How to Make Almond Milk
By Mia Hartwell
Turn a carton of almond milk around and read the label. Water, a small percentage of almonds, and then a list: gellan gum, sunflower lecithin, calcium carbonate, natural flavours, sometimes sugar. The almond content is often around two percent. You are largely buying water with thickeners in it, packaged to look artisanal.
Homemade almond milk is almonds and water. That is the whole recipe. It tastes dramatically more of almond, it costs less per litre than most branded cartons, and it takes about ten minutes of actual work, though you do need to plan a few hours ahead for soaking.
The trade is that it behaves like real food. It separates in the fridge, it lasts a few days rather than months, and it does not froth like dairy. None of those are faults, they are what happens when nothing has been added to prevent them, and this guide covers how to work with all three.
What You Need
- Raw almonds, 1 cup. Raw and unsalted, never roasted. This makes about 4 cups of milk.
- Fresh cold water, 4 cups. Plus more for soaking, which gets thrown away.
- A pinch of salt. Small, and it matters more than you would think.
- A blender. Any decent one works. A high powered blender gives a slightly higher yield.
- A nut milk bag or cheesecloth. A regular sieve will not do it, however fine it looks.
- Optional flavourings. Two pitted dates, a splash of maple syrup, or half a teaspoon of vanilla.
Choose Your Ratio
This is the main decision, and it is worth matching to how you will actually use the milk.
| Style | Ratio | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Rich | 1 cup almonds : 3 cups water | Coffee, cereal, anything where body matters |
| Standard | 1 cup almonds : 4 cups water | The everyday default, closest to shop bought |
| Light | 1 cup almonds : 5 cups water | Drinking plain, smoothies, lower calorie |
| Almond cream | 1 cup almonds : 1½ cups water | A pourable cream for desserts and sauces |
How to Make It
Ten minutes of work, plus soaking time you spend asleep or at work.
Soak the almonds
Cover the almonds with plenty of cold water and leave them for 8 to 12 hours, or overnight. If you are in a hurry, a quick soak of 1 to 2 hours in very hot water works nearly as well. Soaking softens them so they break down completely, which is what makes the milk creamy rather than gritty, and it noticeably increases the yield.
Drain and rinse properly
Pour the soaking water away, and do not be tempted to use it. Over several hours it has drawn tannins out of the almond skins, which is why it looks brownish, and blending with it makes the milk bitter and slightly astringent. Rinse the almonds under fresh running water for a few seconds.
Blend with fresh water
Blend the drained almonds with 4 cups of fresh cold water on high for 1 to 2 minutes. It should turn opaque, white, and slightly frothy on top, with no visible pieces left. If your blender is struggling, do it in two batches rather than adding more water.
Strain and squeeze
Pour it through a nut milk bag or a double layer of cheesecloth set over a bowl. Then gather the top and squeeze firmly until the pulp is nearly dry. A surprising amount of milk hides in there, and this is the one place in the guide where squeezing is encouraged.
Season it
Add a pinch of salt and taste. This is the step people skip and it makes a disproportionate difference, sharpening the almond flavour without tasting salty. Then sweeten if you want to: two pitted dates blended back in, a splash of maple syrup, or vanilla.
Bottle it
Pour into a sealed bottle and refrigerate. It keeps for 3 to 5 days and will separate into layers within a day, which is entirely normal. Shake it before each use.
Why It Separates, and Why That Is Fine
Homemade almond milk separates because there is nothing in it to stop it. Commercial versions contain gellan gum, lecithin, or similar emulsifiers whose entire job is holding the solids in suspension so the carton looks uniform on the shelf. Yours has no such help, so the solids settle out overnight.
This is not spoilage and it does not mean you did anything wrong. Shake the bottle before pouring and it comes straight back together. The signs that it has actually gone off are quite different: a sour smell, a sharp taste, or a noticeably thickened, slimy texture.
Using It in Coffee and Tea
Almond milk has far less protein and fat than dairy, which has two consequences. It does not froth into a stable microfoam, so latte art is largely out of reach without a barista blend containing added fats and stabilisers. And it can curdle when it hits very hot, acidic coffee, with the solids clumping on contact.
Two things prevent that. Warm the almond milk gently before adding it, so the temperature shock is smaller, and pour the coffee into the milk rather than the other way round, which is much gentler. Making it at the richer 1 to 3 ratio also helps, since more fat means it holds together better.
Do Not Bin the Pulp
Each batch leaves about a cup of almond pulp, which is most of the fibre and a good deal of flavour from an ingredient that is not cheap. Spread it thinly on a baking tray and dry it in a low oven, around 170F, for a couple of hours, then blitz it into almond flour that keeps for months in an airtight jar.
Used wet within a couple of days, it goes into smoothies, porridge, muffin batter, pancake batter, or energy balls. It is bland on its own, so it disappears into things rather than dominating them.
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Almond milk is two ingredients, so a disappointing batch nearly always comes down to the soaking, the straining, or the ratio.
Not soaking the almonds
Raw almonds are hard and dry, and a blender cannot break them down completely no matter how long you run it. The result is a thin, gritty milk with a noticeably lower yield, because a large share of the almond stays locked in fragments that end up in the pulp rather than the liquid. It is the difference between milk and almond-flavoured water.
Do this instead: Soak for 8 to 12 hours in cold water, or 1 to 2 hours in very hot water if you are in a hurry. They should feel plump and give slightly when squeezed.
Blending with the soaking water
It seems wasteful to pour it away, but that water has drawn out tannins and other compounds from the almond skins over several hours, which is exactly why it looks brownish and cloudy. Using it makes the finished milk noticeably more bitter and slightly astringent, and people often blame the almonds for a problem that is in the water.
