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These days, more people than ever are cutting back on the amount of animal products they eat, including dairy, with some moving entirely to a plant-based diet. This is usually either for health reasons, to be kinder to the environment, or both.
While dairy offers some health benefits, including for bone health, it also remains the top source of saturated fat in Western diets. Research also estimates that one in ten UK adults is lactose intolerant.
So, if you’re looking to reduce the amount of dairy in your diet, there are lots of simple swaps you can make to keep your culinary creations dairy-free.
With that said, here are some of the best dairy-free alternatives for milk, butter, cheese, yoghurt, and cream.
1. Dairy-free milk
The rise of milk alternatives has been impossible to ignore. These days, one in three Brits drinks plant-based milk. Oat, almond, and soya are the most popular plant-based milks in the UK, but you can also buy rice, coconut, cashew, hemp, and hazelnut milk.
Taste will naturally play a role in deciding what plant-based milk you use, but it’s also true that different types are best suited for different uses.
Oat and soya milk are popular for their thick, creamy consistency, which makes them great options for cooking, baking. Oat milk, in particular, froths up like no other plant milk. Paired with its mild, neutral flavour, this makes it ideal for making hot drinks. Oatly Barista is the thickest, creamiest variety of oat milk that’s sold in all supermarkets.
Nutritionally speaking, both oat and soya milk offer their benefits. Oat milk is high in dietary fibre, as well as nutrients like vitamin B, while soya milk is a great source of protein and calcium.
Almond milk doesn’t contain as much protein as soya or oat milk, but it’s rich in vitamin E. Almond milk can be used for cooking, but its subtle nutty flavour tends to be best suited to sweet recipes, such as smoothies and desserts. Making your own almond milk is also super quick and easy. Check out this recipe by Minimalist Baker if you’d like to give it a go.
To find out more about the different types of plant milks, including their environmental impact, check out our article: What are the pros and cons of different types of milk?
2. Dairy-free butter
Butter is another kitchen staple, and just like milk, there are many dairy-free options in most supermarkets today.
If you’re using butter for sautéeing food or spreading on toast, a simple swap to dairy-free margarine works best. There are dozens of margarines available in shops, and many of the most popular brands don’t contain any dairy: Flora Original, for example, is vegan.
If you’re using large quantities of butter (for example, if you’re making a cake or pastry), you’re better off using a plant-based butter over margarine – one that’s solid at room temperature. Most health food shops stock several different varieties of vegan butter blocks, but one of the best is the Naturli butter block, which is available at Sainsbury’s.
If you’re making sweet treats, coconut oil makes an excellent frosting, and if you’re making a roux, dairy-free margarine works best. To learn more, check out Live Kindly’s guide to the best dairy-free butters and margarines.
3. Dairy-free cheese
Vegan cheese gets a bad rap, but it’s come on leaps and bounds in recent years.
For recipes that call for soft cheeses like ricotta, goat’s cheese, or cream cheese, vegan cream cheese will work well.
There are various types available, and it’s considered one of the better dairy-free cheese alternatives available in supermarkets (some products are still rather questionable!). Check out Good Housekeeping’s guide to the best dairy-free cream cheese to learn more, or consider making your own, using recipes like this one from The Spruce Eats.
If you’re making a creamy dessert, like cheesecake or chocolate mousse, silken tofu is by far the best dairy-free sub. Stepping in well for common ingredients like butter, cream, and even eggs, silken tofu is also high in protein, minerals, anti-inflammatories, and low in fat.
To replace cheeses like camembert, brie, gorgonzola, blue cheese, and herb cheese, Honestly Tasty has a fantastic range of dairy-free alternatives. They melt beautifully and work really well for cooking, too.
4. Dairy-free yoghurt
There are lots of dairy-free yoghurts available in most supermarkets, made mostly from coconut, cashews, soya, or almonds.
If you’re using yoghurt in a smoothie or fruit shake, most dairy-free alternatives will work well. So it’s worth trying a few available to see which you like best.
However, if you’re after a replacement for Greek or full-fat yoghurt, you might have to be a bit pickier. Creamier options, like cashew-based or coconut yoghurts, tend to work best. If you’d like to have a go at making your own dairy-free Greek yoghurt, check out this recipe from Jessica in the Kitchen, which uses only two main ingredients.
5. Dairy-free cream
Cream is an essential ingredient for various recipes, giving everything from soups and sauces to potato and pasta dishes a silky, smooth texture. And the good news is that, when it comes to dairy-free cream alternatives, you probably won’t be able to tell much of a difference from the real deal.
Both Oatly and Alpro do great vegan creams. Oatly’s Creamy Oat is an excellent sub for single cream, as is Alpro’s single cream, which, made from soya, contains 42% less fat than dairy single cream.
If you need something thick, creamy, and indulgent, coconut cream is a good option. Much thicker than coconut milk, coconut cream works well in frostings for baked goods, as well as in fillings.
For whipped cream, sour cream, or creme fraiche replacements, Oatly has a number of quick and easy subs.
Final thoughts…
Whether due to preference, health, environmental, or ethical reasons, the range of vegan products available these days means it’s easier than ever to reduce your dairy intake.
And, the good news is that dairy-free cooking can be just as indulgent, tasty – and often a lot healthier.
For further reading, head over to our diet and nutrition section.
What are your favourite dairy-free products? Do you have any other tips that you’d like to share? We’d love to hear from you in the comments below.
* Links with an * by them are affiliate links which help Rest Less stay free to use as they can result in a payment or benefit to us. You can read more on how we make money here.
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