This is a review of cashew milk, a plant-based alternative to consuming cow’s milk. This milk has a horrendous problem with harvesting, which burns harvesters fingers and hands. You absolutely should not buy any cashew nuts, products or drinks unless you know the nut was harvested and processed by certified “fair trade” businesses.
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Review Cashew Milk
Nutrition
The chart shows that the cashew milks have few sugars but more fat and salt that the cows milk I usually drink.
- Both drinks have 44mg of calcium.
- Both have .5g saturated fat
The original unsweetened contains: water, cashew butter (Fair Trade certified), <1% of gellan gum, guar gum, sea salt, sodium citrte, tricalcium phosphate, xanthan gum. The original sweetened contains the same list of ingredients with the addition of cane sugar.
Medical
Cashew milk has heart healthy unsaturated fats, cancer fighting anacardic acid, and eye benifitting lutein and zeaxanthin.
But is also expensive. If you have seen a Cashew tree you will note that the nut is grown on a tangerine-sized fruit, one nut per fruit, which means each tree has a very low yield. Additionally, the tree is full of poisons or acids so it is more labor intensive and requires more processing to get the nuts for the milk.
Even when you buy “raw” cashews in the store it has been processed to remove the acids, generally boiled.
Homemade unfilitered cashew milk is nutritious and contains fiber naturally. HealthLine documents heart and eye health, improves blood clotting, good for skin, may have anti-cancer effects, and boosts immune health.
Environment
Healable indicates cashews are relatively sustainable, although it requires lots of water and has a moderate carbon footprint, it has no known significant damage to air, water, land, soil, forests, etc. as long as pesticides have not been used, be sure to buy Non-GMO/organic, as toxic, chemical pesticides contaminate air, water, soil, etc.
Dangerous Labor Issues
My concerns on cashews centers on worker treatment and injuries that I saw in a documentary on these folks. Almost 60% of all cashews are grown in India, picked by the poor and often women. The problem is that the cashew shells have cardol and anacardic acids that causes terrible burns and many workers have their fingertips burned away from hand processing the nuts (1,2). They do not receive fair wages, and safety is not of concern to the farmers.
Make It Yourself
To make cashew milk, soak 1C cashews in room temperature water for ~1–2 hours. Drain and rinse, then add them to a blender with ~4C water. Blend on high for ~1 minute or until smooth and frothy. Taste and add any sugar or flavor of choice (honey, stevia or cocao, vanilla extract), Do not filter and you have a great drink, but you can filter if you want, Place in a lidded glass container and keep in the fridge for ~4 days.
If filtered, save the cashew mash and make a cheesy dip. Put the ~1C mash back in the blender and add 2T nutritional yeast, 2T lemon juice, 1/2t garlic powder, and 1/2t salt. Blend on low and add up to 1/4C water for consistency. Use as a hummus or cheese dip in your dishes.
Or you can add the pulp to shakes, use the pulp as toppings to porridge, cereal, or use in baking loafs.
Make a Hot Drink
Make a cashew chai latte. Make some non-flavored hot tea (~4 bags). Steep the tea, and meanwhile place 2 cinnamon sticks, 1/2” ginger slice, 15 cardamom pods, and 2 star anise into 4C of cashew milk and heat on the stove. Bring to a slow simmer and add the tea, a pinch of salt, and 3T maple syrup.
√ Pacific Foods Cashew Milk
This organic, GMO and gluten free Cashew Milk looked tannish, and smelled slightly like a sweet oaty-nutty drink. I liked the taste and was pleased with how integrated the ingredients were, they left a smooth film on my glass. It had a thicker, fattier, mouthfeel that was great.
- Color: tan-brown
- Viscosity: Like full milk
- Taste: mild and sweet with a little bit of nutty flavor
- Fortified: calcium and a bit of iron.
- Tea: Did not curdle, and melded well with the hot drink.
- Coffee: I thought it worked well and added a nice creamy and subtle flavor, it also tempered coffee bitterness.
- With cereal: tasted good, similar to milk but with a nutty flavor.
- Storage: Pantry until opened, fridge for 7-10 days
- Company states: This versatile, plant-based beverage is made with organic and Fair Trade Certified™ cashews that support safe working conditions and sustainable growing practices in the farming communities.
This milk tasted great. I used it in baking at a 1:1 ratio of plant to cow milks and it worked fine. My spouse loved the taste but expressed concerns about the cashew harvest.
Review
I recommend this plant milk for its creamy texture, mouthfeel, and taste.
But, I would only drink this milk, regardless of the vendor, if I knew it was organic, fair trade, and being processed in a manner that does not result in human suffering and the exploitation of the poor. Pacific Foods state they meet my concerns.
— Patty
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