Does Anyone Dilute Their Milk?

[schellie69]

I used to water down my milk when the kids were little now i use staight powdered milk and it is already low fat, plus the box takes up less room then regular milk would take up. i might have to check and see if watering the milk down would be cheaper, I just like the fact that with the powdered milk i don't have to worry if i run out I can make more, i just pick up a new box each week, which saves on gas also. I think i will just stick with the powdered milk, my 1/2 gallon jug takes up less room and since i make the milk almost everyday it is always fresh.

[beesue]

Thanks for the idea. I tried this for the first time a week or so ago, while I was still a "lurker" and it turned out great.

[bamamomto4]

I've been diluting my milk for about a year or two now. I buy the Wal-Mart brand whole milk,wait till half is gone and use the premeasured powdered milk. Noone knows the difference. if not,we'd go thru about 6 gals a week.This way...mostly only 3,sometimes less.

We have a milk gobble...her name is Jayme lol..all she wants is milk.

[molly]

I've doing this for about 2 years. I buy organic whole milk and dilute it. I have never had a problem with any recipes yet!

[baxjul]

Yes, I do this when no one is looking!

[jen k]

i don't dilute our milk except when i makes pancakes. when i make pancakes i use 1/3 to 1/2 water. no-one is the wiser. it makes the pancake batter easier to pour. my mom use to stretch the milk with powdered milk and water - i noticed a difference and vowed never to do it. if you and your family, however, don't mind the taste and you are getting enough calcium in your diet otherwise - go for it.

[bridge]

I make my own soymilk....... So I use water+soybeans

[staceyy]

Okay, I've gotten lazy, and besides, I've been having twice the amount of milk in the house now due to mixing, and its been going bad. I now buy a half gallon of milk instead of a gallon and mix it with half water as I use it. If a recipe calls for a cup of milk, I pour a half a cup of milk into the measuring cup and then add a half a cup of water. This works great for me. Dh is rarely in town, due to his job,and there are no kids at home.

[MarshHen]

With no small children at home now (Mickie is not a big milk drinker anymore) I go through a gallon a week. I did though, stretch my milk supply when the kids were small by adding powdered milk just as my mother used to do.

[Neeley]

We mainly use powdered milk, and dilute it quite a bit. Each packet is suppose to make a quart and we make a gallon out of it. Kids have never complained one bit, they are the ones who actually make it. If regular milk is marked down real low, I may pick up a gallon and dilute it as well. On average in a month I buy one large box of powdered milk for $4.96 and it usually lasts the entire month.

[she who can not cook]

i know this will be getting granny to suck eggs here but why not get cheap close to expiry milk and FREEZE iT ... that if its a big no to powdered? as only i use milk i use powdered all the time now

[frugal.lass]

I don't dilute my milk...I've tried powdered milk many times over for drinking and could never get used to it (although I do use it in baking). Now, I MAY have missed someone making this point when I read the thread but I've come across this same topic in a magazine at my doctor's office and the dietitian (sp?) wanted to remind everyone that water-diluted 2% milk is not the same as 1% milk. It's just watered down 2% milk, you might drink the same liquid volume amount but you will get less of the vitamins/minerals/etc. Basically she said that if you and your family are getting plenty of calcium beyond milk consumption, then diluting milk with water is not a huge issue but if you have picky eaters or kids who don't eat a lot of other sources of calcium, you could be inadvertantly setting kids up for "bone issues" down the road. I didn't get the impression that she was being paid by the "Milk Mafia" to try and sell more milk since she ended up listing a bunch of non-dairy calcium sources in her column.

I'm not trying to come down on people who stretch their milk...it's just that I know so many of you have kids (adorable ones at that!!!) and might want to consciously make sure they get calcium in other ways. Seriously, I hope I didn't offend anyone.
Liz

Oh...Also, where does everyone get their dried milk?? I moved recently and compared costs in my new area and the powdered milk costs the same or more than fresh milk...which I was very confused by. Any pointers?
-L

[staceyy]

I did not dilute 2% milk, I diluted whole milk with half water.I'm assuming diluting 2% milk would make the milk too watery for my taste. I do not recommend diluting milk for young children as they do need to drink whole milk to get the needed fat and calcium.

[FrugalWitch]

We only buy skim milk, so no I don't dilute mine. I do use powdered milk for cooking however.

Maybe this is a dumb question but instead of watering down a higher fat milk, why not just buy skim to begin with?

FrugalWitch

[Neeley]

Our kids were actually taken off of milk by their pediatrician and nutritionist. When DS was 6 months old he went on whole milk (100% off formula). By the time he was 1 year old he was drinking 3 gallons a day by himself. This was in addition to the baby foods he was eating and his juices. We were told by both the pediatrician and nutritionis DS was getting more than enough calcium inhis regular diet and the high caloric content of the milk was putting too much weight on him. This is why we dilute the powdered milk so much. Now that he is 11 his nutritionist still does not let him have any caloric drinks or ones with any sugar in them. He drinks unsweet tea, diet soda and water.
Our situation was unique, and I would have never cut out the milk in his diet had we not been told to do so.