Creative Ways To Use Up Whey
Don’t pour away your left over whey. Here is a list of creative ways to use up whey.
What is whey?
Whey is the cloudy, yellowish liquid that is leftover after milk is curdled. It’s packed full of protein, vitamins, minerals, and enzymes.
There are two kinds of whey :
1. Acid Whey- the whey from cheese in which an acid (like vinegar or lemon juice) has been added to aid in the curdling process. (Paneer, lemon cheese, or farmer’s cheese).
2. Sweet Whey– the whey from cheese that is cultured or curdled with rennet instead of additional acid. (Like soft cheeses and traditional mozzarella.)
(Please note: real whey is not the same as the powdered “whey” sold in health food stores. They are not interchangeable. )
Uses for Whey
1. Substitute whey in any baking recipe that calls for water (or even milk).
2. Use whey to lacto-ferment vegetables, condiments, sauerkraut, chutneys, jams, etc. This is an area that I have yet to really explore, but it’s on my list! This is an incredibly healthful form of preservation that increases the nutritional value of so many things. Check out the book Nourishing Traditions for more info on this topic. (It is important to use raw whey when you lacto-ferment– not acid whey or cooked whey.)
3. Use whey to soak grains, Nourishing Traditions style. Depending on your recipe, several tablespoons or more can be added to your grain and legume preparations to make them more digestible.
4. Freeze it for later. Try putting it in ice cube trays or small cups to make the proper portion sizes. Then pop out the frozen cubes and store in a baggie.
5. Use whey to cook pastas, potatoes, oatmeal, or rice. Boiling the whey will cause it to lose its raw properties. However, this is a wonderful way to use it up and add extra flavor to the foods.
6. Add whey to soups and stews. Perhaps it could take the place of some of your homemade stock or broth?
7. Add whey to homemade fruit smoothies, fruit slushies, or milkshakes.
8. Use whey as a hair product. Now, I personally have not yet tried this, so proceed with caution! But I have seen several sources recommend it as a shampoo substitute, hair rinse, or even as hair gel! Not sure if I’ll be trying this, but let me know if YOU do!
9. Feed it to the dogs. Our dogs love it when I pour a little whey on their dry food and make it into a cereal. It’s quite the treat.
10. Make whey lemonade. I’ve seen several delicious-sounding recipes for lemonade-type drinks using whey. It’s on my list of things to try this summer!
11. Use whey to water your plants. Dilute it with a good amount of water (straight whey will “burn” your plants- I learned this the hard way…) and pour on your veggies or flowers (avoid using acid whey here). Think how much your container garden would love that!
12. If you have farm animals feed extra whey to the farm critters. I know chickens love it.
13. Pour it in your compost bin. I have yet to do this, but it would be better than dumping it down the drain.
14. Make a whey marinade. Add your favorite spices and seasonings (garlic, salt, pepper, maybe some rosemary…Yum!) to the whey and allow it to marinate your steaks, chicken, fish, or pork chops. The enzymes in the whey help to break down the meat and add flavor.
15. Make lacto-fermented soda. There are tons of lacto-fermented soda recipes floating around that use whey for part of the fermenting process.
How long does whey last?
Whey can be placed in a covered container in your refrigerator, where it will keep for several months. It can also be frozen and used later (see #4 on my uses for whey list for more details on freezing whey).
Now surely I didn’t cover all the uses for whey… What are some of YOUR favorite uses for whey? Tell me in the comments below!