milk drinker up until a few months ago. Then I switched, mainly because I was trying to reduce my calories. I texted my friend who has been trying to get me to switch for years and said " you have converted me to almond milk" and he said "oh no! how will I ever hug you again!" hahaha anyways this thread made me think of that :)

I seen people doing that on TV... wouldn't almonds blended to make milk be high in fat and calories? Compared to the commercial almond milks only being about 35 calories.

None of the above! Coconut milk! YUM.

just trying coconut milk for the first time today. omg it is like a desert! (I added some splenda lol)

I am an unsweetened almond milk girl. I have never tried coconut milk, I think I better. lol

I like Blue Diamond unsweetened vanilla almond breeze, and unsweetened almond coconut breeze the best. So good!

I mix both almond and coconut milk together. Yummy !

I tried soy milk years ago and thought it was gross. However, my roommate drinks unsweetened almond milk. I gave it a try and couldn't believe how yummy it is for only 35 calories. I'm a convert too! Mmmmm...

I really like Almond milk.. You can get sweetened or unsweetened. Even vanilla flavored. I've tried soy milk, but I'm not a big fan of the flavor..

I use unsweetened vanilla almond milk or unsweetened plain almond milk. Soy milk is a little too gritty for my taste and rice milk is very thick/sweet.