Was up at CostCo the other day and saw this:
This is simply tetra-packed UHT milk. And…you can find UHT milk in the cooler at pretty much any supermarket. So, really, this isn’t necessarily a real find.
I have a love-hate relationship with milk – I hate it and love drinking anything else. Also, there are some questions I have about drinking cow milk. First off, I’m a human, not a cow. Would it not make more sense for me to drink the milk of my own species, which is by its nature, specifically designed for my particular organic makeup? And even then, once humans get past a certain age, milk doesnt provide the same benefits than what it provides when the human is newly minted and still developing. In short, I’m not a cow…how is drinking cow milk a good idea?
However….nothing is better on a bowl of cornflakes. Problem is, if I open a quart of milk there is no way I wind up using it all up before it goes bad. So, for me, the small bottles of UHT milk that last about six months in the fridge, unopened, make more sense.
Anyway, if you hate running out of milk, this is a possible way around that…buy a case, stick it in the fridge (or on a shelf) and youre covered. But…you could also just stroll down to WinCo, find the smaller bottles of UHT milk, stuff ’em in the back of your fridge, and have the same result as this stuff at CostCo.
But, still, its nice to see at CostCo.
I drink cow milk rather than human milk for the same reason I eat cow meat rather than human meat. That said, if things get really bad, I’m willing to be very flexible in my food choices.
Fairlife milk is a happy medium if you’ve seen that. Will last several weeks longer in the fridge than regular milk. Not as long as uht though.
Commander zero- so if I’m following your logic we should not eat cows but humans? 🙂
No, thats not an apples to apples comparison. My argument is that milk from cows is designed to meet the nutritional needs of calves, not people. The meat from cows is not designed to meet the nutritional needs of cows, thus comparison that meat from humans is best for humans is incorrect.
Milk has a complete profile of the amino acids humans can’t produce, so if you want to build or maintain muscle mass, it’s useful. Same goes for sheep, pig, and goat milk. How that happened in nature is beyond me. There is a subset of bodybuilders who buy and drink human milk using the logic you have, so there’s that.
You’re storing liquid. Liquid is heavy, consumes space, has special storage requirements.
Powdered milk is now very equal in price to regular milk. If put off by the taste, blend in with regular milk, or mashed garbanzo* beans.
*Depression era recipes used garbanzo in place of eggs or milk if need be.
I’ve never been much for drinking milk, probably due to an early (and thankfully outgrown) milk protean allergy. I do cook with it though so I wonder how UHT milk is for that, I figure for something it should be fine (chowder, sauce, etc.) though I do know it can’t be used for making cheese or other milk products.
The “new” aspect is that Costco is now carrying UHT WHOLE milk. They used to only offer chocolate, vanilla, and sometimes plain LOWFAT milk.
The big box size is a great backup to have on the shelf or in the fridge. The smaller boxes are good for putting in coffee over the weekend at the BOL, or a single bowl of cereal.
It is just one more tool in the toolbox, with alternatives, but it’s a welcome one.
n
BTW, my experience for unrefrigerated UHT milk is that it’s good for about 6 months past the Best By date. Beyond that it gets little tapioca like balls and more of the ‘caramel’ tastes. I didn’t have any ill effects from tasting some, but I consider it an expendable with a short rotation time. Refrigeration does seem to extend the usable storage time.