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Don’t you just love scooping out that thick and rich sweetened condensed milk from the can? I have to admit I just started using it in my dessert recipes, but I love it! It’s really so good!
I had a syrup recipe idea that I wanted to make that required sweetened condensed milk. However, I noticed that at the grocery store that you don’t get any options for a lactose-free variety. Now, I have to be considerate for omitting lactose when I’m including dairy in my recipes, but I still wanted to make this syrup (recipe coming soon!). What do I do?
As I mention in my free guide to explore your potential in the kitchen, Make Cooking Fun!, I explain how being flexible is an important aspect to allow for creativity. Just because the store doesn’t have the ingredient I need doesn’t mean I should quit my plans on making special recipes! I’ve heard of people making their own sweetened condensed milk at home, and the swap to make it lactose-free should be so easy! Now, even if you like dairy milk but have a lactose intolerance, you’ve got the power to make your own condensed milk and have the joy to use it in all of your favourite treats! Check out how you can use your Lactose Free Condensed Milk later on in this post! Be sure to try any of those recipes as part of your Live to Cook challenge! You can get your free goodies by signing up for my newsletter!
Check out how simple it is to make your very own condensed milk right from home by following along with the video recipe! If you’re not already, subscribe to my YouTube channel, and be sure to hit the bell button so you receive notifications for when the recipe videos go live! I love to share the video recipes to go along with the written recipes so you’re guaranteed success! Let’s get cooking!
What Is Condensed Milk?▼
Condensed milk is a type of concentrated cow’s milk where about 60 percent of the water content has been removed. Condensed milk is sweetened and is of a thick texture. Condensed milk is typically used for baking and desserts because of its creamy texture and sweetness.
Also another important note! Condensed milk is the same as sweetened condensed milk. The two terms are used interchangeably, as I will be doing here. Saying “sweetened condensed milk” is a mouthful sometimes, so people just call it condensed milk. When you’re looking for it at the grocery store, there’s no such thing as “unsweetened condensed milk.” You’ll soon see that it’s the sugar that gives condensed milk that creamy texture that we look for in dessert recipes!
What’s The Difference Between Sweetened Condensed Milk and Evaporated Milk?▼
They are both concentrated milks that are shelf-stable, sold in cans, but the similarities between the two milks stop there! Evaporated milk is available in full fat, 2% (low fat) and skim varieties. On the other hand, sweetened condensed milk is only available in one fat content variety. Furthermore, as mentioned earlier, condensed milk is thick and hard to pour thanks to the sugar added to the milk. In contrast, evaporated milk is not sweetened and it is thin and runny, like regular milk in the carton.
Can You Substitute Evaporated Milk for Condensed Milk?▼
Usually you cannot. Firstly, evaporated milk is not sweetened, and dessert recipes that call for condensed milk usually are not going to add additional sweetness. Furthermore, these recipes are looking for the thick texture of condensed milk. Technically, you can actually make sweetened condensed milk from evaporated milk since evaporated milk is pretty much just canned milk! You would just still need to follow this process if you want to use evaporated milk, anyway.
Why Make Lactose Free Condensed Milk?
Now you may be wondering why even bother making this? Firstly, I’ll admit that I made this Lactose Free Condensed Milk out of necessity. After a quick Google search, I’ve seen one product on Amazon, but it was out of stock, and the reviews were complaining how overpriced it was! Also, I’ve never seen it locally at the grocery stores. If you’re making a dessert that requires sweetened condensed milk for someone who is lactose intolerant or who may be following an elimination diet to diagnose a digestive issue (such as the low FODMAP diet), then you’re going to have to DIY! If you want another solution to cooking for someone following a low FODMAP diet, check out my Garlic-Infused Oil recipe so that you can still have garlic flavor in your day-to-day cooking without the garlic!
I’ll also be honest and let you know that this is a lengthy process, and while making this I thought it was kind of a waste of time. However, when I saw (and tasted!) the finished product, my perspective has definitely changed. Stay tuned to the end of the blog for tips on how to make this without wasting your time!
Even if you follow the recipe with regular milk (with the lactose), I’ve found Homemade Lactose Free Condensed Milk is definitely tastier than the one in the can. Additionally, technically speaking you can add as little or as much sugar as you want! It’ll depend on how you plan on using it.
