5 Minute Dairy-Free Condensed Milk (Sugar-free Option)
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This recipe for Dairy-free Condensed Milk is a super simple recipe that's a great wholesome alternative to store-bought condensed milk, and you can even make it sugar-free/low-carb/keto. You'll love this for your dairy-free baking and recipes that call for condensed milk, and there are so many other ways to use it as well.
What's even better, I'm sharing a special version that you can make in just 5 minutes!
Why You'll Love This Recipe
You'll love this recipe for Dairy-free Condensed Milk because it's:
- frugal: much less expensive than buying canned vegan condensed milk.
- versatile: you can use whatever dairy-free milk and sweetener you like based on what you have available and whatever your dietary needs are.
- common ingredients: no need to shop for special ingredients. You likely have everything you need in your fridge and/or pantry.
- super fast: the 5 minute recipe is about as fast as it gets.
Ingredients
- coconut milk powder or coconut milk
- water
- sweetener
- vanilla extract (optional)
- salt (I recommend Real Salt)
- coconut oil or other suitable fat (optional)
If using stevia extract as your sweetener, these spoons are invaluable. The 2nd smallest is the size of a typical stevia scoop.
Recipe Notes and Substitutions
- Vitamix: I used my Vitamix to make this milk (here is a link to where to get it on Amazon). You will obviously get a smoother result by using a high-powered blender like the Vitamix. Now, this is not as creamy as the store-bought stuff, but with no 2-hour cooking time and the amount of money you can save, this completely fits the bill for me.
- Sweetener: You can use virtually any sweetener you want for this recipe depending on your dietary needs. Just keep in mind that some are not exactly a one for one substitute for sugar.
- Coconut Oil: You can add some coconut oil to either recipe to make it more creamy if you like. You can also use butter or a nut or seed butter. Of course butter has dairy in it so don't use it if you need this recipe to be vegan; however I prefer butter for this recipe. Lighter-colored nut butters like cashew will make a more appealing-looking final result.
Ways to Use This Recipe
- In desserts calling for condensed milk like dairy-free fudge.
- As a vegan coffee creamer or in tea-based drinks like this Caffeine-Free Chai Latte.
- As a super sweet drink. I know, it sounds crazy, but my oldest was drinking this stuff straight as I tested various versions.
- If you have any left, just thin it out with some water and use as a sweetened non-dairy milk drink.
- Add to lemonade or limeade to make Brazilian versions of these drinks.
- Add cocoa or carob to the thinned-out version and for Vegan chocolate or carob milk. Or add strawberry powder for a vegan strawberry milk!
More DIY Pantry Basics
– Powdered Sugar Substitute — so easy!
– Powdered Egg Replacer (like Ener-G) — works amazingly well in most everything!
– Homemade Sunflower Seed Butter — a great alternative to peanut butter!
– Homemade Vanilla Liquid Stevia — works great and is so inexpensive to make!
– Homemade Sugar-free Chocolate Chips — so much cheaper than buying them in the store. They're dairy-free too!
Dairy-Free Condensed Milk (including a 5 Minute Method)
Ingredients
5 Minute Blender Method
- 3 cups coconut milk powder
- 1 cup water
- 1/2 cup sweetener (or 1/8 teaspoon stevia extract. See post for options.)
- 2-4 tablespoons coconut oil (seed or nut butter can also be used)
- 1/16-1/8 teaspoon salt
- 1/8-1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract (optional, but recommended)
Stovetop Method
- 3/4 cup coconut milk
- 1/2 cup sweetener (or 1/8 teaspoon stevia extract. See post for options.)
- 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract (optional, but recommended)
- dash salt
- 3 tablespoons coconut oil (or other suitable fat – optional)
Instructions
Blender Method
- Place water, dairy-free milk powder, sweetener, salt, vanilla and coconut oil (if using) in blender.
- Blend until well combined.
Stovetop Method
- Place dairy-free milk in pan. Heat over low heat until simmering.
- Add sweetener and stir well. Heat until simmering.
- Reduce heat and simmer until it's a thick consistency like condensed milk.
- Add salt and vanilla, if using, and stir to combine.
Notes
- High-Speed Blender: I used my Vitamix to make this milk (here is a link to where to get it on Amazon). You will obviously get a smoother result by using a high-powered blender than a regular one.
- Sweetener: You can use virtually any sweetener you want for this recipe depending on your dietary needs.
- Coconut Oil: You can add some coconut oil to either recipe to make it more creamy if you like. You can also use butter or a nut or seed butter. Of course butter has dairy in it so don't use it if you need this recipe to be vegan, however I prefer butter for this recipe. Lighter-colored nut butters like cashew will make a more appealing-looking final result.
Nutrition
Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate only. It may vary depending on ingredient brands, substitutions, and preparation methods. Optional ingredients are not included. Net carbs are typically calculated by subtracting fiber and sugar alcohols (such as erythritol) from total carbohydrates. This information should not be relied upon for medical or nutritional purposes.
