Whey is the byproduct of making cheese, yogurt, and other cultured dairy products. It’s packed with protein and nutrients and tastes delicious in bread and baked goods. This list of 45+ practical uses for whey will make you think twice before pouring it down the drain!
If you’ve ever opened a container of Greek Yogurt, you would have noticed a thin liquid that rose to the top.
That liquid is called whey, and if you make a lot of foods from scratch – especially homemade cheese – you’ll often end up with A LOT of whey.
It seems wasteful to throw away leftover whey, especially when you know how nutrient dense it is!
What is Whey?
Whey is the liquid that naturally separates from milk products, like sour cream or yogurt. It’s cloudy, whitish-yellowish, and full of protein, vitamins, minerals, and enzymes.
This kind of whey is NOT the same kind of whey you find in protein powders or sold in health food stores. They’re not interchangeable. If you’re looking for recipes to make with your whey protein powder, this isn’t the spot. (However, I often add protein powder to my Protein Pancakes!)
Where Do You Get Whey? (Hint: Whey From Yogurt)
The easiest way to get whey is to simply open up your containers of dairy products, like sour cream or yogurt. Just gently pour out the whey into a mason jar and store it in the fridge.
There are two types of whey – sweet whey and acid whey – and each has its own purposes in the kitchen and around the home.
- Sweet Whey: the liquid that comes from making cultured cheese that’s curdled with rennet (soft cheeses, mozzarella, etc.)
- Acid Whey: the by-product of dairy that has been cultured or curdled with an acid (farmer’s cheese, lemon cheese, etc.)
Uses for Whey
- Culture foods. Whey can be used to lacto-ferment all sorts of foods, including ketchup, mayonnaise, beets, cabbage (for sauerkraut), and carrots.
- Soak whole grains. Soak grains before grinding to boost their nutrition and make grains easier to digest. I first learned of this method in Nourishing Traditions, an amazing book on traditional cooking.
- Soak oats. Soaking oats overnight helps with digestion. Consider doing this before making Blueberry Baked Oatmeal or Perfect Overnight Steel Cut Oats.
- Soak beans. Your digestive system benefits from beans being soaked before cooking. Swap your acid medium and add whey, or feel free to add more!
- Soak nuts. For the same reasons above!
- Tenderize meat. Swap whey for any vinegar in a traditional meat marinade. Mind that whey will add tang, so adjust seasonings accordingly.
Easy Recipes with Whey as a Substitute
- Yeast Bread. If you’re not ready to make sourdough yet, uses for whey as the liquid in any fresh bread to get that classic sourdough flavor. I suggest starting with No-Knead Overnight Artisan Bread.
- Pizza Dough. Use in place of water in my favorite pizza dough recipe.
- Rice. Use whey instead of water when making rice. Although the heat will kill some of the live enzymes, you’ll still retain the nutrients since rice absorbs all the liquid.
- Pasta. Swap whey for water to cook pasta and like the rice, the pasta will absorb some nutrients from the whey.
- Pancakes. Use in place of some of the milk in Protein Pancakes or in recipes.
- Waffles. My Blender Oatmeal Waffles calls for water, but you can easily substitute any whey you have.
- Quick Bread. Think Pumpkin Bread or Chocolate Banana Bread and any other baking recipe.
- Sourdough Discard Recipes. Sourdough Pancakes and Sourdough Waffles both use milk, but using a little whey will give an extra bit of tang flavor.
- Buttermilk Substitute. Swap whey for buttermilk in Biscuits, Pancakes, Waffles, and even Cornbread.
- Milk Substitute. Uses for whey in recipes that call for milk to make sauces, like Homemade Macaroni and Cheese or Chicken Jalapeno Popper Casserole.
- Creamy Salad Dressings. Both Ranch Dressing and Caesar Dressing call for lemon juice, but you can substitute whey.
- Vinegar Salad Dressings. Swap all or part of the vinegar for whey in recipes like Italian Salad Dressing or Greek Salad Dressing.
- Marinades. These 4-ingredient Chicken Marinades all call for some sort of acid. Use whey for some of the acid for a fun twist on flavor.
More Uses for Whey in Everyday Cooking
- Smoothies. Use it as the liquid base in any smoothie recipe and naturally give it a boost in protein.
- Chicken Stock. Substitute for the apple cider vinegar and up to half of the water.
- Gravy. Use whey to thicken gravy instead of boring water.
What is Whey Used for in Baking
- Substitute for orange juice. If you use orange juice in baking, try using whey for the same acidic properties.
- Substitute for lemon juice. Whey tastes much like lemon, so it makes a great substitution in recipes or cocktails.
- Make caramel. Add a bit of salt with a touch of sugar and voila – instant caramel!
- Lemon-Whey Pie. If you can use whey in place of lemon juice, why not try it for dessert?