You may argue you’re paying for the time saved in just getting the condensed milk in the can, I’ll show how this process doesn’t have to suck out all of your time! The cost of condensed milk cans here range from $3.49 CAD to up to $5 CAD! The cartons of lactose-free milks do cost more than regular milk, but you’ll still yield more for a less net cost by making this yourself.
How to Make Dairy-Free Sweetened Condensed Milk?
Yes you can! I’ve seen recipes where people substitute cow’s milk for dairy-free alternatives including coconut milk, almond milk, or soy milk!
How Do I Know The Condensed Milk Is Ready?▼
The milk will change color and become light brownish and the consistency will become thick enough to evenly coat the back of a spoon.
WHAT TOOLS DO I NEED to MAKE LACTOSE FREE SWEETENED CONDENSED MILK?
How to Use Lactose-Free Condensed Milk▼
Condensed milk is used to make a lot of sweet sauces and syrups. Check out where I’ve used sweetened condensed milk on the blog:
You can also use condensed milk for various other desserts! I’ve personally not tried it in these recipes yet, but I’ve heard great things about using condensed milk for caramel sauce, Indian chawal kheer (rice pudding), or gajar ka halwa (carrot pudding). Sweetened condensed milk seems to be popular in making ice creams and other pie fillings too. Let me know what recipes you’d like to see using sweetened condensed milk on the blog and I’d be happy to give them a go!
Ingredients for Condensed Milk From Scratch
For ingredient quantities, be sure to scroll to the bottom of this post for the FULL PRINTABLE RECIPE CARD and save it for later! You can also scale the recipe based on how much sweetened condensed milk you’re looking to make. Keep in mind that the milk does significantly reduce, so if you plan on doing lots of making, I do recommend you double the recipe!
- Lactose-free milk: I recommend whole milk here for best results if you’re making this lactose-free. However, you can of course use regular milk with the lactose! 2% or whole milk will work fine in that case.
- Sugar: You can actually use any sweetener of your choice. For simplicity, I’m using granulated white sugar. Keep in mind you can pretty much use any sweetener you’d like! Try out brown sugar, honey, cane sugar, or maple syrup. Even if you want to make this homemade condensed milk recipe sugar-free, you can use Splenda or Stevia if desired.
- Salt: Just a little bit to enhance the flavours from the milk and sugar.
How to Make Lactose-Free Condensed Milk?
Add the milk to a large pot and bring it up to a simmer while stirring often. Add the sugar and salt and mix well.
On medium heat, continue to boil the milk while stirring and cleaning the bottom and the sides.
After about 35-50 minutes, or until the milk has thickened enough the coat the back of a spoon, transfer the condensed milk to a jar and allow it to cool down.
The milk will thicken further while cooling. Store in the fridge.
Tips for an Excellent Sweetened Condensed Milk From Scratch
- Keep stirring often and clean the sides and the bottom as much as you can. A spatula can be useful to assist with this and prevent anything from burning.
- These steps can be taken to make condensed milk from other lactose free alternatives or regular milk as well. For unsweetened condensed milk, follow the same steps, without adding the sugar.
How Long Will Lactose-Free Sweetened Condensed Milk Last?▼
The simple answer to this question is that it’ll last as long as the date of the milk you used. For example, if your carton of milk’s expiry date is March 1st, then your Lactose-Free Sweetened Condensed Milk should be fine until that date. Just be sure to smell and check for any crystallization to ensure that your milk does not spoil!
How to Store Condensed Milk?▼
I recommend you store your Sweetened Condensed Milk in an airtight container or in a mason jar. This way, you can easily just spoon out the quantity you need for your baking needs!
6 comments
What is the yield?
It's about 1 cup!
Tried to make this. Cooked for well over a hour (far longer than the recommended 30-50 mins.) It did reduce and turned a light brown color and seemed to coat a spoon. Yet, it did not thicken in the refrigerator and is quite runny. Should I cook it more? Please help. Thank you.
My guess is it didnt reduce enough, it's rather painful to be constantly stirring as it simmers. Perhaps if you send me a DM on instagram with a picture of how it looked I can help further!
Could i substitute sugar with maple syrup. jplar@nrco.net
Hey JP, yes you can do that!
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