Learn how to make Vegan Sweetened Condensed Milk with only 4 ingredients! This sweet dairy-free syrup is the perfect substitute for your favorite vegan desserts or anywhere else condensed milk is called for.
If you’re looking for more DIY vegan staples, you’ll also love my Vegan Pastry Cream, my Vegan Heavy Cream Substitute, and my Heavy Whipping Cream Substitution recipes!
Baking is one of my favorite hobbies, especially now that I have this easy Vegan Sweetened Condensed Milk recipe in my back pocket. It’s my secret to making some desserts, like my Vegan Seven Layer Magic Bars, taste just like the traditional versions!
The best part about making this vegan condensed milk substitute is how surprisingly simple it is. All you need to do is simmer the 4 everyday ingredients—canned coconut milk (or coconut cream), sugar, vanilla, and salt—together until they thicken into a sweet syrup. Drizzle it over your favorite desserts right away or store it in the fridge or freezer until you’re ready to bake.
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“Thank you Nora for this awesome recipe… you have made my day! I’ve tried several vegan condensed milk recipes; yours is by far the best.” – Barbara
Is condensed milk vegan?
Traditional condensed milk is made with cow’s milk, so it isn’t vegan. Thankfully, my vegan condensed milk recipe is easy to make from scratch when you need a substitute. This non-dairy swap simmers canned full-fat coconut milk OR coconut cream, sugar, vanilla, and salt together until they turn into a thick, creamy, and sweet syrup that’s just as good as the dairy version.
How to make vegan sweetened condensed milk
Find the complete recipe with measurements in the recipe card below.
Add the canned coconut milk (or coconut cream), sugar, vanilla, and salt to a saucepan and heat over medium-high heat.
Whisk until the mixture starts to boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer. Keep simmering on low until the liquid reduces by about half (this should take around 40 to 45 minutes).
Set the vegan condensed milk aside to cool completely before chilling it in the fridge for at least 1 hour.
This is what it usually looks like after simmering, before cooling:
Ways to use vegan condensed milk
Vegan sweetened condensed milk can be used in any recipe that calls for condensed milk. Here are a few ways I like to use it:
- Cakes: It’s one of the three milks used in my Vegan Tres Leches Cake!
- Cookie Bars: My Vegan Millionaire Shortbread and my Seven Layer Bars wouldn’t be the same without dairy-free condensed milk.
- Ice Cream: Make a batch of the condensed milk before making my Dairy Free Ice Cream Recipe.
- Fruit: Drizzle it over fruit or serve it on the side for dipping.
- Drinks: Blend it into smoothies, stir it into iced coffee, or use it to make vegan-friendly Vietnamese iced coffee.
Check out my other Vegan Dessert Recipes if you’re looking for even more ways to use your sweetened condensed milk.
Frequently asked questions
Canned full-fat coconut milk or canned coconut cream will work best; however, I also tested this recipe with barista oat milk, and it worked very well! If you don’t want to use coconut cream/milk, feel free to use another high-fat plant milk instead (like full-fat oat milk).
Probably because it didn’t simmer long enough. If it still isn’t thick after simmering for 1 hour, set the condensed milk aside to cool. It should thicken after chilling in the fridge.
Since this is coconut-based, it will firm up quite a bit after it chills in the fridge. You can loosen it by leaving it on the kitchen counter for about 30 minutes or by microwaving it in 30-second intervals until it’s thinner.
Some readers have made this with cane sugar and coconut sugar and had good results! I haven’t tested this recipe with maple syrup, coconut sugar, and other sweeteners, so I can’t say if they will work or not. Let me know if you try it.
Store the leftover cooled vegan condensed milk in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 weeks or freeze it for up to 3 months. Thaw the condensed milk in the fridge overnight, then pour it into a bowl and whisk until smooth (or blend until smooth).
Vegan Sweetened Condensed Milk
Ingredients
- 13.5 ounce can coconut cream or full-fat coconut milk, or barista oat milk
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
- pinch of salt (~1/8th teaspoon)
Instructions
- In a small saucepan, combine the coconut cream (or coconut milk/barista oat milk), sugar, vanilla and salt over medium-high heat.
