Chufa milk is a great nut-free alternative to plant-based milk. It’s incredibly sweet and flavorful and requires just two ingredients: chufa and filtered water. Drink it as is, use it as a coffee or matcha creamer for your morning cereal or granola, or use it as a nut-free, dairy-free milk for baking. Chufas are rich in fiber, magnesium and potassium and are allergen-free and keto-friendly.
What are chufa / chufa?
Chufas are written as two words or as one word; they are the same, and both are correct. I prefer to write it ‘chufa’; this is how you will find it in most of my recipes and previous posts.
Despite the name, guavas are not nuts; are the small tubers of Yellow Nutsedge (Cyperus esculentus), grown in southern Europe, Africa, the Middle East and the Indian subcontinent.
It is also known as chufa shufa i ground almonds. They can be eaten raw, soaked or roasted and ground into flour.
For its hard and dry texture, whole Chufas are usually soaked before eating.
Why are chufas becoming popular?
- Chufas can be eaten raw or cooked, whole or crushed into flour
- Chufas are a great source of vegetable protein
- Chufas are exceptionally rich in fiber and nutrients such as magnesium, potassium, phosphorus and vitamin E.
- Chufas are keto compatible
- Chufas are naturally sweet, fruity and nutty and are allergy friendly and compatible with most diets.
- soaked and mixed with water, guavas make a great nut-free, dairy-free milk.
- Chufa flour is ideal for baking
25 persimmons contain more potassium than a banana.
Where to find whole chufa?
Chufas can be found in the gluten-free sections of some supermarkets or health food stores. There are quite a few options on Amazon US; these are three of them:
- Anthony’s Organic Shelled Nuts, 12 oz, Raw, Gluten-Free, Non-GMO, Paleo-Friendly
- Chufa – Ready-to-Eat Dried Chufa – Gemini Low Calorie Chufa 12oz (2 Pack) – Raw, Vegan, Gluten-Free, High Fiber Chufa – Organic Chufa, Nut Free for Digestive and Heart Health
- XAFA – PREMIUM ORGANIC (12 oz) | High fiber, gluten-free, GMO-free
Ingredients and tools to make jufa milk at home
Although finding chufa milk to buy is almost impossible (yet!), it’s super easy to make at home (and definitely healthier). You just need whole chufa, filtered watera food processora blenderalready bag of nut milk or a fine mesh sieve.
Optionally, you can add a sweetener or a dried date to the blender, vanilla or heated spices, or even a little sea salt. But considering that persimmons are already naturally sweet and have a fruity, nutty flavor, this milk doesn’t need much to be tasty.
i used to shufa peels for this recipe, but the whole, unpeeled chufa can be used as the pulp will be discarded anyway.
How to make jufa milk at home?
- Soak the whole chuffes in filtered water overnight (I cover them and keep the container in the fridge).
- In the morning, drain the soaking water, add the soaked chuffs to a food processor and process until ground.
- Transfer the ground chufas to a blender, add water and blend until it resembles milk. Mix the guavas and water in batches if you have a smaller blender, like a Nutribullet.
- Using a bag of nuts, separate the pulp from the liquid.
- Store the milk in a glass bottle in the refrigerator for up to a week.
Can chufa milk be boiled?
Chufa milk can be boiled, so it is excellent for hot lattes.
Chufa horchata
Chufa horchata is a Spanish drink served cold, made of chufa milk, sugar and cinnamon. The ratio of chufa to water is usually 1:2, which I think is unnecessary. My homemade chufa milk ratio is almost 1:4.
If you want, you can play with different ratios and decide which one you like best. Chufas are quite expensive, so for me, the 1:4 ratio is perfect. The milk is creamy, thick enough, tasty and sweet.
As for the sugar, it is unnecessary, as the persimmons are already very sweet.
Check out this article to learn more about how I quit sugar over 5 years ago:
How to use milk?
This amount makes about 1L (about 5 cups), which is so delicious and can be consumed in many different ways:
- drink it as it is, cold or hot
- I used it to make coffees with coffee or matcha tea
- serve it with granola or cereal
- use it for baking
- as a substitute for almond milk, oat milk or any other vegetable milk
Serve with our Crunchy Sugar Free Granola with Green Bananas.
Use it to dip our gluten-free almond biscotti with guava flour.
For another nut-free plant-based milk alternative, check out our hemp seed milk recipe.
This post contains affiliate links, which means I receive a small commission if you decide to purchase something through one of my links, at no extra cost to you..
Ingredients
- 1 cup of whole chufa (peeled or unpeeled) + filtered water to soak them
- About 900 ml (3 1/2 cups) of filtered water to make the milk
- Optional: a date or sweetener, a little salt, vanilla, heated spices
Instructions
Soak the whole chuffes in filtered water overnight (I cover them and keep the container in the fridge).
In the morning, drain the soaking water, add the soaked chuffs to a food processor and process until ground.
Transfer the ground chufas to a blender, add the 900ml of filtered water and blend until it looks like milk. If you have a smaller blender like a Nutribullet, blend the chutneys and water in batches.
Using a bag of nuts, separate the pulp from the liquid.
Store the milk in a glass bottle in the refrigerator for up to a week.