Goat Milk substitute

Best substitute

Whole cow's milk, plain or with a spoonful of chevre whisked in

Use the same amount plus 1 tablespoon soft goat cheese per cup if you want the tang back as the goat milk you are replacing

Best for cakes, scones, bread and all baking

Different taste

Whole cow's milk swaps in one for one in every baked good, sauce, custard and drink, and the only thing you lose is the tang, so the result tastes rounder, sweeter and blander. To bring the goaty note back, whisk a tablespoon of soft goat cheese into each cup of cow's milk and warm it gently, which is the best trick here because chevre is stocked in far more shops than goat milk is. Sheep's milk is the closest flavour match if you can find it, richer and also tangy. Two things worth knowing before you swap: goat milk is not lactose free, and it is not a safe substitute for a diagnosed cow's milk protein allergy, because the proteins are similar enough that many people react to both.

Other goat milk substitutes

Ranked, with the exact amount to use

2Sheep's milk
Close match
Use the same amount
The closest match on flavour of anything on this list.
What changes
Also tangy, also small-globuled, and considerably richer.
Best for
fresh cheeses and yogurt, custards and ice cream, panna cotta, rich baking, drinking
Noticeably higher in fat and total solids than either goat or cow's milk, so a custard or an ice cream made with it comes out richer and denser, sometimes almost too rich, and a yogurt made with it sets thicker. The tang is there but reads sweeter and more buttery than goat's sharper edge. Harder to find and more expensive than goat milk in most places, which limits how often this is a practical answer.
3Evaporated or powdered goat milk, rehydrated
Close match
Equal parts evaporated goat milk and water, or follow the tin
Shelf-stable goat milk, sold in tins and in powder, and much easier to find than the fresh version in ordinary supermarkets.
What changes
Best for
baking, cajeta and caramel, custards and puddings, keeping some in the cupboard for a recipe that calls for it
Genuinely goat milk, so the flavour is right, with a slightly cooked, faintly caramel note from the heat processing that fresh milk does not have. In a caramel or a bake that is an advantage. In a glass of milk or a delicate panna cotta it is detectable. Powdered goat milk is also useful for boosting the solids in a yogurt or an ice cream without adding liquid.
4Buttermilk or kefir
Different taste
Use the same amount but only where the recipe was not already balancing acid
The option to pick when the reason the recipe calls for goat milk is its tang rather than its fat.
What changes
Best for
scones, soda bread and biscuits, marinades, pancakes, cold soups and dressings
Far more acidic than goat milk, which is the whole point and also the risk. If the recipe already contains baking soda in a quantity calculated for a neutral milk, swapping in buttermilk changes the rise and can leave a soapy taste from unreacted soda or a flat crumb, so do not make this swap into a recipe whose leavening has already been balanced around acid. In a marinade or a dressing it is straightforwardly good.
5Unsweetened cashew or oat milk
Taste and texture differ
Use the same amount
The dairy-free route, and a genuine compromise rather than a match, which is worth saying plainly.
What changes
Best for
cakes, muffins and quick breads, porridge and smoothies, creamy soups, in the case of cashew milk, coffee
You lose the tang, the protein and most of the fat, so custards set softer, sauces thicken less, and anything relying on milk protein for structure comes out looser. Cashew milk is the richest and most neutral and the best choice for a savoury cream sauce; oat milk is sweeter and better in a bake. Neither will taste anything like goat milk, so if the recipe exists for the flavour, this swap is not the one. It is the answer only when dairy is off the table entirely.
6Nothing quite works, for cajeta and fresh goat cheese
Taste and texture differ
Least-bad: cow's milk, which gives you dulce de leche rather than cajeta
The honest limit.
What changes
A few things are defined by goat milk and become a different, often excellent, dish without it.
Best for
cajeta, Mexican goat milk caramel, chevre and other fresh goat cheeses, goat milk yogurt, any dish whose name includes goat
Cajeta made with cow's milk is dulce de leche: delicious, sweeter, more straightforwardly milky, and missing the tangy edge that keeps cajeta from cloying. Fresh goat cheese cannot be made from cow's milk at all in any meaningful sense, since the soft crumbly texture comes from goat casein forming a weaker curd. In these cases buy the goat milk or make the cow's milk version knowingly rather than expecting a match.

What is Goat Milk?