Uses for Whey in Beverages
- Cocktails. Mix one part whey with one part juice, then sweeten to taste with honey or stevia.
- Lemonade. Here’s the recipe.
- Ginger Ale. Easy tutorial.
- Soda. The Swiss drink Rivella is 100% whey.
Uses for Whey in Fermenting and Cheese Making
- Stretching Mozzarella. You have to stretch the curds when making mozzarella, and using hot whey is a great alternative to using hot, salted water.
- Cheese brine. Feta and mozzarella will keep longer if they’re stored in whey.
- Cream Cheese. Similar to the method of culturing milk with buttermilk, you’re culturing milk with whey and straining for cheese. More details here.
- Ricotta Cheese. The word “ricotta” means cooked twice, which is what happens to the whey when you make ricotta cheese. Here’s a super easy tutorial to get started.
- Gjetost. A Norwegian cheese that’s sweet like caramel, with the texture of buttery fudge.
- Butter. I haven’t tried this myself, but I’m told if you let whey sit at room temperature overnight, the cream will rise to the top and it can be scooped away and used to make butter.
What to Do with Whey
- Condition your face. The cultures in whey are acidic, so toss some on a cotton ball and use it as a toner.
- Condition your body. And add one cup of whey to your bath for an all-over-the-body skin toner.
- Make a face mask. Uses for whey combined with soothing raw honey for an easy face mask. (Tutorial on this page.)
- Condition your hair. If you’re washing with baking soda, a diluted whey rinse will work just as well as this Homemade Conditioner.
- Pet food. Add excess whey to pet food.
- Chicken or pig food. Add to the water and/or milk when you feed the farm animals.
- Water the plants. Adding diluted sweet whey to your plants gives a boost of vitamins. Read this article to get started.
- Balance the garden’s pH. If watering the plants is out of the question, consider balancing the pH levels of peas, cucumbers, and squash by spraying some on just the leaves – the sweet whey will kill the mold that grows!
- Lower the garden’s pH. Blueberries, roses, and tomatoes like acidic soil, and whey will help you achieve just that.
- Pest Control. Use sweet whey with water to a 1:1 ratio and spray on garden plants to keep powdery mildew away.
- Add to compost. A great outdoors spot if you don’t feel comfortable adding it to your garden, or don’t have one to add it to!
- Freeze it for later. If you’re not making fresh cheeses, you may only get a little bit of whey at a time. Freeze it in an ice cube tray so when you have enough, you can use it in any of the above recipes!
Whey Recipe (How to Make Whey)
You can easily find acid whey just by opening up your containers of dairy, but if you want to know how to make whey – whether for baking, cooking, or recipes – here are several ways to do it:
- Allow raw milk to sit at room temperature where the natural bacteria will cause the milk to clabber. Strain the milk using a cheesecloth, a tea towel, or an old (but clean) thin t-shirt.
- Use a fine mesh strainer, clean towel, or cheesecloth to strain Homemade Yogurt.
- Strain kefir (with the same methods as #2).
- Strain buttermilk (with the same methods as #2).
- Make Homemade Greek Yogurt (which is essentially the same as #2).
More Helpful Tutorials
- How to Blanch Greens
- 15 Easy Egg Substitutes
- How to Make Flour Without a Grain Mill
- How to Meal Plan and Make It Work
Next idea: use it as a cleaning product!
Here in Europe they use it in dish soap. (Ecover)
Or you can make your own cleaning spray:
– 200 ml of whey
– 1 teaspoon castille soap (liquid)
– 10 drops of essential oil (Sage, lemon…)
– spray bottle
This is a very good cleaning product for bathrooms.
Hi Tiffany, I woke up this morning with an infected eye. Very red and watery. The nearest doctor is 80km from here; gravel road. My daughter-in-law is a optometrist. She recommended whey. So I washed my eye with kefir whey and it immediately got better. Ointment is still on its way, but whey paved the way for a better eye!!
YAY!! So glad to hear the whey helped!
I make dog food in my instant pot. However, I skip the recommendation to add ground up egg shells for calcium because it is too cumbersome. I’m thinking adding whey would be a great alternative to add the calcium. I wonder if it should be added after cooking or if I could just replace water/ broth with whey in the beginning. Thanks!
If you want the animal to get the benefits from whey, add it at the end. Otherwise, the beginning is fine!
I made cream cheese using raw milk and white vinegar. Delicious . If I understand correctly. The strained liquid from the cream cheese is acidic whey?? Can I make bread using this whey?? Thanks.
Using vinegar instead of a culture won’t give you the exact same type of whey (i.e. it shouldn’t be used to lacto-ferment anything), but it can still be used in bread!
I use it in pancakes instead of butter milk.
I been making yogurt with skim milk. The whey from this seems very tart. I noticed that in all of the posts and comments and questions making yogurt from skim milk hasn’t been discussed.
