Condensed Milk

Has anyone tried this brand of dried milk (also, is that what you mean by condensed milk?)? It got rave reviews on Amazon and has a good calorie/oz. ratio (something like 130kcal/oz.). I love the idea of a nice cold glass of milk while hiking.

"dried milk (also, is that what you mean by condensed milk?)"

No. Dried milk is powdered milk.

Condensed milk is a liquid milk that has been concentrated. If you mix some of this with good cool water, you can make something close to normal liquid milk.

–B.G.–

I wouldn't recommend drinking it straight – it really doesn't taste anywhere near as good as real milk, but it could be nice after a few days of plain old water I guess. It's amazing as a dry milk substitute in meals and drinks though.

Very high sugar content, but awesome in hot chocolate!

Condensed milk is sweetened, so add it to anything that you would normally add milk and sugar: coffee, hot chocolate, porridge…

It is available in tubes, which makes it a usefull emergency item: if you bonk or are becoming hypothermic, a mouthfull of the stuff really helps get you going again.
It is a lot more effective and palettable than these modern gells.

It's not UL, but sometimes it's worth it.

The stuff we have here is available un-sweetened also, which is great for meals. No more sugar than normal milk, and it's in powder form so it weighs almost nothing.

I think this thread is suffering from language differences in milk terminology!

In US/Canada, "Condensed Milk" refers to a thick, sweetened, syrupy concoction available in either cans (UK "tins") or — occasionally — in squeeze tubes. It is commonly used in baking/candy-making.

"Evaporated Milk" comes in cans, and is an unsweetened liquid, similar in consistency to light cream. Used to prepare Vietnamese-style iced coffee, or in baking.

"Powdered Milk" or "Dried Milk" is a white granular powder, unsweetened, that is mixed with water to create regular milk. Generally not seen to be as tasty as "regular" milk, it is, nonetheless, extremely useful for backpacking.

I haven't seen tubes of sweetened, condensed milk outside of Japan, but that is the best invention ever.

I agree that in the US "condensed milk" generally means sweetened, condensed milk and is always found in cans. I stock up on Trader Joe's seasonal offering in plastic bottles.

Milk Man powdered milk is quite palatable and available at REI. I haven't tried Nido, but finally located a source for it in San Francisco.

500ml of water boiled over Esbit, two teabags and two teaspoons of sweetened, condensed milk is my usual hot breakfast and really justifies carrying any cooking gear.

Tubes are available in France (and on line to the USA via thefrenchiegrocery.com).

But if you have a local Hispanic market, you can also get small plastic bottles of La Lechera brand. I'm also told that it's available in tubes at Vietnamese markets.

Thanks for the tip. Both of those options are available to me, I just haven't hit the right stores.

Amazon also stocks the 15 oz plastic La Lechera bottles, as well as a Trader Joe's equivalent organic version. There's also "Carnation Squeezy Condensed Milk" in a 170g tube, but at $9 per tube counting shipping that's mighty pricey.

In the UK, "Condensed Milk" also commonly refers to a thick, sweetened syrup available in either tins or in squeezy tubes.

Joel – I have never heard of a dried or powdered form of "condensed milk". Dried (powdered) milk is just that, either skimmed or semi-skimmed. Can you elaborate on what you are talking about?

Late to the party, but +1 on the Peak milk. I was even able to drink it at home…not the same as my milkman-delivered 2%, but still tasty enough. I just put my granola and freeze-dried fruit into a quart ziploc, add 1/3 cup Peak powder, and then add water at the appropriate time (enough water to cover the cereal mixture).

My bad – I do mean powdered milk. I'm going to have to try it with Muesli. Cereal on the go sounds like heaven!

I haven't seen anyone mention Instant Milk here.

I don't know if it's available outside of the US but it differs from Powdered Milk in the way it's dried out. Powdered Milk is mainly used for cooking and has a cooked taste to it, whereas Instant Milk can be reconstituted in cool water very easily and tastes almost exactly like fresh milk from a jug.

Instant Milk can easily be used in place of Powdered Milk for backpacking meals too.

In my experience, it also has a slightly longer shelf life than Powdered Milk.

I use it for all of Sarah Kirkconnells freezer bag cooking recipes, in place of the Powdered Milk.

I just bought some of the Peak dry milk on Amazon. I am amazed at how it tastes. It tastes just like whole milk, even a little fresher. I have spooned it into tea and it dissolves really well unlike the instant non-fat milk you get in the grocery store. I have made my own hot chocolate mix with it and, again, it dissolved really well. The only thing you see are some tiny, tiny specks of white which tend to go away with more stirring. Can't recommend it highly enough!

We have the tubes and cans in OZ.

http://shop.coles.com.au/online/SearchDisplay?pageView=image&catalogId=10576&beginIndex=0&langId=-1&storeId=10601&searchTerm=sweetened%20condensed%20milk

Joel, if you can get your hands on something called Milkman low fat milk powder, it is the best tasting powdered milk out there. It cuts it very close to tasting like real milk and is a pleasure in the morning with cereal or coffee after you've been on the trail a few days. Not sure if its available in the UK, but you could try their website http://www.milkmanmilk.com and maybe they would ship to you.

Your other option for powdered milk is Nestle Nido. This is a whole fat milk powder and so provides extra calories for hiking and tastes a little bit closer to coffee creamer or something like that.

Milkman definitely has the best taste, but Nido, being a Nestle product, might be more readily available to you. Hope this helps!

Is there a "regular", or unsweetened version? Because I've only had the sweetened condensed milk. I love taking some on trips (not UL by any means), but great addition to tea, coffee, granola, oatmeal or even buckwheat.

Pretty high in calorie content and tastes great at the end of a rough day.

A little trick from childhood – boil a can (must be a metal can, unopened) sweetened condensed milk at absolute minimum required for simmering for about 2 1/2 hours. Make sure no rumbling boil is going or it will exploded and coat your kitchen in sweet sticky mess. The result is "Dulce de leche" (a soft caramel, kind of like creme brulee in a way). It turns more solid and not runny, so it may be easier to pack in alternative packaging.

You can also buy plastic bottles for less weight, but can't boil that stuff obviously.

"Is there a "regular", or unsweetened version?"

Yes.