Rice Milk is suitable for those intolerant to lactose or cow’s milk. It contains twice as many vitamins as cow’s milk and less fat than soya milk. Rice Milk is high in fibre so helps to lower cholesterol and keeps blood sugar levels constant.

Although Rice Milk is now widely available in supermarkets and health food shops, at £1.55 per litre it is an expensive option. Making it yourself is simple and cheap and it tastes delicious.

You will need a blender and mesh strainer (a conical sieve is ideal) and Kilner or Mason jars or other glass storage jars with a seal.

Ingredients

200g (7oz/1 cup) uncooked organic long grain brown rice

1800ml (3pts/8 cups) filtered water plus further water for blending

Pinch of sea salt

Method

1.Wash the rice thoroughly.

2.Bring the water to the boil in a large saucepan.

3.Add the rice, cover and simmer for 3 hours. Add the salt.

4.Half-fill your blender with the rice mixture and top up with water. Blend until very smooth and pour into a large jug.

5.Repeat until all the rice mixture and water has been blended.

6.Strain the mixture twice through a fine mesh strainer into glass storage jars, screwing the lids on good and tight. Refrigerate.

Tester’s Tips:

Homemade rice milk ends up thicker than commercially made brands like Rice Dream or Alpro and you may want to dilute it with more water when serving. It freezes well and it’s a good idea to fill an ice cube tray so you have some Rice Milk to pop into a cup of coffee or use in sauces.

Rice Dream contains oil to make it more creamy and you can add 2 tablespoons of organic sunflower oil to your batch of milk to achieve this.

If you’re OK with tree nuts, adding some blanched almonds, hazelnuts or cashews when blending will give a rich, creamy and more nutritious milk. Commercially made rice milk is also slightly sweeter than homemade and if you’d prefer this add a teaspoon of vanilla extract or agave sweetener to taste.