Can You Freeze Almond Milk? – The Ultimate Guide

 Almond milk is a great milk substitute to keep on hand if you’re trying to take in less dairy or perhaps have any sort of dairy intolerance in your household.

It makes a great option for adding to your protein shakes or just making homemade shakes and it can be pretty useful overall in the kitchen. 

Milk, including almond milk and other varieties of milk, can be super hard to store. If you don’t use a lot of it or use it regularly, it simply doesn’t last long.

Then, you’re stuck either figuring out how to preserve it or simply tossing it out and rolling your eyes at the wasted milk money. 

Can you freeze almond milk? If you’re freezing almond milk to drink or use in cereal, we would not recommend this process due to the texture of the milk changing drastically. However, frozen almond milk is still usable for blending in shakes as the process of blending tends to reincorporate the separated milk back together.

In this guide, we will walk you through how to freeze almond milk and just what you can expect after it has been frozen.

Keep in mind that there will be certain steps for proper freezing and you will want to know just how freezing almond milk might change your milk when you’re ready to pull it out of the freezer. 

Stick with us to learn how to freeze almond milk and more. 

The Complete Guide to Freezing Almond Milk

When it comes to freezing almond milk, or any milk for that matter, you always hear two sides of the story.

There will be those individuals who are adamant that you simply can’t freeze milk. Again, they have some solid points to make on this subject. 

However, the truth is you can freeze almond milk, and other types of milk. You just simply need to be aware that it will not be the same as it was when you put it in the freezer.

The consistency and the overall makeup of the milk are going to change slightly. 

The good news is that you don’t have to just toss it.

If you don’t want to waste the milk, check out the details of this guide to walk you through just how you can freeze it, what you can expect when you freeze it, and the best ways to use it after it has been frozen. 

While freezing almond milk may not be the highest recommendation, it IS an option and it will work out just fine if you know the proper steps and what to expect once the milk has been frozen. 

How to Freeze Almond Milk Properly 

If you decide to give freezing almond milk a try, there are a couple of different options for doing so.

You can freeze in containers or bags or even using little ice cube trays.

We’re going to walk you through a couple of different processes to make sure you know all of the details for freezing almond milk. 

Here’s what you really need to know: Freezing almond milk will not impact any of the nutritional content.

The values and nutrition will be just as good as the day you decided to put the items in the freezer. From there, the details can get a bit funky. 

Milk tends to separate in the freezer and it also expands. These are where your changes will occur. This will lead to a change in texture in the milk when you defrost it to use.

When the milk thaws out, the separation will be very obvious but there are some ways to work around that. 

You most likely will not want to use the milk for drinking purposes when you have frozen it.

The texture simply will never be the same again. However, you can mix, shake, or blend the milk and it’ll be usable milk for plenty of purposes. 

You might notice a slight difference in flavor and a definite difference in both texture and appearance but the quality of the milk and the freshness of the milk will still be reliable. 

Now, here are some different processes you can try for freezing almond milk. 

Freezing Almond Milk in Ice Trays

This process works really well because you separate the almond milk into small portions and then when you use those portions, you are less likely to notice the differences in quality or consistency as opposed to a larger portion. 

When you use the small ice cubes or any other small portion that works for you, the separation that happens simply isn’t as noticeable.

These make a great solution if you want to be able to use the milk for simple things like shakes, smoothies, or integrated into some dish that you’re creating. 

Follow these steps to freeze your almond milk in an ice tray, or other similar small portions. 

1. Pour milk into ice trays. You can fill them to the top but don’t overfill them as they will stick together. 
2. Place ice trays into the freezer and allow the almond milk to freeze for several hours or until they are completely solid. We recommend freezing them for 12-24 hours to be sure they are solidified. 
3. Once the cubes have frozen, remove the ice trays from the freezer and pop out the cubes of frozen almond milk. 
4. Transfer the cubes to either a freezer storage bag or an airtight container of some sort. This will allow you to just grab a few cubes at a time when you need them! 
5. Label, date, and seal your packaging. 
6. Store for up to 6 months. 

It’s a pretty easy process! You just need to freeze into cubes or separated portions prior to your long-term freezing so be prepared to come back and repackage those into long-term storage means for the best freezing results. 

Now, if you would prefer to just freeze it all together, that is an option too. 

Freezing Almond Milk in Bulk

If you don’t want to mess with separating into ice trays or just prefer to freeze the milk as a whole, you have options for doing that as well.

Keep in mind that this will require some TLC on your part when you are ready to use the milk again. You will need to plan to do some stirring and shaking but it will work just fine as long as you are prepared. 

You have two options when it comes to freezing milk in bulk. If you have an unopened container of almond milk, you can just freeze it in that. Make sure to leave it unopened before use.

