Plant Milks: Rice

My Milk Series

This is most likely my last post on milk. I have researched and written about the milks, animal or plant, and have given each their due. Today I will review my last plant milk, and conclude with a few suggestions on what to use. What I will also do, going forward and if more information is found, I will update these existing pages with new data. But I do not plan on adding more posts to this series. Please see my article series by clicking on the links below.

• Global Role of Animal Milks
• Dairy Cows Milk
• Plant Milks
• Plant Milk: Coconut
• Plant Milk: Flax and Hemp Seed
• Plant Milk: Oats
• Plant Milk: Soy
• Plant Milk: Almond and Hazelnut
• Plant Milk: Macadamia
• Plant Milk: Cashew
• Plant Milks: Rice

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Review Rice Milk 

Nutrition

Rice is known as not very nutritious, although brown rice is more nutritious than white. It is a very carb-heavy staple that provides energy and calories, and is a very digestible source of quick energy; I have not heard of anyone having an allergy to rice.

Environment

WorldEconomicForum documents the following facts:

• Rice produces 12% of global annual emissions (due to rotting plant material when fields are flooded).
• Rice growing uses a lot of potable water, but it is possible to dry-grow the grass.
• There is high pesticide use in many countries.

The website Healable, indicates rice growing has a relatively low water use, a moderate carbon footprint, and they consider it a sustainable crop. Additionally, no animals are harmed, and in fact growing rice can be used to support birdlife (1), 

Concerns

My only concern is that the food is grown locally, organically and monitored for arsenic. I have posted on rice and arsenic which is an ongoing problem, especially in brown rice and rice from certain countries. Therefore, I want to consume milk from certified, organic white rice (less arsenic, and yes, less nutritious). 

Make It Yourself

Dry toast 1/4C of a white rice mix (Basmati and Jasmine) for flavor. It should turn caramel in color, not brown or black! Take off the heat and add to a bowl with 3C water filtered for a 3h soak to soften the rice. After the soak, pour the contents of the bowl into a blender, with 3C more filtered water and blend well. Taste and add your sugar of choice if desired, then filter through a cheese cloth. Put the liquid in a lidded glass container and keep in the fridge.

The contents in the cheese cloth can be cooked in a pot with ~1/4 or 1/5C water and made into a porridge.

Dream Original Rice Drink

Ingredients: Rice milk is made of white and/or brown rice, water, salt, and occasionally some oil. Nearly everyone indicates it is the one milk that people are least likely to have an allergenic response to after consuming.

• Color: white (if white rice) and tan (if brown rice)
• Viscosity: watery
• Taste: mild and sweet
• Curdle: a little bit in tea, but gets filmy in coffee
• Rice milk is mainly carbohydrates and not much else, without fortification.
• Storage: Pantry until opened, fridge for 7-10 days
• Certified no animal or child labor + fair wages

This is the least allergenic of either animal or plant milks. It is a carb-heavy drink that contains a high glycemic index so is not recommended for diabetics.

I am neutral about this milk, but would not serve this milk to people who are diabetics or children, for it contains too much simple sugar that can raise blood sugar. However, if you are a person with allergies, this is one of the least problematic milks out there. Likewise, if you have digestive issues, this one may work for you.

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Plant Milk Recommendations

My bottom line is that if you are feeding a sick person, or someone with lots of allergies, try white rice milk as it seems to be the most digestible (2) of all the milks. Looking at all the plant milks, after removing the top allergens of tree nuts, animal milk, and soy, there are only a handful of options left so choosing the rice milk is an easy choice as it is considered a hypoallergenic food (3).

• There are few rice allergies in the West, although there are studies that Korea and Japan (4) have reported some. But that scientific report concluded: the allergens that actually cause the allergic symptoms on the patients with sensitization to rice allergen are not obvious and an interpretation of the sensitization to rice is also unclear. So more study is needed.

If you are looking for a plant milk that is closest to cow’s milk everyone suggests soy, just review the concerns I have written about in my post.

The milks that are the most environmentally friendly are oats, flax, and hazelnut. Given how people are melding growing rice, and farming fish and supporting birds, I should probably add rice to this list.

For me and my taste, I prefer the taste of drinking or baking with: oat, flax, hazelnut, cashew, and cow’s milk, in that order.

—Patty

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