Super Creamy Cashew Rice Milk
While I was in Mexico I discovered a vegan horchata, and it was a game changer. Creamy, rich and sweet it ticked all my boxes. Try this unbelievably creamy cashew rice milk and fall in love!
I’ll be honest, plant based milk has never been my thing, I have always found them really unappealing and watery.
As a private chef I have been noticing a lot more of my clients requesting plant based menus for our events so I have been toying around with this problem for a while. Almond milk is definitely one of the better ones, but if you are trying to cut down on animals products for environmental reasons (like I am) almonds are a pretty unsustainable and pesticide heavy crop. Plant based milks can also tend to be rather expensive, at least in South Africa, as many of them are imported.
If you are reading all of this and thinking “SAME!” then good news, after about 15 iterations I made a plant based milk that pulled me back to that magical horchata moment in Mexico. It’s simple to make, requiring a few hours to soak, super creamy and made with 5 ingredients.
What makes it different?
The secret to this quick, 5 ingredient recipe is a blend of ingredients that together are greater than the sum of their parts.
Soaked rice creates a milky, neutral base, which forms the foundation for other flavors to shine through. A couple of soaked cashews give the final product a mouth feel akin to dairy milk, and dates and a pinch of salt round everything off nicely.
The best part? Unlike many homemade milk alternatives, this one is oil free and heats really well!
If you try this recipe, let us know how it goes! Leave a comment, rate it, and don’t forget to tag your photo #theculinarycartel on Instagram so we can see what you come up with. Happy cooking!
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I make this using other nuts?
You can replace the raw cashews for raw macadamias. Other nut varieties are more fibrous. Once soaked cashews and macadamias, will blend into a smooth cream. This gives our “milk” its creamy texture.
Super Creamy Cashew Rice Milk
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- Author: Jess Bunn
- Total Time: 3 hours 10 minutes
- Yield: 1.5 Litres
- Diet: Vegan
Description
While I was in Mexico I discovered a vegan horchata, and it was a game-changer. Creamy, rich and sweet it ticked all my boxes. Try this unbelievably creamy cashew rice milk and fall in love!
Ingredients
- 1 cup uncooked long-grain white rice
- 1L water
- 90g raw cashews
- 2–3 medjool dates (about 12g)
- 1 tsp vanilla (optional)
- pinch of salt (to taste)
Instructions
- In the jug of a high-speed blender, add the rice and water.
- Blend on high until the rice has broken up into 1mm little pieces (be careful not to over-blend or it’s hard to strain). Leave the rice to soak for 3 hours.
- While the rice is soaking, place the cashews in a bowl and cover with cold. Set aside in the fridge until later.
- When the rice is done soaking, pass the liquid through a fine-mesh sieve and add the milky water back to the blender. Discard the rice.
- Drain the water from the cashews and add them to the blender, along with the dates and vanilla.
- Blend on high for about 2 minutes or until the cashews and dates are completely blended into the rice milk.
- Turn off the blender and dip in a spoon to taste the milk. Add a small pinch of salt, then give the mixture a few more pulses with the blender to mix in the salt. At this point taste again, and feel free to add more vanilla and dates if you prefer sweeter milk.
- Once blended simply strain the cashew rice milk through a nut milk bag, or an old clean t-shirt, and pop it in the fridge. You might be left with a little cashew residue in the bag after straining. This stuff is golden! Spread it all over your toast, add a few slivered almonds and thank me later.
- The milk will naturally separate a little, so before you use it, just give the bottle a little shake.
- Your milk will last about 6 days.
Serving suggestion:
- For the ultimate iced coffee, pour one shot of Nespresso Scuro over ice, before adding maple syrup to taste, a few drops of vanilla (optional) and a few glugs of your ultra-creamy cashew rice milk. SWOON!
- Prep Time: 10 Minutes
- Soaking time: 3 hours
- Method: Blender
- Cuisine: Vegan
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1.5 Litres
- Calories: 1225.24kcal
- Sugar: 12.71g
- Sodium: 189.35mg
- Fat: 42.95g
- Saturated Fat: 8.57g
- Unsaturated Fat: 32.35g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 186.36g
- Fiber: 5.91g
- Protein: 27.19g
- Cholesterol: 0mg