NOTE: Use this milk to make Creamy Peanut Curd!
Peanut milk is one of the cheapest dairy-free milks you can make at home. Plus it’s so easy to make! As simple as soak, blend, strain. Yay! Sounds too good to be true? You’re right; there *is* a catch—it has a very strong and peculiar peanutty smell! But wait… There *is* a solution too. Read on 🙂
The secret lies in the soaking technique.
The soaking technique used here is the same one used in my homemade soy milk recipe. The resultant milk is very smooth and creamy with just a barely-there peanutty flavor.
I generally use peanut milk in savory dishes like soups and milk-based gravies. It’s also awesome for making curd!
Peanut Milk
Preparation time: 15 minutes + soaking time
Yields: 4 cups (around 600 ml)
You need:
- 1 cup raw peanuts
- 4 cups water, plus more for soaking
- ½ lemon
- ½ teaspoon salt
Method:
1. Place the peanuts in a saucepan/kadhai and cover with water. Add salt, juice of 1/2 lemon + the squeezed out lemon peel and bring to a boil.
2. Boil for 2-3 minutes on high heat, uncovered. Turn off the heat and cover the saucepan. Keep aside for 4-5 hours*.
3. Discard the lemon peel. Drain & wash the peanuts well under running water.
4. Blend the peanuts with 1 cup of fresh water until smooth. Add the remaining three cups of water and blend again. You might have to do this in batches, according to the capacity of your mixer jar.
5. Line a colander with wet porous cotton cloth (or use double-filter) and strain the mixture through it. After straining for a couple of minutes, gather all the ends of the cloth together and twist until all the liquid is squeezed out. This will yield around four cups of milk. The residual pulp can be fed to dogs/cows/donkeys.
*Do this if you’re unable to use immediately after 4-5 hours: drain the soaking water and rinse well. Soak the peanuts in cool fresh water and refrigerate until you’re ready to proceed further.
Namaste, I'm Namrata :)
Glad to see you here at my little blog Of Donkeys & Dhokla which is all about living a happy & fulfilling life as a middle-class vegan in India.
Here you will find easy recipes and useful DIYs made with ingredients that are affordable and readily available.
Hello Namrata! I tried making this peanut milk and I was surprised by the consistency and color. It looks just like dairy milk. What amazed me the most was after cooking there was cream at the bottom of the pan. And the resulting milk was so creamy and tasty! Thanks for the easy recipe!
Hey Arushee 🙂 Thank you for your feedback, I’m so happy that you liked it!
hey, I make this mylk without lemon and salt (mentioned in the boiling part), which anyway gets rejected in your recipe. do you know what difference does it make to the outcome?
Hi Ketan! Adding the lemon juice and salt during the initial boiling stage helps reduce the typical “peanutty” flavor of the milk.
is soaking after boiling important??
Hi Aastha! The boiling helps soften the peanuts (and take off some of the “peanutty” smell) and further soaking softens them even more. If you don’t wish to soak, then simply boil for a bit longer to make the peanuts soft enough for milk extraction.
thankyou!!! this is very very helpful. Have a great day
🙂
Do try and let me know!
Hey! I’m going to try this, my milk and curd texture were amazing but we didn’t quite like the peanut flavor. Also, can i soak them overnight after the boiling process? Cz i like to usually make the milk first thing in the morning. Thanks!
Hi Vamsi 🙂
Glad to know you’re already making milk and curd with amazing consistency!
Yes, the boiling process with the lemon juice gets rid of most of the peanutty flavor. Do try!
If you want to soak overnight, then do this: let the water & peanuts cool down after boiling & keep it in the refrigerator overnight. Drain & rinse well in fresh water in the morning & extract milk!
Hi,Is there a way that I can use up this leftover Peanuts? Thank you
Hi! Feed the residual pulp to cows or donkeys, if possible. Since we have already extracted all the milk out of the peanuts, the pulp doesn’t really have much nutritional value left.
Can I use already soaked peanuts for this recipe? And then do the boiling and resting part?
Yes, you can. If you have already soaked it, then just boil it once and let it cool before extracting the milk. No need for the resting part in this case.
Just saw this recipe. I have been trying to make peanut curd. It turns bitter for me. Where am I going wrong?
Hmm… A few questions will help me understand your problem in a better way.
1. What starter are you using? If using chilli, there is a chance of the curd turning bitter.
2. The quality of the peanuts used also affects the curd’s flavor.
3. Peanut curd does have a peculiar flavor that takes time to get used to. Do try peanut-cashew curd and peanut-rice curd as mixing another ingredient with the peanut milk helps neutralize the flavor.
4. Is the consistency of your curd good? Over-fermentation also gives the curd an unpleasant taste.
Hi Namrata. I have tried this milk and was pleasantly surprised by the absence of the nutty flavour. I used it for my chai before setting the rest as curd. Could hardly make out the flavour.
Thanks for sharing this gem. ,,
Glad to know you liked it 🙂
Thanks for sharing your feedback!
For how long peanut curd will stay good in refrigerator for ??? Once I make it and keep it in refrigerator I don’t use it often 🥲
Will try this recipe, want to make superb curd 😍
Excited !!!!!❤
Hi Dhwani 🙂 Peanut curd stays good in the fridge for around a week. Keep it in an airtight container with the lid on. I make a big batch on Saturdays and use it for a week. Just make sure to keep it covered in a cold section of the fridge.