Goat Milk is Goat milk is whole milk from goats, with roughly the same fat content as cow's milk but in much smaller fat globules and with no beta-carotene, which makes it whiter, softer-curdling and gives it the faintly tangy, grassy note people call goaty.

Cooking tips

Goat milk scorches and curdles a little more readily than cow's milk, because its fat globules are finer and its curd is softer. Heat it gently, stir more than you would with cow's milk, and use a heavy pan. In a custard, keep the heat low and do not walk away.
It does not throw a cream layer the way non-homogenised cow's milk does, because the fat globules are too small to rise, which is why goat butter and goat whipping cream are hard to find and expensive. If a recipe wants goat cream, you generally cannot make it by letting goat milk stand.
Goat milk yogurt sets thinner than cow's milk yogurt, again because of the softer curd. Strain it in a cloth-lined sieve for a couple of hours, or whisk in a tablespoon of powdered milk per cup before culturing, if you want a Greek thickness.
For cajeta, use four cups of goat milk to one cup of sugar with a pinch of baking soda, simmered slowly for an hour to an hour and a half until it is amber and coats a spoon. The baking soda is not optional decoration, it keeps the milk from curdling as it concentrates and acidifies, and without it the caramel breaks.
Freeze leftovers in an ice-cube tray. Goat milk is expensive and has a short shelf life, so if you bought a litre for one recipe, the rest thaws perfectly well for baking, porridge and sauces even though thawed milk is slightly grainy for drinking.
The goaty flavour is strongest in raw milk and in milk that has been sitting, and much milder in fresh, well-chilled pasteurised goat milk. If you are avoiding a recipe because you expect it to taste strongly of goat, a fresh carton is likely to be far gentler than you fear.

Frequently asked questions

Can I use cow's milk instead of goat milk?

Yes, one for one, with no adjustments, in baking, sauces, custards, drinks and porridge. The two milks are close enough in fat and protein that they behave nearly identically. What changes is flavour: cow's milk is rounder, sweeter and blander, and the tangy, faintly grassy note disappears. If that note matters to the dish, whisk a tablespoon of soft goat cheese into each cup of warmed cow's milk to bring it back.

Is goat milk lactose free?

No. It contains lactose in roughly the same range as cow's milk, slightly less in some analyses but not meaningfully so. The reason it is often described as easier to digest is a different one: the fat globules are smaller and the curd it forms is softer, which some people find sits better. If you need lactose free, look for a lactose-free cow's milk, a plant milk, or take the enzyme you would normally take.

Is goat milk safe if I am allergic to cow's milk?

Not reliably, and this is important rather than a technicality. Goat and cow milk proteins are similar enough that most people with a diagnosed cow's milk protein allergy react to goat milk too. A milk allergy is a medical matter, so the person to ask is the doctor or dietitian managing it, not a recipe. If you need certainty, a plant milk avoids the question entirely, with cashew or oat milk being the closest in cooking.

What can I use instead of goat milk for cajeta?

Cow's milk, and the result is dulce de leche rather than cajeta. It is genuinely delicious and works exactly the same way in a recipe, but it is sweeter and more straightforwardly milky, missing the tangy edge that stops cajeta becoming cloying. Half goat and half cow's milk is a good compromise if you have a small amount of goat milk. Rehydrated evaporated or powdered goat milk also works well here, and the slightly cooked note is no disadvantage in a caramel.

Where do I actually find goat milk?

Fresh goat milk turns up in health food shops, farm shops, Middle Eastern and Latin American grocers and some larger supermarkets, usually in small cartons and at a noticeably higher price than cow's milk. Evaporated goat milk in tins and powdered goat milk are far easier to find and keep in the cupboard, and both are true goat milk, so if a recipe calls for goat milk and the fresh version is nowhere to be had, those are the substitutions that keep the flavour intact.

Can I just leave the goat milk out?

Only where it is a minor liquid. In baking it is most of the moisture, in a custard it is the body of the dish, and in a fresh cheese it is the whole thing, so it has to be replaced rather than omitted. Cow's milk at one for one is the simplest replacement in almost every case. The only situation where leaving it out makes sense is a splash in a coffee or a drizzle over porridge, where you are choosing a garnish rather than an ingredient.

Related substitutes

More dairy substitutes

Goat Milk substitute

Other goat milk substitutes

2Sheep's milk

3Evaporated or powdered goat milk, rehydrated

4Buttermilk or kefir

5Unsweetened cashew or oat milk

6Nothing quite works, for cajeta and fresh goat cheese