Do this instead: Drain the soaking water away completely, rinse the almonds under fresh running water, and blend with clean cold water.
Using roasted or salted almonds
Roasted almonds have had their oils cooked, which gives a toasted flavour that reads as heavy and slightly burnt in a cold milk, and they do not soften properly during soaking. Salted almonds are worse, since you have no control over the seasoning and the milk comes out savoury in a way that is difficult to correct.
Do this instead: Use raw, unsalted, unroasted almonds. If you want a toasted flavour, add a drop of almond extract at the end rather than starting with roasted nuts.
Straining through an ordinary sieve
A standard kitchen sieve, even a fine mesh one, has holes far too large for almond solids. Enough fine particles pass through that the milk feels chalky on the tongue and forms a thick sludge at the bottom of the bottle within hours, which is much worse than the natural separation you should expect.
Do this instead: Use a nut milk bag or a double layer of cheesecloth. Squeeze firmly until the pulp is nearly dry, since a lot of milk hides in there.
Adding too much water
Once the milk is watery there is no way back without blending another batch of almonds, and it is easy to overshoot because homemade milk looks thinner in the jug than it tastes in a glass. Many people then conclude that homemade almond milk is inherently weak, when the carton they are comparing it to has thickeners doing the work.
Do this instead: Start at 1 cup almonds to 4 cups water. Go to 1 to 3 if you want it richer, and only thin it afterwards if it genuinely needs it.
Skipping the pinch of salt
Salt does the same job here that it does in a dessert: it sharpens and lifts everything without making the milk taste salty. Almond milk made without it tastes flat and slightly hollow, and people usually respond by adding more sweetener, which makes it cloying rather than fixing the underlying problem.
Do this instead: Add a small pinch of fine salt to the finished milk and taste. It is a genuinely disproportionate improvement for the effort involved.
Expecting it to keep like the carton
Shelf stable almond milk has been ultra-pasteurised and contains preservatives and emulsifiers, so an unopened carton lasts months. Yours is raw almonds and water with nothing added, which is the entire point, and it behaves accordingly. Treating it like the shop version means finding a sour bottle at the back of the fridge.
Do this instead: Make what you will drink in 3 to 5 days and keep it at the back of the fridge, not in the door. Freeze any surplus for up to three months.
Throwing away the pulp
A single batch leaves roughly a cup of almond pulp, which is most of the fibre and a fair amount of flavour from a fairly expensive ingredient. Binning it every time effectively doubles the real cost of the milk, and it is one of the easiest kitchen by-products to use.
Do this instead: Dry it in a low oven and blitz it into almond flour, or use it wet in smoothies, porridge, muffins, or energy balls within a couple of days.
The short version
Soak 1 cup raw almonds in cold water for 8 to 12 hours. Drain, discard that water, and rinse. Blend with 4 cups fresh cold water for 1 to 2 minutes. Strain through a nut milk bag and squeeze the pulp dry. Add a pinch of salt, sweeten if you like, and bottle. Keeps 3 to 5 days and separates naturally, so shake before use. Keep the pulp.
Make it once and the flavour difference against the carton is immediate and slightly annoying, in that it is hard to go back. The soaking is the only real commitment, and it happens while you are doing something else.
If you are making it for smoothies, our guide on dairy-free smoothies compares almond milk against oat and soy and covers how to keep them creamy without dairy. It is also the milk to reach for in a matcha latte if you want the grassy notes to come through. For dinners, browse our vegetarian dinners or the rest of our kitchen guides.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the ratio of almonds to water for almond milk?+
One cup of raw almonds to 4 cups of water is the standard, and it makes about 4 cups of milk. Use 1 to 3 for something richer and creamier that works well in coffee, or 1 to 5 for a lighter everyday milk. Shop bought almond milk is often closer to 1 part almonds to 30 parts water, which is why homemade tastes so much more of almond.
Do you have to soak almonds before making almond milk?+
Yes, if you want it creamy. Soaking softens the almonds so they break down completely in the blender, which gives a noticeably smoother milk and a higher yield. Soak for 8 to 12 hours in cold water, or use a quick soak of 1 to 2 hours in very hot water if you are short on time. Unsoaked almonds give a thinner, grittier result.
Why does homemade almond milk separate?+
Because there is nothing in it to stop it. Commercial almond milk contains gellan gum, lecithin, or similar emulsifiers specifically to hold everything in suspension. Yours has almonds and water, so the solids settle and the milk separates within a day. This is completely normal and not a sign it has gone off. Shake the bottle before every use.
How long does homemade almond milk last?+
Three to five days in a sealed bottle in the fridge, since it has no preservatives. Keep it at the back of the fridge rather than in the door, where the temperature swings. If it smells sour, tastes sharp, or has thickened noticeably, throw it out. It can also be frozen for up to three months, though it separates more once thawed.
What can you do with leftover almond pulp?+
Do not throw it away, since one batch leaves about a cup of it. Spread it on a tray and dry it in a low oven to make almond flour for baking, or use it wet in smoothies, porridge, energy balls, or muffins. It still carries plenty of fibre and flavour, and drying it means it keeps for months in an airtight jar.
Why does my almond milk curdle in coffee?+
Heat and acidity. Almond milk has far less protein and fat than dairy, so hot acidic coffee can make the solids clump the moment they meet. Warm the almond milk gently first, then pour the coffee into the milk rather than the other way round, which is much gentler. Making it at a 1 to 3 ratio also helps, since a richer milk holds together better.