Homemade Fresh Soy Milk from Whole Dried Soy Beans

The Hayman variety soy beans grown and processed by Slater Farms in Northern Rivers region, New South Wales, make the creamiest, most delicious fresh soy milk you'll ever taste!

If you've never tried fresh, homemade soy milk made from the whole soy bean, you're in for a treat. This milk tastes different to store bought soy milk in tetra pack cartons, much of which is made from soy protein isolate rather than whole soy beans. Homemade soy milk is similar to the fresh soy milk products you might find in an Asian grocery store.

Curious to try it? The process is easy. Give it a whirl and let us know what you think. 

Using the method and tips provided here, you'll have fresh soy milk that can be used for any purpose. It can be left unsweetened or you can add a touch of raw sugar to it. It's great to drink on it's own, with breakfast cereals, as an ingredient in sweet or savoury recipes where regular animal milks might be used, and with a simple hack to prevent it from separating, it's also great in tea or coffee!

Then, if you want to take things an extra step further, you can make tofu with your freshly made soy milk! Here's a process we recommend for homemade tofu. 

Back to the soy milk...

This recipe makes just under one litre of fresh soy milk, with a general ratio of half a cup of dried soy beans for one litre of milk. 

Please note that these photos were taken from the making of a double (two litre) sized batch where one full cup of dried soy beans were used.

INGREDIENTS - 1 litre batch

• 0.5 metric cup / 90g dried Slater Farms soy beans

• 1 litre filtered tap water 
  Plus more for soaking the beans
  

• 1/8 tsp salt
  

• 1/8 tsp sodium bicarbonate (baking/bicarb soda) 
  This is optional, but prevents the milk from curdling in hot coffee or tea by raising the alkalinity slightly.

• Up to 1 tablespoon of raw sugar
  Sweetener is optional, but note that animal milks and most store bough plant based milks contain natural lactose or added cane sugar. It does enhance the flavour.
  
  

EQUIPMENT

• Bowl for soaking the beans

• Blender
  A high speed blender is ideal for very creamy milk, but any blender will get the job done.

• Medium to large saucepan
  A large cooking pot of 4-5 litre capacity is required for a double/2 litre batch.

• Strainer or colander, large enough to sit over your saucepan.

• Large cloth or nut milk bag for straining the soy milk.

• Flat edged, heat proof spatula for stirring the milk as it cooks.
  
  
  

METHOD

Soak the dried soy beans in fresh water for 8-18 hours. This process will be faster in warm climates and slower when it’s cool. The beans are adequately soaked when they are plump, fully hydrated and uniformly white inside the bean (see photo - make sure you split one to check).

In hot weather, change the water once or twice throughout the soaking period to keep the beans fresh. Store soaked beans in the fridge for 1-2 days or freezer if you are unable to make the soy milk straight away.

When ready to make the milk, drain and rinse the soaked soy beans.

An Interesting point to note: Some homemade soy milk makers advocate for removing the skins from the soaked soy beans before blending and cooking the milk. We think this is a bothersome task and prefer to strain out all of the bean fibre before cooking the milk, which is easier than removing the skins by hand and much easier than straining and squeezing hot milk! This method also seems to prevent any unwanted extra beany flavours that might come from cooking the bean fibre and/or skins with the milk. It's just a theory, but it seems to work!

Add drained beans to a blender with the fresh water and blend for 1-2 minutes or until the mixture is smooth and creamy. 

Blend in smaller batches if using a small or bullet style blender. An immersion blender or food processor can also be used, however you may need to blend for longer.

Strain the raw soy milk. Assemble your cooking pot with large colander and straining cloth over the top. Pour the blended bean mixture into the cloth/colander and strain out the raw soy milk. Gather the cloth and twist to strain as much liquid out as possible. *Nb. For this method it is acceptable to use a large piece of polyester voile cloth (we find a double layer of this material strains the milk very quickly and easily, do not use for hot liquids though). A nut milk bag would also be suitable.

You will now be left with raw soy milk in the pot (don’t drink it yet!) and the dry soy pulp - also called ‘Okara’. Store Okara in the fridge or freezer for use in other recipes (this is one example) or add to compost. 

Cook the soy milk. To save time, we like to cook the soy milk on high heat, watching it and stirring the whole time, turning the heat down once it reaches boiling point (it can boil over easily, watch for it rising in the pot and get ready to move it off the heat!). You can take things slower if you prefer a little less excitement in your soy milk making process. Stir continuously to prevent the milk from sticking to the bottom of the pot.

Once the soy milk reaches a boil, turn heat down to low-medium and simmer for 3-5 more minutes. The milk should smell sweet and nutty once cooked (when raw it has a bitter, raw beany aroma). 

Now it's time to add a small amount of sugar, bicarb soda and salt if desired. None of these extras are required, but they do make the soy milk extra delicious, and the bicarb soda makes it possible to enjoy homemade soy milk in hot tea or coffee, which is naturally acidic and can curdle the fresh milk. Who likes tofu curds in their coffee? No thanks! 

Enjoy your milk! If you’ve never had fresh soy milk before, pour a small amount into a cup, while it's still hot, add a few pinches of raw sugar (if you like), stir and taste it. This is the real taste of soy milk! It's a wonderful thing, and so nourishing. It makes great masala chai (spiced tea) and hot chocolate as well.

Store the milk in glass bottles, jars, or otherwise food safe and heat safe storage containers. Fresh soy milk will keep for about 5 days in a nice cold fridge. 

Do you have questions or comments? 

Feel free to comment below. We'd love to hear how you go making your own soy milk! You may have your own methods to share with us? There are many ways to make it but we like this simple and efficient version the best.