I grew up suspicious of dairy milk. Like so many Chinese families, my parents and I almost always drank soy milk for breakfast. We werenโt lactose intolerant. We didnโt think soy milk had any magical benefits. We just knew it tasted best, especially when hot and freshly ground, like coffee. (Yes, at 8 years old, I was already a snob about non-dairy milks. No, I didnโt grow up in Brooklyn!)
Nowadays, Iโm more tolerant of the various types of milk out there. But I still drink non-dairy milks just for the tasteโand Iโm obsessed with trying out all the nutty, beany blends and origins. After a lifetime of playing soy sommelier, Iโve homed in on the best non-dairy milksโnot based on alleged health properties or sustainability claims, but purely on taste. I canโt compare apples almonds and oranges oats, so Iโve named the best non-dairy milk for lattes, cereal, smoothies, and all our other favorite ways to drink mylks, malks, and mรผlks.
The Best Milk for Lattes
This faintly tastes likeโฆchocolate. Iโm not kidding. Sproudโs Original Pea Milk does not taste like peasโinstead, it has a vaguely bittersweet aftertaste that kind of reminds me of cacao. For some, it might be a little unusual to drink on its own, but Iโve discovered that a warm cup of coffee plus splashes of pea milk tastes almost like mocha, or at least like someoneโs gently whispered the word โmochaโ into the drink while brewing it. Itโs nice.
The Best Milk for Smoothies
Milk goes in smoothies and hemp seed goes in smoothies, so Good Mylkโs Hemp Mylk is a double whammy. It tastes strong and earthy and really rich when blended with cacao powder, bananas, dates, and honey. The brand actually provides the milk as a concentrate (in a bag, fun) that you stir into water, so itโs a DIY hemp milk. Iโve found this quasi-homemade version to taste a bit textured and gritty, but Iโm the kind of person who likes orange juice crammed with pulp, so I enjoy it.
The Best Milk for Drinking in a Whole Damn Glass
Wow, Minor Figuresโs Barista Oat. I could drink a bathtub of it. How does water and oats taste like this??? Its texture is so creamy, and it tastes like cowโs milk amped up with a hint of natural sweetness. Iโve maniacally added this to everything, including coffee, cereal, and tea. At one point I found myself drinking more coffee just so I could drink more of this milk and realized that was a very bad way to be. Then I realized I could just drink the milk all by itself, and my life has never been the same since.
The Best Milk for Dunking Cookies
Willaโs Creamy Oat Milk features whole grain oats, so itโs full of protein and fiber and light on sugarโone cup includes fewer than three grams. And because it uses the whole oat, itโs also zero waste! Drink this oat milk to feel like a good person. As for its taste, the mouthfeel is super smooth and creamy, and because itโs less sweet than other oat milks, Iโve discovered itโs perfect for dunking Oreos, chocolate chip cookies, and any funky sugary cookies left over from the holidays (okay, maybe not the last one if you want to live).
The Best Milk for Oatmeals
This is rich and nutty and transforms a regular bowl of oatmeal into an enigmatic dish layered with flavor and secrets. I like adding almonds and all sorts of nuts to my oatmeal or muesli, so Elmhurstโs Unsweetened Milked Almonds brings me halfway there. I top my bowl with extra nuts and berries so Iโm basically eating trail mix for breakfast. Like Willaโs, Elmhurstโs production process is also zero waste.
The Best Milk for Cereals
This is the OG. Silkโs Organic Unsweetened Soy Milk is the non-dairy milk I grew up drinking, and at this point, itโs a comfort bev. It doesnโt have fancy packaging or ingredients, but itโll always be there for me. I donโt eat cereal that much, but when I do have a bowl of Kashi or Cinnamon Toast Crunch (more likely the latter tbh), this milk completes it. It tastes very mild and very creamy and very nostalgic. When I just want a taste of home, this is the one.
