On the hunt for dairy free chocolate that’s as sweet and delicious as the real deal? If you’re new to eating dairy-free you may be wondering whether chocolate is still for you. Let us be the first to assure you: you can still eat chocolate!
Giving up dairy doesn’t mean you’re relegated to the carob section of your favourite (online) health food store for the rest of your days. The truth is, chocolate doesn’t need dairy to be delicious. In fact, dairy free chocolate has been known to sway even the most devoted milk chocolate aficionado.
Brands who’ve perfected the craft of creating delectable dairy free chocolate know the secret to great-tasting chocolate does not lie in added milk products. The flavour that hooks us all in after that first bite lies in the cacao bean, with its sultry aroma and rich chocolatey taste. It’s the key to a great bar of chocolate, be it dairy chocolate, vegan chocolate or dairy free chocolate.
What makes chocolate dairy free?
So what exactly is dairy free chocolate? There can be some confusion over what to look out for when searching for dairy free chocolate. It’s understandable people might assume all chocolate contains dairy. After all, the conventional chocolate lining supermarket shelves and taking up TV air-time is brimming with dairy products.
But that is not pure chocolate. The lengthy list of ingredients is laced with all kinds of dairy related ingredients, like milk solids, whey, milk powder and others. Pure chocolate starts with a base of cacao, cacao butter and a natural sweetener like coconut sugar.
Not all diary free chocolate is labelled as such and figuring out whether or not a bar of chocolate is dairy free or vegan friendly might sound arduous but it’s actually really simple.
Look for quality dark chocolate that’s made from at least 50 per cent cacao. Like all foods, the shorter the ingredients list the better.
Is dairy free chocolate vegan chocolate?
Yes and no. Dairy free chocolate is naturally vegan chocolate as well, provided it does not contain animal-derived products like honey or, depending on your version of veganism, refined sugar. In short, dairy free chocolate is the kind of chocolate vegans can eat - and lots of non-vegans love it too! Plus, there are a whole lot of delicious options out there to choose from! The best part is sampling them all to find your favourite…
All of the chocolate listed here is dairy free, vegan and lactose free. And if, like us, you love to support Australian businesses there’s a slew of dairy free chocolate made right here in Australia in the mix too.
No matter your dietary preference there’s one thing we can all agree on: chocolate must taste good. In theory it should be simple, but the fact is finding a delicious tasting dairy free chocolate you love can be a convoluted road to the holy grail of chocolates.
We love a good chocolate - especially the dairy-free and/or vegan kind - and we’re well-versed in sampling the goods. So in a bid to help you on your way to dairy free chocolate bliss, we’re sharing a few of our favourites from the mix..
