Instant Pudding Doesn't Set With Almond or Oat Milk

[Tom&Shelly]

Figured this is urgent enough information to warrant its own thread! Well, someone might be planning a camping menu and buying supplies...

Surprised me as I've made instant pudding with powdered milk, and thought the thickening agent was gelatine (given the main brand that produces instant pudding) and would begin to set with water. Evidently not; seems to require milk protein.

Hope this saves someone from a minor camping faux pas!

Oh! Unset instant pudding? Not too bad to drink, but causes indigestion.

Tom

[DJ Davis]

On that subject, if I've got a menu item that requires milk, I've been bringing along one or two of those irradiated milk cartons that are the size of a juice box. Most times those are labelled "Organic" and a bit pricey, but I'll pay for the convenience. They don't need refrigeration and most of the time the right amount for the recipe. But then, I guess you may have a dietary reason for almond or oat milk. In that case, as Emily Latella would say, "Never mind!"

[S. Heisley]

Instant puddings will set well with either coconut milk or hemp milk. For most things, I prefer hemp milk.

Hemp milk comes in 1-quart containers with a long shelf life and does not need refrigeration until opened,
It comes sweetened or unsweetened. It most closely resembles dairy milk in taste, texture, and calorie count.
If you like cereal, it works well on that. I use Pacific Foods Hemp Milk which can be purchased through Amazon or from the company, based in Oregon or usually from your local health food or upscale grocery store.

Coconut milk can be purchased in just about any way, refrigerated ready-made, or canned or dried. It can pack a lot of calories, especially the canned, but there is a low-fat variety. The dried coconut milk is very convenient...just add water and stir. Being dried, it has a lot less fat and less calories than liquid coconut milk. It has a strong coconut flavor and is usually creamier than milk. There are many suppliers of this. I keep a some dried and some canned in the pantry. The canned full fat or low fat coconut milk is a great substitute for milk in pumpkin pie.

Some people will tell you that coconut milk has a lot of cholesterol in it but what they don't realize is that the cholesterol in coconut milk has a less dense molecule and is usually passed right through a person without entering the bloodstream. The problem with coconut milk is that most people use it for desert foods, with great amounts of sugar. Sugar becomes triglycerides, which in turn becomes cholesterol. Without all that sugar, it is okay to use. (But an occasional pumpkin pie is a treat. )

[QueticoBill]

I've had success with Nido - powdered whole milk.

[S. Heisley]

Yes, nonfat dry milk can be reconstituted and used with instant pudding too.

However, many times, when someone tries Almond or Oat milk, it's because someone in the family has been diagnosed as dairy intolerant.
As we age, we can become more intolerant of various foods, sometimes simply because our bodies can no longer make adequate digestive enzymes.
Sometimes, we've been intolerant of certain foods for years but have not been properly diagnosed until now.

Sometimes, people simply chose to use an alternative to dairy milk because they have made a decision to become vegan.

Whatever the reason, there are alternatives for just about everything. Finding a milk alternative is among the easiest ones.

[Tom&Shelly]

Yes, nonfat dry milk can be reconstituted and used with instant pudding too.

However, many times, when someone tries Almond or Oat milk, it's because someone in the family has been diagnosed as dairy intolerant.
As we age, we can become more intolerant of various foods, sometimes simply because our bodies can no longer make adequate digestive enzymes.
Sometimes, we've been intolerant of certain foods for years but have not been properly diagnosed until now.

Sometimes, people simply chose to use an alternative to dairy milk because they have made a decision to become vegan.

Whatever the reason, there are alternatives for just about everything. Finding a milk alternative is among the easiest ones.

Yep! In our case, Shelly has been having problems with cow milk, so we're trying alternatives. Also, I was on a liquid diet, recovering from some elective surgery (doing fine) and was allowed pudding, so we stocked up. Strange thing about the liquid diet: Lots of desert choices; most of the rest had to be run through a food processor.

Thanks for the tips about hemp milk and coconut milk Sharon!

Tom