We belong to Weight Watchers so having fat free yogurt is important to us.
i’m making mozzarella and i’m trying to determine if its sweet whey or the acidic whey and also can whey get rid of acne and acne scars?
Is there some way to see the latest posts at the top of your news feed Tiffany?
Hi Patricia! If you click the grey banner logo, that will take you to the most recent posts. 🙂
I have been making whey fermented lemonade using 1/2 cup whey, juice from 8 lemons and 3/4 cup honey and I love it. I have been trying to find out if I can use a similar recipe for making whey fermented green tea, but I cannot find anything on the web. Can I make a green tea ferment using green tea as a substitute for the lemon juice?
Hello Sam
It will be a process over time, but you could make a kombucha vinegar (overly fermented tea using a scoby) that could be used like lemon juice.
Note: if it is heated, it will loose it’s probiotic qualities. Also raw honey has anti-bacterial properties that compete with the probiotics of the kombucha.
Have fun learning to make/grow your own healthy drinks. It’ll take a lot of patients at first (maybe a couple of months).
I made my first yogurt in my 8 qt. Instant Pot last week.
I put in 6 qts. of 2% milk . When it was finished, I put the insert into the refrigerator overnight.
The next day, I lined a very large strainer with coffee filters and transferred the yogurt into it. I then put it back into the refrigerator overnight–the strainer above the InstantPot insert. The following day, I had 3 qts. of Greek yogurt and 3 quarts of whey.
What to do with the whey???
I filled 3 wide mouth qt. canning jars with the whey and sealed them up with the Food Saver jar attachment and put them in the fridge until I could find out how the whey could be used.
Thanks for all of the great ideas!
Make more yogurt with it, I use the Whey as my starter. See my post above yours Sharon
Sharon, your post was probably the best one in this thread for me! I have an IP and could visualize the steps you mentioned. Now I feel I could do this and save the whey as you say. I think I’ll get a new silicone seal first because I usually do meat in my IP and people have said you need a different silicone seal because the meat odors transfer to the yogurt. Thank you.
Thank you for a very informative article Tiffany.
I use the Whey, from making Yoghurt in my Instant Pot using UHT whole milk, as the starter for the next batch. 3 tablespoons per litre of UHT milk.
No need to scald the milk as it has already been done and can be used from cold.
To achieve Greek style I strain the yoghurt though coffee filter papers .
Can you drink whey “straight”? I am planning to strain yogurt and wanted to see about using it this way..
I guess you could Michael, but I don’t know how good it would taste. 🙂
I started making my own milk kefir about two months ago, I love it! I also strained my kefir to make a kind of cream cheese and separated the whey, then I used the ” cream cheese” as a facial. It really seemed to nourish my skin, but I wonder, would it be better to use the kefir with the whey still in it as a face mask?
I can add another use to your list. Feed it to the chickens, they love it and think of the nutrition they will be giving to the eggs! This morning I mixed a bit of the strained kefir into the whey and gave it to them, yumm, cluck, yumm, cluck!
Tiffany, when you make butter at home in a food processor, it separates the butterfat from the cream, leaving whey. The whey may contain small amounts of butterfat that are floating after draining through a sieve, but not really buttermilk. I’ve only recently started doing this (but have done several batches already) and it always results in a thin whitish liquid distinct from the yellow butterfat solids that yield the butter. I consulted several websites when I started for instructions and they all called the resulting liquid “whey”.
You didn’t mention (I don’t think) the whey that comes from making butter. I’m guessing that is also acid whey from what you have said above?
Lyn – I’ve never made whey from butter. I’ve made butter only once, but the result was buttermilk, not whey. Is this not always the case?
Hi Tiffany, confusion reigns in my head and I know that you are just the person with the solution… Is my milk kefir whey sweet or acidic? TIA !
Hi Steve! Sweet whey comes from making hard cheese. Acid whey comes from everything else (including kefir)!
Thank you!
Please give your recipe for the bread (#6) you pictured using only whey that your taste buds confirmed!
Here you go Marvin: https://dontwastethecrumbs.com/2014/05/easy-delicious-soaked-whole-wheat-bread/
Hi
I want to make my homemade condiments last longer. How do I go about getting Whey and how much should I use. Sorry Newbie here..
Thank you
Hi Tracey! You’ll in this article 5 ways to make whey. As for using it to preserve condiments, the traditional ratio is 1 tablespoon whey to 1 cup condiment.
Hi Tiffany
Thank you so much for responding. I will give this a whirl.
So is there a way to make sweet whey at home? I’m currently composting with sour whey. Yours is the first article I’ve found that noted a difference.
To make it from scratch, no. Sweet whey, as you call it, is a by-product of working with dairy.
Hello thanks for your website.
Can you please help me? I can’t find your muffin recipe with whey and blueberries. It’s urgent, i really need it now!
Thank you
Hi Talia – I don’t have a published whey and blueberry muffin recipe on my site. 🙁