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What can you use as a substitution for evaporated milk?

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Have you ever picked a recipe that called for evaporated milk but you didn’t have any in the pantry? Don’t despair! Here are some great substitutions for evaporated milk.

Bottle of milk with text overlay.

Trying to bake or make your favorite creamy dish and discover that you are out of canned evaporated milk? The good news is that there are many options you can use to replace evaporated milk in your baking and cooking.

For others avoiding dairy is for health and wellness reasons. There are some great non-dairy substitutions for evaporated milk that anyone can use.

Dairy substitutes for evaporated milk

Powdered milk

Powdered milk is a great alternative to evaporated milk and is best kept on hand at all times to work for nearly any milk substitute you find yourself in need of to replace evaporated milk with powdered milk mix 1 cup powdered milk to 1 cup water. Blend well and let sit to endure any lumps and have a moment to soak before mixing again.

This thick and creamy milk mixture will work in place of your evaporated milk. Use this in an ounce by ounce substitution.

Heavy cream

Heavy cream is a great fresh alternative to evaporated milk. Its thick and creamy texture will help give your favorite dishes that thickened cream taste and texture they get from evaporated milk.

This is the perfect substitution for evaporated milk in creamy sauces, gravy, and cheesy dishes. You can substitute heavy cream for evaporated milk in equal proportions.

So just use 1 cup of heavy cream for every cup of evaporated milk called for in a recipe.

Half and half

Another great option running around in your refrigerator to use as a substitution for evaporated milk is half and half. This mix of milk and cream will give you the creamy texture you are looking for.

For some recipes, you may need to add an extra ounce or two when using half and half as a substitute and then cook it down a bit for a creamier flavor. This may be required for baking recipes where the liquid content is really important to the final results.

For most recipes, you can use 1:1 swap for evaporated milk. This works well in soups, sauces, and other recipes that can be cooked down to the desired consistency or where liquid is an integral part of the recipe.

Non Dairy alternatives to evaporated milk

Coconut milk

Not everyone can use dairy in their cooking for health or diet reasons. Canned coconut milk is thick and creamy and makes the perfect substitute for evaporated milk in anything that can easily hide or blend with the flavor.

This will give you the closest non dairy option for the texture of your foods but it may lead to a nutty taste that may not go well with everything. You can substitute this in equal amounts to the evaporated milk that is called for in the recipe.

Almond milk

Almond milk is a very popular dairy supplement that thickens up when cooked down. Add a couple of extra ounces and cook down your creamy sauces for the closest texture to evaporated milk.

If you are baking with it you can use almond milk as a substitute for evaporated milk in a 1 to 1 ratio by the ounce.

Oat milk

Oat milk is one of the healthiest milk alternatives and is quickly cooked down to give you the thickened taste and texture you desire from evaporated milk with more protein and no dairy. For most recipes, you can use a 1 to 1 ratio but for thickened sauces, you may want to add another couple ounces to allow for a thick and creamy texture when the liquid cooks out.

What evaporated milk substitutions have you tried? You can try some of these in place of evaporated milk in my creamy rice pudding recipe.

Or if you have extra evaporated milk, but no cream, try making whipped cream from evaporated milk.

Have you ever picked a recipe that called for evaporated milk but you didn't have any in the pantry? Don't despair! Here are some great substitutions for evaporated milk.

Please share

Lovely

Tuesday 3rd of August 2021

Thank you for sharing these alternatives! xoxo Lovely