Almond Milk Vs. Rice Milk

While cow's milk has been a staple food traditionally, more and more people are saying goodbye to cow's milk these days. Some of the possible causes that force people to look for other substitutes are high fat content in cow's milk, lactose intolerance and possibility of contamination.

Besides, vegans cannot drink cow's milk as it is derived from an animal source. While soy milk has been considered as a popular dairy substitute, almond milk and rice milk are emerging as other healthy cow milk substitutes.

Almond milk and rice milk are greatly popular amongst the vegan community. However, before you pick either of these as a staple food for your family, it is a must that you educate yourself regarding the nutritional content in almond milk and rice milk.

Almond milk is made by soaking almonds, boiling, skinning and then making a paste of them in a blender. Another recipe involves making a fine powder of almonds and then mixing it with water to get the desired consistency of milk. You may have to strain the liquid to remove skin and chunks of nuts.

As the recipe is pretty simple, you can even try making almond milk at home. However, the milk that you make at home will be low in nutrients as commercially manufactured almond milk is sometimes fortified with vitamins and minerals.

Rice milk is made from short grain, refined brown rice. Rice is first boiled and then blended with water to make a fine paste. A sweetener in the form of sugarcane juice, rice sweetener or any natural sugar is added to rice milk. Rice milk is fortified with vitamin D, calcium, etc.

Almond milk has a thicker, creamier consistency that is more or less same as that of cow's milk. Rice milk, on the other hand, is translucent with the consistency of water.

Sometimes, natural thickeners like tapioca or carrageenan are often added to rice milk to make its consistency equivalent to that of cow's milk. However, these thickeners can be unhealthy, hence avoid those brands of rice milk which use any natural or artificial thickeners.

Almond milk has a delicious nutty taste, whereas rice milk is slightly sweet to taste. Neither of them have a taste close to cow's milk. Besides, both almond milk and rice milk are available in various flavors such as vanilla, chocolate, etc. You can also buy plain or unsweetened almond milk.

Rice milk is essentially a carbohydrate and has no nutritional content unless fortified with vitamin D, calcium, etc. It contains about 14% rice while the rest is water. It is very low in proteins and calories. Almond milk, on the other hand, is rich in various minerals and vitamins that are naturally present, hence needs little or no fortification.

Even with only 7% almonds in almond milk, it contains a range of vitamins and minerals such as magnesium, selenium, manganese, potassium, fiber, iron, zinc, phosphorous, calcium and vitamin E. It also contains sufficient amount of proteins and fats. About 31% of calories in almond milk come from fats.

Both these milk substitutes can be used in a variety of baked goods and desserts. Due to their characteristic flavors, they are not suited for making salty or spicy recipes.

Rice milk is a great dessert ingredient, while almond milk is ideal for smoothies due to its creamy texture. Almond milk cannot be used for breakfast cereal due to its nutty flavor, while the runny consistency of rice milk deters you from putting it in your cereal.

Rice milk is ideal for those with lactose intolerance and allergy to nuts. While both these milk substitutes can provide nutrition to some extent, they cannot replace cow's milk completely. Hence, switch to these varieties only if you have a strong reason to do so.