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Soyatoo! Rice Whip and Soy Whip
I Paid: $5.69 for a 7-ounce can (prices may vary by region)
Frequent readers of this column know that I have a weakness for vegetarian and vegan imitations of real food. These products are always perceptibly different, and they usually fall short, but watching where and how they swerve from their inspirations—and how the packaging reflects the compromises—never ceases to be interesting. And it's often amusing.
Take, then, the case of Soyatoo! Soy Whip and Rice Whip. Both of these whipped cream imitators are comparatively low-calorie, dairy-free, and cholesterol-free, and the Rice Whip is even soy-free. (I guess Soy Whip is rice-free, if we're keeping score.)
It seemed relatively clear that these suckers were going to fall short of the richness and sweetness of their dairy counterparts, but by how much?
By quite a lot, that's how much. Writing as an open-minded dude who has permanently ditched his morning half-and-half for a coconut-milk-based creamer, these whips are a solid disappointment. First of all: They're meant to be stored in the fridge. But! And this is an important but, they need to be thawed at room temperature before they can be used. The Rice Whip in particular stayed in a clunky block for a solid 30 minutes before it finally loosened up enough to be propelled as a foam. What percentage of whipped cream uses is impulse? It varies from person to person, but in my household it's pretty high. Ain't no thawing standing between any respectable American and an ice cream sundae.
The thawing thing could be overcome, however, if the stuff was delicious. It's not delicious. The Soy Whip is strongly nutty and doesn't add much, if any, creamy texture to hot cocoa, for example. It's also not particularly sweet. The Rice Whip, once finally thawed out, has an odor reminiscent of those packing peanuts that dissolve in water. Sweetened with what must have been only a few dozen molecules of rice syrup, it cries out for vanilla and sugar. To the credit of both whips, however, the light, fluffy texture is pretty good, and the sound they make coming out of the can ("PFFFFFSSHHHPFFFSH") is just about right. Too little, too late, though—if it's not something that can be merrily sprayed on a dessert, it can take a hike, particularly at more than $5 a can. That said: A little flavor tinkering could, for future iterations, really go a long way.
I'm surprised to read this. As an omnivore chef who's always curious about alternative products, I sampled the soy version of this product awhile ago, and I was actually pretty impressed with the flavor. I wasn't a huge fan of it straight-up (no squirting directly into my mouth), but in ice cream sundaes and on pie, it was surprisingly good. I can't remember if I had to let the product "thaw" for...+READ
I'm surprised to read this. As an omnivore chef who's always curious about alternative products, I sampled the soy version of this product awhile ago, and I was actually pretty impressed with the flavor. I wasn't a huge fan of it straight-up (no squirting directly into my mouth), but in ice cream sundaes and on pie, it was surprisingly good. I can't remember if I had to let the product "thaw" for awhile before using, though.-COLLAPSE
alternatively i was thinking of using a soy creamer, with flavoring and sweetener, in one of those cream whipper canisters. I've seen them used on cooking programs to make things like pineapple mouse, which was just a pineapple cream puree, or milk foam/whipped milk. Of course most of those canisters are pretty pricey but if you have one on hand it might be a fun experiment.
@eclecticveggie that sounds AWESOME! I'm definitely going to have to try that out my friend is a vegan and when we have dinner or make desserts it's incredibly hard to come up with alternatives for her. Plus this'll be great for her birthday cakes!
They can defat coconut milk just like they can anything else. It's also one of the so-called 'good fats'.
I see that the coco foam is based on coconut milk. When I see coco mentioned I always think of coconut oil which is loaded with saturated fats, even though it's not an animal product. So how much coconut oil is in this product?
My comment is directed at the coconut milk idea - NancySL and I posted at the same time, and so my comment is our of order :)
Okay, that sounds even better than whipped cream! I will have to try that, and I am a devoted consumer of meat!
I've been using Soyatoo Soy Whip for a couple of years -- I'm dairy sensitive and it's been a great substitute on a once in a while basis, but last year they changed the formula and now you do have to keep it out for at least 15 minutes or nothing comes out of the can, which is annoying. I don't think it tastes as good as it used to either. In the past I made a soft tofu based whip which was...+READ
I've been using Soyatoo Soy Whip for a couple of years -- I'm dairy sensitive and it's been a great substitute on a once in a while basis, but last year they changed the formula and now you do have to keep it out for at least 15 minutes or nothing comes out of the can, which is annoying. I don't think it tastes as good as it used to either. In the past I made a soft tofu based whip which was pretty good.-COLLAPSE
I'm not vegan but I fell in love with one, and I refuse to ever let him touch that stuff. The best vegan whipped cream: take one can full-fat coconut milk and refrigerate at least 4 hrs. Scoop out the fat that has solidified on top, add sugar and a dash of the coconut water left in the can and whip just like it was heavy cream. Deeeelish and all natural.