As someone who is lactose intolerant, I'm not supposed to eat anything with dairy in it. Of course being the food lover that I am, it's hard to avoid, and I usually toss caution to the wind to indulge in some creamy dairy goodness. There are milk substitutes for vegans and sensitive people like me, but none quite captures the essence of the rich, white, velvety liquid that blankets your tongue in a comforting layer of creamy sweetness. Of all the dairy substitutes I've found, rice milk is the closest to the milk that comes from cows, which is probably why I love Horchata so much.
Horchata is a beverage that was originally made with tiger nuts, and came to the New World along with settlers from Spain. Today, you'll see a huge glass mason jar filled with ice and horchata at almost every taqueria in Mexico, and it's a great way to quench the fire when you've gone overboard with the Tapatío.
It's not as rich as milk, but it is sweet and creamy, with a nice zing that comes from the cinnamon. I normally make it using almonds, but after making some cashew cream recently, I had to try it in Horchata. It worked out great, giving it a wonderfully creamy texture without imparting a lot of its own flavor.
📖 Recipe
Units
Ingredients
- ½ cups uncooked long-grain rice
- 1 cup raw cashew nuts
- 1 cinnamon stick
- 4 cups water
- 1 cup evaporated cane sugar
- 2 ½ crushed ice (or 1 ½ cups water)
- ground cinnamon for dusting
Instructions
- Wash the rice and cashews to remove any starch or debris on the exterior then add 2 cups of cold water and a toasted cinnamon stick. Toasting the cinnamon releases the flavorful oils in the stick and will enhance your finished horchata. Soak for at least 3 hours, or preferably, overnight.
- Dump the water, rice, cashews and cinnamon into a blender and blend for a few minutes until it is very smooth. Add the sugar and an additional 2 cups of water and continue to blend for another few minutes.
- Pour the mixture through a double mesh sieve into a bowl with a spout. Then pour the mixture through a sieve with even smaller holes (I used one made for separating oil from water). You could also wash your double mesh sieve and line it with a quadruple layer of cheesecloth. Use a spoon to stir the solids around, which will help the liquid pass through.
- Your horchata should now be free of any chalkiness. If you want to serve it right away, add 2 ½ cups of crushed ice. If you're going to store it, add 1 ½ cups of water and refrigerate. Dust with ground cinnamon when serving.
Babybath says
How long can it last in the fridge?
Marc Matsumoto says
I'm not too sure as I usually drink it all in a day or two. I'd imagine it should keep for around a week.
angela d says
i love horchata alot
Marilia says
Lovely recipe ! Can this be served hot , or used in tea ,coffee?
Marc Matsumoto says
That's a great idea! Never though about it, but I don't see why you couldn't serve it hot. Would be great in winter with some extra cinnamon!
unknown says
THIS IS SO HARD!!!
Marc Matsumoto says
If you're having problems, I'm happy to help, but you're going to have to give me a little more to work with. What are you having a hard time with?
Wolf says
I rather prefer things with milk, and I've seen recipes for this stuff with milk. So I'll be probably holding off on this recipe for a while but it looks good.
Wolf says
I rather prefer things with milk, and I've seen recipes for this stuff with milk. So I'll be probably holding off on this recipe for a while but it looks good.
Npriscilla Chan says
Would any long-grain rice do? There are so many types nowadays... like Basmati....
Marc Matsumoto says
I haven't tried it with every long grain rice but I used Basmati when developing this recipe.
Kathy Stroup says
I didn't quite make your recipe. I was experimenting with the concept of jelly, as in Coffee Jelly, and I remembered this post. The Horchata Jelly that resulted is delicate, refreshing, and fun to eat!
The cool, silky jelly, enrobed in sweetened cream, make a wonderful contrast of textures. The rich cream enrobes your tongue, and the jelly gently bursts to provide a sweet, rice-infused watery coolness. The cinnamon is beautifully juxtaposed between the two. I chose to infuse mine with the essence of vanilla, and I left out the nuts. I made it fairly basic, as it was an experiment. The toasted cinnamon is really the star of this dish; how brilliant to toast it! Even after finishing my bowl, it lingered on my tongue and lips with a pleasant tingling spiciness.
I have to say it was an impressive success! And you can easily make this Vegan by switching out the cream.
Marc says
Sounds amazing! It's been too long since I've made this I just received some just-harvested rice so I think I'm going to try it!