How to avoid (plant-based) milk waste

[corajanemeade]

when i buy plant-based milk, as I am the only one in my house that drinks it, I never finish it before it goes out of date.

I use it in oats, tea, smoothies etc. but i don't use it all. Does anyone have suggestion on what milk lasts the longest and what to do with leftovers, can you freeze it for example and how long to they actually last as i am never sure if it has fully go off!

 

[shyvas]

when i buy plant-based milk, as I am the only one in my house that drinks it, I never finish it before it goes out of date.

I use it in oats, tea, smoothies etc. but i don't use it all. Does anyone have suggestion on what milk lasts the longest and what to do with leftovers, can you freeze it for example and how long to they actually last as i am never sure if it has fully go off!

I freeze it in small containers and use it for either making smoothies, soups or as a binding agent.

 

[Emma JC]

when i buy plant-based milk, as I am the only one in my house that drinks it, I never finish it before it goes out of date.

I use it in oats, tea, smoothies etc. but i don't use it all. Does anyone have suggestion on what milk lasts the longest and what to do with leftovers, can you freeze it for example and how long to they actually last as i am never sure if it has fully go off!

welcome to the forum!

even with two people I have a similar issue and I find that it actually lasts longer, in the fridge, then the date may imply

we buy the shelf stable 1 quart (946 ml) and it can last us 10 days or more - I double check if it has gone off by pouring a small amount into the sink, before I use it, and if it looks all smooth and smells good, then I use it, if it looks "piecey" or separates from itself in the sink, then I no longer use it - I never buy the larger refrigerated 1.75 litres as we would never use it up, in time, unless I was doing a ton of baking (and that rarely happens)

Emma JC

 

[corajanemeade]

I freeze it in small containers and use it for either making smoothies, soups or as a binding agent.

ThanksI think i will try that!
Do you have any tips on how you freeze and defrost it? particularly how to you prevent it separating when it defrosts as I have read elsewhere it does not freeze very well?

 

[corajanemeade]

welcome to the forum!

even with two people I have a similar issue and I find that it actually lasts longer, in the fridge, then the date may imply

we buy the shelf stable 1 quart (946 ml) and it can last us 10 days or more - I double check if it has gone off by pouring a small amount into the sink, before I use it, and if it looks all smooth and smells good, then I use it, if it looks "piecey" or separates from itself in the sink, then I no longer use it - I never buy the larger refrigerated 1.75 litres as we would never use it up, in time, unless I was doing a ton of baking (and that rarely happens)

Emma JC

Thank you, I think because i am new to using it i'm not sure what smell/consistency it is supposed to have but i will give this a go next time!

 

[shyvas]

ThanksI think i will try that!
Do you have any tips on how you freeze and defrost it? particularly how to you prevent it separating when it defrosts as I have read elsewhere it does not freeze very well?

Just like any other product. If you plan to make a smoothie or milk shake and if you have a powerful blender, you don't need to defrost it;

 

[Lou]

Well to me the solution is obvious. Drink more milk. There are so many benefits to plant milk. Especially soy milk. I live by myself and will drink over a gallon a week.
I start off each day with a hot cup of hot chocolate. then I usually use a cup when making breakfast. And another cup as an afternoon snack (with cookies). and at night I might make a smoothie for dessert.
Once a week I buy 2 half gallons. (one chocolate and one vanilla) I also keep some plain quart-size shelf-stable containers in the cupboard in case I run out.
One strategy that works well is to order the shelf-stable quart-size containers online. You can get a pretty good price online. I haven't fully researched this but my sister thinks that this might be the best deal on Amazon.

Amazon.com: Signature Organic Soymilk, Vanilla, 24-Pound : Iijima Naoko, Hara Sachie, Sato Koichi, Tamaki Hiroshi, Mori Kumiko, Sakaguchi Kenji, Terajima Susumu, Morooka Moro: Grocery & Gourmet Food

Amazon.com: Signature Organic Soymilk, Vanilla, 24-Pound : Iijima Naoko, Hara Sachie, Sato Koichi, Tamaki Hiroshi, Mori Kumiko, Sakaguchi Kenji, Terajima Susumu, Morooka Moro: Grocery & Gourmet Food

smile.amazon.com

According to the comments, there is even a better price at Cosco.

As long as you have a cup a day you should get thru almost a half gallon a week. 8oz times 7 days is 56oz. And it stays good in the frig for over a week.

If that doesn't work just buy it in the quart size. even if the quarts are a little more expensive - at least you are not going to waste any.

 

[rogerjolly]

I find that it actually lasts longer, in the fridge, then the date may imply

Never were truer words spoken.

Best before dates are really there just for the protection of the retailer against complaints.

I often have green grapes (which I cut into small pieces) on my breakfast porridge or cereal. And I have no problem using them up to two weeks after their best before dates.