- Whisk well to combine and bring the mixture to a boil then quickly reduce the heat and simmer on low heat for 40-45 minutes, whisking every 5-10 minutes. The liquid should be reduced by about half when it's done. It will still be fairly thin at first, but as it cools it will thicken up nicely.
- Remove from heat and transfer to a glass container with a lid. Place in the refrigerator to chill for at least an hour before using.
- Leftover vegan condensed milk can be stored in a covered container for up to 2 weeks. To freeze, store in a jar with a tight fitting lid. When ready to use, thaw in the refrigerator overnight then add to a bowl and whisk until smooth (or throw it in a blender until smooth).
Notes
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Makes about 1 cup sweetened condensed milk.
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May substitute coconut sugar if desired, but the milk will be more golden in color.
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You can substitute maple syrup or agave for the sugar, but you will need to reduce the mixture for a longer amount of time, about 50-60 minutes.
- May also use a different plant milk, such as full-fat oat milk (or barista oat milk), soy milk, almond milk, cashew milk, etc. Use 1 1/2 cups of plant milk and 3/4 cup sugar. But the coconut version is the thickest.
Nora – what do you think of the same done but w/home-made cashew cream? I make a cashew cream w/ half the water:cashew ratio of cashew milk so it is thick. Have you tried that out too and felt the coconut cream route was better?
I haven’t tried it but it might work!
I make it with soy milk because I dont like the coconut flavor in my recipes.
Thank you for sharing!
Your recipes really help me accept this lifestyle my last holdout was coffee creamer! I just ordered your book.
Could I use this as a replacement in Key Lime Pie?
Yes, you can. Enjoy!
I made this with coconut sugar and loved it. Making it again for the second time.
Hi Kae. I’m glad you loved the milk! Thank you for your positive feedback!
I’ll start by saying the flavor of this is excellent! My only regret is that it didn’t thicken, even after an hour of simmering. I stirred every 10 minutes, but nothing really changed. I’m thinking that for tres leches it won’t matter that it’s thin.
So it will reduce in the pan, but not get thick until you chill it. 🙂
Any nutrition information available?
I have a Chefwave Milkmade. Looking to make my own ice cream. I am diabetic. Need to get some sort of handle on carbs and calories for key ingredients and finished ice cream.
Thanks!
Hi there, yes the nutrition information is in the bottom of the recipe card, under “Nutrition”.
Is it possible to use it for the caramel on the Millionaires shortbread, when the condensed milk is still hot?
Yes, I’ve used it for those.
Hi! Thanks for the recipe. Mine has gone completely solid after chilling, have not even put it in the fridge. Is there a way to fix this? I imagine perhaps I let it on the fire for too long. Tastes great though
Hi! You can warm it up a little and it should thin out. Because it’s coconut based, it will firm up quite a bit in the refrigerator. You can microwave it for 30 seconds at a time, stir, then heat again until it’s thinner. Hope that helps!
Hi 👋
Would I need to use the whole can of coconut cream as is or would I need to use the ‘solid’ parts once the can had been refrigerated? Thank you.
Yes, you’ll use the entire can of coconut cream as-is.
Thank you for asking this!
Does it set? I have a fudge recipe that uses condensed milk and chocolate chips and am wondering if I can make it with vegan ingredients. Thank you.
Hi Penny. This condensed milk can definitely be used to make fudge. I do not know what other ingredients your recipe calls for, however, this does take the place of condensed milk in recipes. I also have a vegan fudge recipe you may want to check out. I hope this helps!
I used coconut cream and the color was more like murky water (not yellow more brown/grey). I let it cool in the fridge and noticed the top half hardened and the bottom half was liquid but still the same color. Not sure what happened. Was trying to make your salted caramel brownies and I’m afraid to use this as it seems “off?!” Thoughts?
