Condensed milk is
cow's milk from which water has been removed. It is most often
found in the form of sweetened condensed milk, with sugar
added, and the two terms 'condensed milk' and 'sweetened
condensed milk' are often used synonymously in the English
language today. Sweetened condensed milk is a very thick, sweet
product which when canned can last for years without
refrigeration if unopened. Though there have been unsweetened
condensed milk products, they spoiled far more easily and are
uncommon today. Condensed milk is used in numerous dessert
dishes in many countries, including the United States, Germany,
Argentina, Brazil, Hong Kong SAR, Lebanon, Russia, Â and
Sri LankaÂ
Condensed milk is used in recipes for the popular Brazilian
candy brigadeiro,
in which condensed milk is the main ingredient (the most famous
condensed milk brand in Brazil is Moça , local version of
Swiss Milch
Mdchen marketed by Nestl), lemon meringue pie, key
lime pie, caramel candies, and other desserts.
In parts of Asia and Europe, sweetened condensed milk is the
preferred milk to be added to coffee or tea. Many countries in
Southeast Asia, such as Vietnam, use condensed milk to flavor
their coffee; in Malaysia, teh
tarik is made from tea mixed with condensed milk; and
condensed milk is an integral element in Hong Kong tea culture.
In the Canary Islands, it is served as the bottom stripe in a
glass of the local caf
con leche. A popular treat in Asia is to put condensed
milk on toast and eat it in a similar way as jam and toast. In
West Yorkshire, in the years after World War II, condensed milk
was an alternative to jam. Nestl has even produced a squeeze
bottle similar to Smucker's jam squeeze bottles for this very
purpose. Condensed milk is a major ingredient in many Indian
desserts and sweets. While most Indians start with normal milk
to reduce and sweeten it, packaged condensed milk has also
become popular.
In New Orleans, it is commonly used as a topping on top of a
chocolate or similar cream flavor snowball. In Scotland, it is
mixed with sugar and some butter and baked to form a popular,
sweet candy called a Tablet or Swiss-Milk-tablet, this recipe
being very similar to another version of the Brazilian candy
brigadeiro called branquinho.
In some parts of the Southern U.S., condensed milk is a key
ingredient in lemon ice box pie, a sort of cream pie. In the
Philippines, condensed milk is mixed with some evaporated milk
and eggs, spooned into shallow metal containers over liquid
caramelized sugar, and then steamed to make a stiffer and more
filling version of crme caramel
known as leche
flan, also common in Brazil under the
name pudim
de leite.
In Mexico, sweetened condensed milk is one of the main
ingredients of the cold cake dessert (The leading brand , the
local version of Swiss Milch
Mdchen by Nestl), combined with evaporated milk,
Marie biscuits, lemon juice, and tropical fruit. In Brazil,
this recipe is also done exchanging fruit for puddings, most
commonly vanilla and chocolate, known as torta
de bolacha. It is also used to make homemadedulce
de leche by baking it in an oven. In Brazil, it is
common to do this by baking the closed can in
a bain-marie,
the result being doce
de leite. In Britain and Ireland, the contents of a
boiled can is used as the layer between biscuit base and the
banana and cream level in banoffee.
