Evaporated Milk Vs Sweetened Condensed Milk: What They Are And When You Should Use Them

For some cooks, evaporated and condensed milk are the type of ingredients that find themselves at the back of the pantry without much thought. Perhaps you needed a teaspoon of dairy while making a recipe some months ago, but now you're left with two seemingly identical products and no idea how to get rid of them. And the two definitely have their similarities: Both evaporated milk and sweetened condensed milk (also just called condensed milk) are made by removing about 60% of the water from fresh milk, which concentrates the flavor and texture. Both types of milk are also safe to keep in your pantry for long periods of time. However, when it comes to taste, the two products serve very different roles.

The main difference between evaporated milk and condensed milk is the amount of sugar that's added after the water has been removed. Evaporated milk has no added sweetness, while sweetened condensed milk can be made of up to 45% sugar. This results in an incredibly sweet, creamy ingredient that's thicker than evaporated milk and used in an array of different recipes.

Typically, evaporated milk is added to dishes that require extra cream or richness, such as soups, casseroles, and pastas. Along with enhancing savory dishes, evaporated milk is also an important part of many sweet recipes, like tres leches rice pudding. Since it's basically just extra intense milk, it is also used as a creamer for tea or coffee. You can even make evaporated milk at home. Unlike condensed milk, evaporated milk can have different fat percentages like low-fat or whole.

As you might assume based on its sugar content, sweetened condensed milk is mostly intended to add a delectable punch of sweetness to anything it's added to. You can add some to your morning coffee, something one Redditor described as a "transcendent" experience. Since it's a sweet treat all by itself, some people love to keep a can in the refrigerator and enjoy a spoonful every now and then. Or, you can make delicious dulce de leche by simply cooking the condensed milk over the stove. You can use sweetened condensed milk to improve any number of snacks, from ice cream to Rice Krispie Treats.

Substituting evaporated milk for condensed milk, or vice versa, is tricky and not usually recommended without making some adjustments. Due to the vastly uneven sugar content, they don't provide the same flavor profile or consistency. However, if you're having a cooking emergency, there are some workarounds. If you need condensed milk but only have evaporated milk, you can use the latter as you would the former. You'll just have to add extra sugar to the evaporated milk to fill in the sweetness of condensed milk.

On the flip side, if you only have condensed milk and need evaporated milk, you're better off just using some light cream or another dairy alternative. In order to use condensed milk as a substitute, you would have to go through a long process of thinning it out and removing all the sugar, or finding where you can take sugar out of the recipe you're following. Overall, trying to swap in condensed or evaporated milk usually isn't worth it. The taste and texture are too different, so you probably just make sure you keep a can or two of each tucked safely away in your pantry.