Salter EK5258 Plant Milk Maker review

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Plant milks have won the hearts of people everywhere thanks to their great-tasting flavours, versatility, and most importantly cruelty-free production methods.

Although making plant milk requires very few ingredients, many of us still buy shop-bought versions. We get it, making your own plant milk requires time and energy – or does it?

Enter the Salter Plant Milk Maker.

This machine promises to make litres of fresh plant milk in minutes by blending a variety of nuts and grains including oats, hazelnuts, almonds, soy, and cashews.

What’s more, as the cost of living crisis continues, the Plant Milk Maker pledges to help you save money. According to Salter, the average supermarket 1-litre oat milk carton costs £1.76, whilst 1 litre of oat milk made in the plant milk maker costs just £0.03.

Pretty impressive, huh? We got our hands on the Salter Plant Milk Maker to put it to the test.

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Technical details

• ‎Dimensions: 23.5 x 16.4 x 29cm
• Functions: Plant milk maker and blender
• Capacity: 1.6L
• Dishwasher safe?: No
• Where to buy: Amazon

Pros

• Makes large amounts of plant milk in minutes
• Can create a variety of plant milk along with fruit juices and pesto
• Handy recipe book
• Cost-effective compared to shop-bought plant milk
• Multi-functional

Cons

• Awkward to clean
• Loud when in use
• Quite bulky

Ease of setting up

I was surprised by the size of the Salter Plant Milk Maker – it was larger and bulkier than I expected.

The machine comes with a filter and collector container, plus a recipe booklet and instructions. The instructions are thorough and talk you through setting up the milk maker, how to clean and care for it, and features additional tips to get the most out of the machine.

Both the jug and lid are electrical so can’t be submerged underwater. I did find that this made the general cleaning of the machine slightly awkward as you need to be cautious not to get the electric components wet. This being said, you can add warm soapy water to the jug and blend to remove stubborn dried food deposits, which is much easier.

Setting up the milk maker was straightforward – once plugged in, a filter basket attaches to the lid. This basket is where you store the oats, nuts, or other main ingredients.

Next, I added water to the jug – there is a min and max line for how much water can be added. The minimum amount is 1300ml and the max is 1600ml.

There are two functions to choose from – plant milk or blender, both are pretty self-explanatory. The blender option doesn’t require the filter basket and can be used to make smoothies, juices, sauces, etc.

For best results, it recommends soaking nuts, grains, and seeds overnight to create a creamier texture.

Making oat milk

Oat milk is one of the most popular plant milk, so I thought that it was the perfect drink to test out first in the milk maker.

I added 1.3L of water to the jug before adding roughly 40 grams of oats to the filter basket.

Once the lid was secured, I selected the plant milk option and within seconds a creamy cloud appeared and quickly transformed the water into a milky substance. The blender was quite loud, but this can’t really be helped with these types of machines. Within a minute, the oat milk was ready.

Truthfully, my oat milk wasn’t as creamy as the one you’d find at the supermarket, but I put that down to the fact that I had used just oats and water and no other additional ingredients.

I added a splash of homemade oat milk to my cup of tea and it tasted ok, it wasn’t as thick or creamy as other oat milk but it did the job. For my first attempt at making my own oat milk, I wasn’t entirely disappointed.

Despite it not being as creamy, I was still impressed. Within a minute I has over a litre of oat milk which required just 40 grams of oats and water costing me pennies!

Getting creative with plant milk

Next, I wanted to try out a milk recipe from the recipe booklet included with the machine.

The recipe booklet is really useful to get you started on your plant milk-making journey, plus it gives you ideas on how to use the pulp that is left after the oats or nuts have been blended to avoid food waste.

Some of the milk recipes include Almond Milk Chai, Iced Vanilla Cold Brew, and fresh blueberry milkshake. For the test, I chose to make Cashew Cinnamon Milk.

The recipe was pretty simple, it included cashews (obviously), maple syrup, cinnamon powder, vanilla extract, sea salt, and water.

Following the instructions, I soaked the cashews beforehand. I didn’t have time to soak them overnight, so instead, I soaked them in boiling water for 3-4 hours before adding them to the filter basket.

After adding the flavourings to the water, I popped the lid on and let the machine work its magic.

I was much happier with the taste of the cashew milk, it definitely needed the added flavourings to bring the plant milk to life.

It was creamy and moreish, perfect for adding to creamy desserts or to enjoy on its own.

Overall verdict of the Salter Milk Maker

The Salter Milk Maker was a winner for me, I was blown away by how easy it was to recreate plant milk using a few ingredients and water. Not only does it get you thinking creatively about the different creamy concoctions you can create, but it can help you save money.

The machine’s multi-functionality means you can also use it as a blender, reducing the number of appliances you have to accommodate in your kitchen.

I particularly loved the recipe booklet – there were plenty of plant milk ideas to choose from and the additional recipes that help you use up the leftover pulp are genius!

Although I found the machine itself to be quite bulky and awkward to clean, I still think this is a great kitchen gadget, especially if you are a larger family that consumes a lot of plant milk.

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