These dates are taken far too seriously by far too many people leading to far too much needless waste. Let me tell you a related true tale. Someone I once knew had double glazed windows fitted. When ten years had elapsed she wanted to replace them because they were no longer under warranty.

Roger.

 

[silva]

I sometimes freeze plain soy milk and it dethaws just as it was fresh. I buy the carton and will just put it in the freezer.

 

[SuicideBlonde]

Did not know you could freeze it. Thanks. I hardly ever use it at all, mostly baking or cooking as, I don't really drink it.

 

[Lou]

I sometimes freeze plain soy milk and it dethaws just as it was fresh. I buy the carton and will just put it in the freezer.

at first i was really excited to learn this. but then i realized that I don't have room for much soymilk in the frezzer. Maybe one or two glasses. and i drink that much every day anyway.

 

[Danielle]

When I do stuff like cereal and protein shakes, I find it all too easy to use the milk before it goes bad, even multiple cartons. I got 4 in the fridge right now, I almost finished one of them in 2 days. I go by smell and not the expiration date, if it smells good it's good.
I guess I had an occasional carton go bad, but that's rare. That's when I knew we got too much milk for the week.

 

[Urban Gardener]

I would try to use more of it. Suggestions: pancakes, French toast, hot chocolate, chocolate milk (add chocolate syrup), coffee drinks, cereal and oatmeal obviously. There are a lot of options.

 

[houseunderpool]

Especially soy milk.

I thought we have to be careful of our soy intake. I already eat a lot of soy curls, vegan meats, etc...I am getting soy almost near daily and worried.

 

[Urban Gardener]

I thought we have to be careful of our soy intake. I already eat a lot of soy curls, vegan meats, etc...I am getting soy almost near daily and worried.

It's hard to tell because a lot of the pro-soy and anti-soy material comes from a marketing perspective.

Here's an article that attempts to be neutral on the subject:

Straight Talk About Soy

The Takeaway: Soy is a unique food that is widely studied for its estrogenic and anti-estrogenic effects on the body. Studies may seem to present conflicting conclusions about soy, but this is larg…

www.hsph.harvard.edu

I think the main takeaway is that no one food should be eaten to excess. We benefit from having a variety of different foods in our diets.

I think one would need to be eating a lot of soy for the compounds mentioned to have a noticeable effect.

It's also probably healthier than a lot of the foods and other edibles than most Americans eat excessively - high fructose corn syrup, food coloring, animal products tainted by drugs and pesticides, refined flour, corn starch, food additives, etc.

The anti-soy material rarely compares it to the foods that people are generally eating less or giving up of when they switch to it.

The plant estrogens are interesting, but how do their risks compare to those of hormone-based medicines that are commonly perscribed, such as birth control and HRT? Those drugs come with similar risks, and yet this is rarely mentioned because so many people have benefitted from them AND because there is already some ideological opposition to concepts like birth control and medical gender affirmation. It's hard to acknowledge the risks of exogenous hormone products without also giving ammo to those who disagree with people's rights to use contraception or to medically affirm their gender. That's a challenge we need to overcome - just by existing, those who advocate those kinds of views are making it harder for us to have nuanced conversations about important medical topics - the pro's and con's of different options. (Estradiol products have valuable uses but also raise your risk for some health conditions.)

That's a big topic, but I think soy estradiols probably have a much weaker effect on the body than the hormonal contraceptives that are so widely perscribed (or else there wouldn't be so many vegetarian and vegan parents). Just to add perspective. If hormonal birth control was as dangerous as soy is said to be, we'd know about it by now. This makes me skeptical of the anti-soy perspective.

Most foods have something weird about them. If strawberries became a staple product, we'd all be learning about the downsides of excessive strawberry consumption.

Just alternate between vegan meats that are soy-based and those that aren't, try different kinds of plant milks, etc.

 

[Lou]

I thought we have to be careful of our soy intake. I already eat a lot of soy curls, vegan meats, etc...I am getting soy almost near daily and worried.

We do need to limit our soy intake. According to the experts, you should not have more than 5 servings of soy a day.

-https://nutritionfacts.org/2013/02/19/how-much-soy-is-too-much/

 

[silva]

We do need to limit our soy intake. According to the experts, you should not have more than 5 servings of soy a day.

-https://nutritionfacts.org/2013/02/19/how-much-soy-is-too-much/

The link was broken so here-

How Much Soy Is Too Much? | NutritionFacts.org

To maintain the low IGF-1 levels associated with a plant-based diet, one should probably eat no more than 3-5 servings of soy foods a day.

nutritionfacts.org

3-5 servings, a serving being a half cup of beans, tofu or tempeh, seems pretty reasonable to me. The reason being that eating more negates the positive affects, not that it's like "bad"
I was just at Trader Joes and again, they were out of their shelf stable soy milk! . Last time I went I asked before waiting in line, and now I wish I'd gotten more. This time I needed more things from them so I waited about 30 minutes .

