Dairy Free Guide

Why go dairy free?

A dairy free diet may be necessary for a variety of reasons:

• Lactose intolerance is when your body doesn’t produce the enzyme lactase to breakdown the carbohydrate lactose. Symptoms include gas, diarrhea, bloating, pain, and nausea. You may find some lactose-free dairy products or choose to go dairy free for the management of symptoms.

• A dairy allergy is different to lactose intolerance. A dairy allergy is more related to a reaction to casein or whey, which are other proteins in dairy containing foods. Symptoms may include hives, wheezing, itching around the mouth, swelling of the lips, mouth or throat, difficulty breathing, and/or vomiting.

• For the management of another health condition. Several health conditions have be associated with improvements after a dairy free diet has been implemented, including eczema, asthma, acne, IBS, headaches, migraines, endometriosis, autoimmune diseases, and more.

Which foods contain dairy?

The obvious ones, like cow’s milk, butter, yogurt, cheese, cream, custard, chocolate, ice-cream, and pastries. But once you begin looking on the ingredients list of your packaged foods, you might be surprised where you find hidden dairy sources.

Many of these super market items will contain dairy: crackers, potato chips, cereals, granolas, muesli bars, ready-to-go meals, naan, burger buns, brioche, croutons, deli meats, sausages, flavoured canned fish, mayonnaise, aioli, ghee, margarine, salad dressings, marinades, spices mixes, gravy blends, and more.

On food labels, you may see these variations of dairy: casein, whey, rennet, milk solids, and/or milk powder.

Where do I get my calcium from on a dairy free diet?

Fear not! You can find calcium in many non-diary foods: sardines, prawns, tofu, seaweed (nori, wakame, dulse), calcium fortified plant milks, almonds, oysters, salmon (with bones), leafy green vegetables, chia seeds, broccoli, figs, tahini (ground sesame seeds), flaxseed meal, and oranges.

My recommendations for dairy free alternatives:

Most of these options can be found in local health-food stores and grocers including IGA, Harris Farm, and Supabarn. Some of these options can be found at Coles and Woolworths.

Milk:

• Oat Milk - Oat Milk Goodness, Oatly, Vitasoy, Minor Figures

• Soy Milk - Bonsoy, Happy Happy Soy Boy, Vitasoy

• Coconut Milk - Pure Harvest Coco Quench

• Macadamia Milk - Australia’s Own

• Almond Milk - Pure Harvest Unsweetened Almond Milk, Almo

Butter:

• Nut based vegan butters - Nutty Bay, Botanical Cuisine, The Vegan Dairy

• Vegan Ghee - Niulife

• Homemade Vegan Butter Recipe - swap out canola oil for avocado oil

Cheese:

• Dairy Free Down Under - range of cheese styles including mozzarella, cheddar, cream cheese, tasty cheese, parmesan, and feta

• Nutty Bay - range of cashew cheeses, which are great to use as dips and spreads

• The Vegan Dairy - range of mozzarella, cheese-board options, and feta

• Tofutti - range of cream cheese and sour cream

Cream:

• Made with Plants

• Vegan Cream Recipe

• Vegan Sour Cream Recipe

• Vegan Whipped Cream Recipe

Ice-cream:

• Pana, Snackboy, Oatly

Chocolate:

• Standard chocolate alternatives: Pana, Vego, Lindt 70% + Dark, Pico, Sweet Williams

• Low sugar options: Googy Good Choc, Loving Earth, Little Zebra