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GOING DAIRY-FREE
What can I use instead of milk?Soya milk is now widely available. You can buy it in supermarkets and health food shops and it is served in some cafés and restaurants. Soya milk tastes just like cows milk to some people, although others find it has a 'beany' aftertaste. There are a variety of different brands available and all taste slightly different. Provamel is the most popular brand. You can buy sweetened, unsweetened, concentrated, organic, long-life, vanilla flavoured and vitamin enriched. Try a range of brands to see which you prefer. If you find the slightly beany flavour hard to get used to at first try mixing it with a little cow's milk and weaning yourself onto it gradually. Most people find that once they have been using soya milk for a few months, cow's milk is impossible to go back to, as it begins to taste fatty and sour. As well as soya milk, you can buy rice milk, oat milk, pea milk and almond milk from health food shops. Rice milk has a thinner consistency and sweeter flavour than soya milk and does not really work in hot drinks, but it is excellent on its own or with breakfast cereals. Oat milk can be used in the same way as soya milk. Pea milk is sold under the brand name White Sun and has an unusual flavour which people have very divided opinions about. Almond milk is a new product which is gaining popularity. I'll miss cheese too much!Soya-based cheese alternatives are available from health food shops. The most popular brand is Cheezley, which melts slightly and is therefore good for cooking with. Vegetarian Parmezano is a powdered parmesan substitute, which tastes remarkably like the real thing. Soya cheeses have a similar flavour to Cheddar and Cheshire cheese, but are not quite as sweet or fatty and the texture is quite different, so many people prefer to use them grated. What about yoghurt?You can buy soya yoghurts from health food shops and some supermarkets. Alpro and Sojasun are natural yoghurts which come in plastic tubs and taste almost exactly the same as dairy yoghurt. Alpro is also available in fruit flavours, which are very popular. You can also buy several different brands of soya yoghurts in small foil-topped cartons, which come in a variety of flavours. Is plain chocolate vegan?Always check the ingredients as many brands contain butterfat or milk powder. To be absolutely sure that a brand is dairy-free, contact the manufacturer or refer to the Vegan Shopper (available in the online shop), because companies often use the same machinery to make milk and plain chocolate and so traces of dairy products can contaminate plain chocolate which is otherwise made to a vegan recipe. Continental plain chocolate is far more likely to be vegan than British brands. Is vegetable margarine vegan?Sadly, most of the big brands contain lactose or whey, which are both dairy-derived. However, the range of dairy-free margarines is growing and most supermarkets now stock their own dairy-free brands. The Pure brand of margarine is stocked in a wide range of shops. Health food shops generally stock several types of vegan margarines and low-fat spreads. How can I create dairy-free versions of my favourite foods?Soya milk, tofu, soya cheese, soya yoghurt, coconut milk, ground cashew nuts and yeast flakes can all be used creatively in your favourite recipes in place of milk and cheese. Custard can be made in the usual way with soya milk or rice milk, or buy a carton of Provamel vanilla soya dessert and use this as custard. Cheesecake filling can be made by blending together tofu, sugar, vanilla essence and fruit. Delicious vegan Ice Cream is made by several companies and is hard to distinguish from dairy ice cream. The Swedish Glace brand is particularly good. Mild curries like sag aloo can be given a creamy texture by cooking with vegetable ghee and adding soya yoghurt or coconut milk. Milky soups can be made with soya milk and spicy soups can be given a great flavour and texture with coconut milk. Milkshakes can be made by blending any milk-alternative with syrup, fruit or soya ice cream. You can also buy Provamel OY drinks in chocolate, strawberry and banana flavours from supermarkets and health food shops. You can even buy dairy-free fudge, nougat, coffee-whitener and pizzas! Giving up Dairy Products - Action Plan
Useful FactfilesHard copies of these are all available from Animal Aid for 30p each.
Useful Books
The books listed above are available from the Animal Aid online shop, along with an illustrated wipe-clean nutrition wall chart.
This book is available from bookshops and from the Vegan Society. Recipes to trySee our recipe collection for some delicious, easy-to-make, vegan recipes. |
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