Has anyone used soy milk powder? I'm thinking of ordering this one. I want to make soy milk mostly, but sometimes use soy milk for other things. I have no desire to make my own anymore-and homemade never makes thick yogurt for me

Amazon.com: Now Foods Organic Soy Milk Powder, 20 oz : Grocery & Gourmet Food

Amazon.com: Now Foods Organic Soy Milk Powder, 20 oz : Grocery & Gourmet Food

smile.amazon.com

 

[Lou]

@silva
I have never had powdered soy milk. 50 years ago at summer camp all we had was powdered milk and I hated it and haven't had it since. Maybe you can get a taste test and let us know. but I hesitate to buy some.

------

As I mentioned earlier in this thread my sister buys boxes of shelf-stable one-quart vanilla soy milk on Amazon. At $24 a box - that is $2 per quart. At my local supermarket, a half-gallon costs $4, so it is the same cost.

On Amazon, they also have Silk Unsweetened at the same cost.
Just six per box. But just $12

Amazon.com: Silk Unsweetened Organic Soymilk, 32-Ounce Aseptic Cartons (Pack of 6) : Grocery & Gourmet Food

Amazon.com: Silk Unsweetened Organic Soymilk, 32-Ounce Aseptic Cartons (Pack of 6) : Grocery & Gourmet Food

smile.amazon.com

My pantry is pretty full right now but as soon as I make some room, I'm going to buy a box of Silk. For my emergency reserves.

When I go to Trader Joes I usually buy two of their shelf-stable quarts. and they go for almost as much as the half-gallon.

In the Amazon comments one commenter said they prefer the flavor of Silk's Very Vanilla to the Kirkland. But I had the Kirkland this morning. And now with my taste buds working, I can say it tastes pretty good.

another Amazon commenter said the boxes are just $11 at Costco. but someone else said that Cosco doesn't have them anymore.

It might be worth checking the big stores out.

 

[silva]

@silva
I have never had powdered soy milk. 50 years ago at summer camp all we had was powdered milk and I hated it and haven't had it since. Maybe you can get a taste test and let us know. but I hesitate to buy some.

------

As I mentioned earlier in this thread my sister buys boxes of shelf-stable one-quart vanilla soy milk on Amazon. At $24 a box - that is $2 per quart. At my local supermarket, a half-gallon costs $4, so it is the same cost.

On Amazon, they also have Silk Unsweetened at the same cost.
Just six per box. But just $12

Amazon.com: Silk Unsweetened Organic Soymilk, 32-Ounce Aseptic Cartons (Pack of 6) : Grocery & Gourmet Food

Amazon.com: Silk Unsweetened Organic Soymilk, 32-Ounce Aseptic Cartons (Pack of 6) : Grocery & Gourmet Food

smile.amazon.com

My pantry is pretty full right now but as soon as I make some room, I'm going to buy a box of Silk. For my emergency reserves.

When I go to Trader Joes I usually buy two of their shelf-stable quarts. and they go for almost as much as the half-gallon.

In the Amazon comments one commenter said they prefer the flavor of Silk's Very Vanilla to the Kirkland. But I had the Kirkland this morning. And now with my taste buds working, I can say it tastes pretty good.

another Amazon commenter said the boxes are just $11 at Costco. but someone else said that Cosco doesn't have them anymore.

It might be worth checking the big stores out.

SIlk has added ingredients--all of them! I can't use that for good yogurt
I get a quart of TJ's soy milk for $1.99
At Walmart they have Westsoy half gallon beans&water for $4, but the last couple times I went there they didn't have them. I could order online, or go to the super walmart I guess. Maybe that's what I'll do. Geez it's a big store though! I just want the soy milk. It does cost more to order online for pick up...A 12 pack of quarts is $36, so a dollar more a quart? Nah, if I don't go I'll try the powder. I am curious how it tastes, it got mostly good reviews

 

[Lou]

SIlk has added ingredients--all of them! I can't use that for good yogurt
I get a quart of TJ's soy milk for $1.99
At Walmart they have Westsoy half gallon beans&water for $4, but the last couple times I went there they didn't have them. I could order online, or go to the super walmart I guess. Maybe that's what I'll do. Geez it's a big store though! I just want the soy milk. It does cost more to order online for pick up...A 12 pack of quarts is $36, so a dollar more a quart? Nah, if I don't go I'll try the powder. I am curious how it tastes, it got mostly good reviews

I was walking home and passed by Trader Joe's and there was no line out front. So there were a few things I needed and I went in. They had NO soy milk in the refrigerated section. I asked. supplier issues.

They did have the shelf-stable quarts. I don't know if it was my memory playing tricks on me or if TJs lowered their price but they were only $1.79 a quart. I bought 4.