Excellent recipe/idea – How about using a slow cooker? Might that be easier energy wise? Just a thought…
Thanks!
Not sure – I’m thinking it won’t condense, would it? i think the condensing depends on an open pot. That’s why slow cookers use very little water since little escapes when cooking.
I just made consedensed milk in a crock pot using cashew milk and sugar. Super easy. Only trick is to leave the lid OFF the crock pot so that the moisture can escape and it can reduce. It had that thick, sweet, caramel quality that we want for making yummy desserts. Perfect.
YUM!!!
Thank you!!! been wanting something like this for awhile!!!! THANK YOU!!!
You’re welcome! Hope it works well for you!
Ok so it is 1.5 cups 1 tablespoon 1 1/4 teaspoons it is 🙂
For the RICE Milk Recipe
I need to put that on my blog next :). The r milk recipe I mean.
WHOA! Impossible I had a half way decent idea about all this stuff 🙂
Yes I see 100% what you are saying, probably will miss out on some of that caramelly taste. But I usually singe when playing around with milk and make it taste pretty bad lol
RICE MILK RECIPE:
Thank you for the info. Any guess how much less water? Maybe 2 1/3 cups less to make up for the 60% or am I getting the math wrong?
Maybe I will be confusing people and should put this on the rice milk page?
Well, if you’re reducing by 60% then you want 40% left so I’m thinking 1.6 cups or a little over 1 1/2. :). I usually burned the milk too. 🙂
Adrienne,
ANOTHER amazing inventive way to do things!
Thank you so much.
Adrienne, do you think it would be possible to make evaporated milk using your rice milk recipe BUT just use say 60% less water to begin with so it wouldn’t be necessary to simmer off the water?
Also leave out the optional sweetener and flavoring?
Thank you in advance!
Yes, I was thinking the same thing. I just haven’t been using much grain-based milks these days. I think there’s a different quality to it (perhaps the simmered version is a little richer and maybe a little “caramelly” from heating (especially if you singe it a bit :)), but overall, it’s the same.
I have a couple questions. 1)It looks like you do not strain the coconut meal out of the liquid or did I miss that? 2)When I make coconut milk, the fat comes to the top. I usually just use that in baking. Does this happen when you process the coconut this way? We like our coconut milk!
I don’t bother. I am just too busy. But you could. I think what comes to the top w/ this method is a tad different b/c of the absence of coconut water.
I love my Vita-mix and I never get tired of recipes using it! This is a great idea and I will have to try it out. Cheap and delicious, wins every time.
how long does this last before it goes bad?
Hmm… I don’t know. The sweetener used might preserve it a little but just don’t make too much. Or – you could freeze it and use in your hot drinks later 🙂
I don’t see how your stevia recipe can be right. Looking at the stevia that you said you used (in comments), it’s 4x the strength of sugar. But if you’re only using 10.5/32 tsp, it ends up being equivalent to 4/3 tsp of sugar. Which is nowhere NEAR the sweetness of the full-sugar version. Is there a stronger stevia from nunaturals that I don’t know about?
I am not sure what stevia you are referring to that is 4x the sugar sweetness – could you point me to that? Stevia extract is waaay sweetener than sugar so a teeny scoop is about 1 T. I find disagreement about the measurement of the scoop so that gets confusing.
https://nunaturals.com/product/157
if you read the “sweetness” sidebar it says that it’s about 4x the sweetness of sugar. I have bought and used a couple of their products reliably using their notes on the sweetness (including the liquid, but not powdered stevia). Are you saying that in your experience this product is much sweeter than reported (around the order of 100x the sweetness of sugar)?
I am sorry but I don’t know what sweetness sidebar you are referring to. Could you copy and paste what you are looking at or tell me what comment this is in? Thanks.
Sweetness of NuStevia White Stevia Powder
$9.99
This product is the dietary supplement form of Stevia. Maltodextrin is used to make it easier to use this product.
1/2 of a teaspoon of NuStevia White Stevia Powder will taste as sweet as 2 teaspoons of sugar.
4 tablespoons (24 packets) of NuStevia White Stevia Powder will be as sweet as 1 cup of sugar.
1 packet of NuStevia White Stevia Powder contains 1/2 of a teaspoon.
That’s a stevia blend – not a pure extract. Did I link up to that by accident in a comment? I typically only link to an extract unless there is a reason to.
oh. my b. i see the other one now. the site says 1/32 tsp=2 tsp of sugar, which would mean using 15.5 scoops, but do you think the stevia is stronger than that (where 1/32=1T)? does the stevia version taste just as sweet as the sugar version, or is it less sweet but you like it like that?
I tend to use stevia as 1 scoop = 2 T but I have seen other folks with different measurements. So honestly it is a puzzle to me. I tend to mix sweeteners b/c I think it tastes better that way :-).
Wow. Perfect timing on this. We tend to be mostly dairy free and I have another kid sensitive to bleached sugar…this is perfect for us. Thanks a million.