Was it simmered long enough? You could try whisking it to see if it becomes more cohesive. Otherwise, I’m not sure what could have gone wrong here.
Thank you, I will try to whisk it more tonight and see. I did simmer it for 45 minutes with whisking about every 5-10 minutes as instructed.
You are welcome!
Uhhh. Mine became literal taffy.. My stovetop admittedly runs high but i feel that perhaps 40 minutes on “low” may have been too long, just warning others.
Hi! Is it ok to double, triple this recipe?
Yes, it is fine.
If I use oat milk instead of the coconut milk/cream, you say it won’t be as thick but could you thicken it with corn starch or something like that to make it the same consistency?
I suppose you could, but it isn’t necessary. It will still thicken up quite a lot. I’m afraid it will get too thick if you add cornstarch, and perhaps create a strange texture.
This tastes great! The color is very off- like a brownish gray. I used the solid coconut cream from a can of coconut milk & poured the liquid off. I also ended up simmering for 75 minutes to reduce by half. Is there anything one could do to make it lighter and whiter in color, during or after cooking?
I’m not sure why yours turned out that color, mine is more of a cream color. After chilling it thickens and gets a bit more white though.
Is it normal for all the fat to form at the top once cooled ? Or did I mess up something?
No, it should be cohesive, and thick and creamy after cooling for 1-2 hours in the fridge.
I am referring to BANOFFEE PIE NOT HANOVER PIE, it altered itself!!!!!!
Hi Veronica. Another commenter tried this in a banoffee pie and said it worked quite well!
You says coconut CREAM. But then you indicate other MILKS would work. Do you mean coconut cream or full fat coconut milk? Or are there almond, soy or cashew creams available somewhere?
Thank you.
Coconut cream or full fat coconut milk work best here, but regular soy milk, cashew milk, almond milk will also work, it just won’t be as rich or creamy. Hope that helps clarify!
I used coconut cream and came out perfect!! Now waiting for an hour so I can use in my coquito with lots of rum!! 😉 thanks for recipe 👍
This sounds amazing. Will this condensed milk caramelize? I have been waiting for such a recipe so that I can surprise my husband with a vegan banofee pie!
That sounds like a wonderful surprise, Veronica! I haven’t tried to caramelize it before, but it’s worth a try! My caramel sauce could always be used in the pie instead.
I can’t believe how good this is and actually tastes like the real deal. With the first try it was like my childhood memories flushing! Like wow! And it’s so much better then store bought condensed coconut milk
Thank you ??
You are welcome, Kristina! Thank you for your great feedback! I’m so gad you loved the condensed milk!
This is ridiculously good!
Thank you!
Thank you Nora for this awesome recipe… you have made my day! I’ve tried several vegan condensed milk recipes; yours is by far the best.
Omg. This is amazing. Thank you.
You missed possibly the most exciting use for this stuff: donair sauce for dipping vegan garlic fingers. (If this particular regional delicacy is unfamiliar, google “Nova Scotia garlic fingers” and you’ll understand why this is so darned exciting! They’re so bad for you and so awesome all at once.)
(Ps: they are not usually vegan so you’d have to use whatever mozzarella sub you prefer, obvs. Still terrible for you but delicious. We make them all the time!)
Hi Nora, This recipe is a dream come true. I really missed condensed milk, but this is much better- not as sickenly sweet. All your recipes are amazing. I’m an ardent follower!
Hello Tamar! Thank you so much for using my recipes! I appreciate you taking your time to share your comments about my new condensed milk recipe! Enjoy all the fun things you’ll be making with the condensed milk, and happy cooking!
I made this sauce last weekend to put in the Banoffee pie I made as the dessert for, Thanksgiving, it was really good. Next time I’ll make it with condensed oat milk for a more authentic flavor.
This is awesome. Love that you clarified no coconut taste and gave some alternative milk instructions. The canned stuff was so expensive! I can make my family’s old fudge recipe now.
Thanks Elizabeth! I can’t explain just how much I love this stuff, it’s pretty amazing! It’s perfect in fudge, yum. Enjoy!