Few non-dairy milks work as both a beverage and cooking ingredient as well as rice milk, and none are as inexpensive to make. Unlike nut milks and soy, rice milk doesn't have much protein or fat, so it has less of an identifiable flavor. For example, when you drink almond milk, you taste almonds, but when you drink rice milk, you taste mild sweetness with no rice-like qualities. The technique used for making rice milk is the same as that used for nut and soy milk.
Pour 1 part short-grain brown rice in a saute pan; you need 1/2 cup of rice to make 2 cups of rice milk.
Toast the rice on the stove over medium heat until fragrant and slightly colored, about 4 to 5 minutes. Transfer the rice to a bowl.
Pour 4 parts water over the rice; cover the bowl with a plate to prevent debris or dirt from entering. Let the rice soak for 10 hours.
Transfer the rice and water to a blender after soaking. Add a pinch of salt and blend on high until smooth, about 2 minutes.
Pour the rice milk through a medium sieve lined with a couple layers of cheesecloth and into a glass storage container. You can also strain the rice milk using a nut-milk bag.
Chill the rice milk in the refrigerator until cold. Stir the milk before serving. Store rice milk in the refrigerator and use it within 5 days.
Tip
Add sweetener, such as honey or raw brown sugar, to the rice water to taste and blend it as usual. You can also add spices, such as nutmeg or vanilla, at this point.