Soya Milk

What is Soya Milk?

Soya milk is made by soaking Soya beans, grinding them up and mixing with water. The resulting fluid after straining is called Soya milk. You can make Soya milk at home with basic kitchen tools using our instructions which come with the Tofu kit.

Soya milk has a beany taste, which is well accepted by the Chinese, but less so by the Western palate. By using special processing techniques, this beany taste can be reduced or eliminated.

Recently, with many new uses for Soya milk having been discovered, the recognition of Soya milk's health benefits, and with improved flavour and texture, Soya milk now has wide and rising acceptance.

Sometimes, protein isolates from soy bean are mixed with water, oils, sugars and stabilizers to give it a milky appearance. This type of product should be described as Soya drinks and is not so wholesome as real Soya milk.

Plain Soya milk is very nutritional: it's an excellent source of high quality proteins, isoflavones and B-vitamins. Soya milk is free of the milk sugar (lactose) and is a good choice for people who are lactose intolerant. Also, Soya milk is a good alternative for those who are allergic to cow's milk.

Availability of Soya milk

Soya milk is most commonly found in aseptic cartons. Most of the Soya milk available in the market is flavoured and fortified with extra calcium or vitamins. The most popular flavours for Soya milk are vanilla and chocolate. Some producers add thickeners to their soy milk to give it the 'feel' of cows milk.

Making your own Soya milk

In China and Japan fresh Soya milk is made daily using a simple, centuries-old process of grinding soaked Soya beans and pressing the Soya milk out of the beans. There, Soya milk is sold by street vendors or in cafes. Soya milk is served hot or cold and is often flavoured with soy sauce and vegetables to produce a spicy soup.

Many people find the cost of commercial soymilk to be prohibitive and make Soya milk at home. Soya milk can be made at home by soaking and crushing Soya beans and filtering the liquid, which is Soya milk. Some have invested in a Soya milk machine that cooks and grinds the Soya beans and makes Soya milk, fresh in your own home. There are different brands of Soya milk machines on the market. You don't need these machines to make good quality Soya milk.

Make Soya Milk at a Fraction of the Cost

Using the instructions that come with this kit and the muslin bag, you can make Soya milk at a fraction of the cost of commercial Soya milk. You can vary the concentration to your own taste and add your own flavourings

Nutritional values of Soya milk

Soya milk is an excellent source of high quality protein and B-vitamins. Soya milk is not a rich source of calcium; this is why most commercial soymilk products are fortified with calcium.

Soya milk naturally contains isoflavones, plant chemicals that help lower LDL ("bad" cholesterol) if taken as part of a "heart healthy" eating plan.

Soya Milk

Using the instructions that come with this kit and the muslin bag, you can make Soya milk at a fraction of the cost of commercial Soya milk. You can vary the concentration to your own taste and add your own flavourings. You can make up to 10 litres in only 30 minutes. Electrical Soya milk makers can usually make only a small quantity of Soya milk and they don't make Tofu. Their initial cost is quite high.

Some of the benefits Tofu is said to have:

• Improves the quality of bones
• Helps to prevent kidney disease
• Helps reduce risk of heart disease
• Helps to prevent certain hormonal related cancers e.g. prostate, colon and breast
• Relieves menopausal symptoms
• Look on the other sections of this website for further information