If the almond milk has been opened, you need to plan to transfer it to an airtight container of some sort and be sure to leave some headspace for expansion. Check out these steps for freezing almond milk in bulk. 

1. If the almond milk is unopened, freeze it in the original packaging. Just slap a date on it and toss it in the freezer for up to 6 months. If it’s open, proceed to step 2!
2. If the almond milk has been opened, you will need to pour it into something else. Choose what works for you but make sure that you use an airtight storage method for this purpose. 
3. Always be sure to leave 1-2 inches of open space in your airtight container. Almond milk will expand in the freezer and if you overfill the container, you could have a mess on your hands. 
4. Once you’ve prepared your milk, be sure it is sealed up tight and you’ve released as much air as possible. 
5. Label, date, and seal up your packaging. 
6. Toss it in the freezer and freeze in this manner for up to 6 months. 

Again, the process for freezing is pretty simple. It’s really after you’ve frozen the milk that you need to worry more about how to handle it and we will share those details here with you in this guide as well. 

Can You Freeze Homemade Almond Milk? 

Some people prefer homemade almond milk to the store bought stuff because you have full control over the ingredients.

When you make it at home, it’s creamy and delicious and it doesn’t have any of those crazy additives you will find in most store-bought almond milk varieties. 

So, can you freeze your homemade almond milk, too? Absolutely! As long as your homemade almond milk is still fresh, you can 100% freeze it.

You can follow the same steps that we shared above for freezing almond milk and they will work just fine. 

You just want to be sure your almond milk is fresh and hasn’t gone bad as it will maintain its freshness for the day that you are freezing it.

Freezing it won’t ever make it more fresh or turn spoiled milk good again so just keep that in mind when you freeze it! 

You can separate into ice trays or freeze in bulk, whatever works for your needs at the time! Just refer to the steps we shared previously for either of these processes. 

When is Freezing Almond Milk a Good Option? 

For the most part, it is recommended that you freeze almond milk, or any other type of milk, only if you plan to use it as part of a larger recipe. This means you might use it for cooking or you might even just toss it into a shake. 

The key here is that you don’t freeze almond milk if you use it for drinking purposes alone.

You probably won’t want to drink it straight after it has been frozen. Freezing almond milk will alter the consistency and possibly the taste so just know the limits of freezing it. 

If you plan to freeze almond milk, just know that it is best when used in coordination with other ingredients in a dish. From protein shakes to cooking, you should be just fine! 

This is true of store bought or homemade almond milk. You might even find that some brands freeze better than others or thaw better than others.

You can always test different brands to see if one comes out better than another. Of course, this is only necessary if you plan to freeze almond milk regularly. 

How to Properly Thaw Almond Milk

Ok – in this particular instance, the freezing is really the easy part. Freezing almond milk is simple and not time consuming but you have to know how to handle the milk when you thaw it out.

There are a few different ways to thaw out almond milk. Here are the 3 main methods. 

• Thaw in cooking or blending (best for cubes or small portions)
• Thaw in lukewarm water
• Thaw in the fridge

These methods are all pretty simple overall. In this section, we’re focusing on the process itself. From here, we will then cover handling the milk after it thaws out in the next section of the guide. 

If you choose to thaw your almond milk in the fridge, this is the best option for large portions of almond milk.

If you froze it in its original packaging or you froze a large container of almond milk, this is your best bet if you have the time to wait for the thawing process. 

In this case, just place your frozen milk storage container into your fridge and let it thaw.

It will most likely take at least overnight or potentially even a full 24 hours to truly thaw out so be prepared and pull it out of the freezer a day before you need it if possible. This takes time! 

If you forgot to pull your almond milk out and you need a quick fix, you can thaw it using some lukewarm water.

Fill a bowl or even your sink with lukewarm water and place your container or bag of frozen almond milk in the water.

You will specifically need to use either cold or lukewarm water and not hot water for this process. It will be quicker but will still take some time. 

Finally, you can defrost it as you are ready to use it. If you froze in ice trays, you can easily just thaw it while you cook by tossing it into your pan.

It will melt down and mix into your dish just fine. You can also toss your frozen milk cube into a blender and use that when making a protein shake or a similar item and it will blend right in! 

Using Thawed Almond Milk

Finally, let’s talk about using that thawed almond milk. At first glance, it probably doesn’t look too appetizing but don’t panic! 

This is where your TLC comes into play so your almond milk can be like new again. It’s super easy to get it ready to use. Remember you probably still won’t want to drink it but you can use it easily enough. 

Give your thawed-out almond milk some really good shaking and stirring, or perhaps even toss it in the blender to blend it back together.

This should take care of your separation and put your almond milk back to the way it should be, or at least as close as possible so you can use it! 

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