5 Easy Evaporated Milk Substitutes For Cooking And Baking

We’ve all had that moment: a recipe calls for a can of evaporated milk, but all you have is regular milk. Will it work instead? What about a can of sweetened condensed milk? How are you supposed to cook delicious pies and savory sauces under these conditions!?[…]CLICK HERE TO READ THE FULL ARTICLE▶

No need to shed any tears over missing milk just yet. There are actually a few common substitutes, and you may already have one of them in your kitchen!

What is evaporated milk?

Evaporated milk is created by evaporating 60% of the water from fresh milk. This removes much of the liquid, leaving a richer and creamier milk (think half-and-half).

It’s then homogenized and canned using a process that sterilizes the milk by heat-treating it. This process makes it shelf stable so it can last months, even a year or more before opening!

This heat-sterilized concentrated milk was invented in 1884 by a Swiss man named John B. Meyenberg, who established the first evaporated milk plant in Highland, Illinois. Because of its long shelf life and easy portability, it proved to be a vital ration during World War I.

Because evaporated milk is essentially just milk with a little over half of the liquid removed, you can technically add water back to it and use it exactly like you would fresh milk. The flavor will be slightly different thanks to the heat-treating process, which causes a little bit of caramelization (what I like to call “deliciousness”). But it’s a handy way to keep milk on hand for emergencies!

To make whole milk from a can of evaporated milk, you simply take 1 part evaporated milk and add 1 1/2 parts water.

But one of the reasons so many recipes (such as our Easy-Peasy Stovetop Mac ‘n Cheesy) call for evaporated milk straight from the can is because the concentrated milkiness adds both a richness and a velvety texture to dishes. (See below for more recipes.)

If you’ve ever opened a can of sweetened condensed milk, you know it’s super thick and not very drinkable (unless you’re Jack Gellar and you just really want to).

Because it’s so syrupy, you can’t use it as a substitute it for regular milk like you can with evaporated milk. If you open a can of evaporated milk, you’ll see it retains its liquid consistency. Because of these differences, you shouldn’t substitute one for the other!

Interestingly, sweetened condensed milk was actually invented first! The sugar had a function: preservation.

Before Meyenberg developed his heat-sterilization process, American inventor Gail Borden (yes, that Borden, from Borden Dairy) prevented evaporated milk from spoiling by adding sugar. Borden’s cans of sweetened condensed milk were a staple ration during the Civil War!

As mentioned, evaporated milk can be used in place of milk (or half-and-half or heavy cream).

It’s commonly used in pumpkin pie, tres leches cakes, and homemade fudge. But it’s not just used in sweets! You can add it to mac and cheese, soups, oatmeal, sauces, and even use it in your morning coffee.

Now that you know more about how evaporated milk is made and used, you’ll hopefully have a better idea of how each of these substitutes works to replace it.

5 Common Evaporated Milk Substitutes

Regular Milk

This might seem obvious now that we’ve been over a little evaporated milk history, but if you find yourself without a can in the pantry, you can just use regular milk—with a little tweaking.

Simply take whole or 2% milk and evaporate the water out yourself by letting it simmer on the stovetop for around 30 minutes. (Cans of both kinds of evaporated milk are available.)

Evaporated milk commonly comes in 12-ounce cans, and many recipes call for it by the can. So to substitute for one can, start with a quart (4 cups) of milk and simmer on the stove until it’s reduced to about 12-ounces (about 60%). Let it cool completely, and then you’ve got your very own can of evaporated milk.

Half-and-half

This is probably the closest you’ll come to an exact substitute. It might be a little richer than evaporated milk, but it’ll certainly get the job done. In most cases, a little extra richness doesn’t hurt!

Heavy Cream

Like heavy cream, evaporated milk is thicker and creamier than regular milk, so you can easily use heavy cream as a 1:1 substitute on its own. Even better: mix about 6-ounces of heavy cream and 6-ounces of whole milk. (You’ve just made homemade half-and-half!) This will give you 12-ounces of evaporated milk substitute.

Non-Dairy Milks

If you’re vegan or dairy-free, good news! You can substitute non-dairy milks the exact same way you would with regular milk. Using the same measurements, you can reduce a quart of non-dairy milk to 12-ounces by simmering on the stovetop. What you’re left with is non-dairy evaporated milk that’s ready for all kinds of recipes.

Powdered Milk

While not a common ingredient in most pantries, if you happen to have powdered milk on hand, you can add water back to it. To rehydrate milk powder into regular milk, you’d whisk together about 1 cup of water and 1/4 cup milk powder.

But to make evaporated milk (which we know is regular milk with 60% of the water removed), you only need to add 40% of the water back to achieve evaporated milk consistency.

So for each 1/4 cup milk powder, add a little less than 1/2 cup water.

Now that you know everything about evaporated milk, here are some recipes to try with your newfound knowledge!…CLICK HERE TO READ MORE ARTICLES>>>