Vegan Cheese

This oozy, gooey vegan cheese sauce is just as good as the real thing! Versatile and easy to make, it's delicious on pasta, nachos, and more.

Jeanine
Donofrio

Phoebe
Moore

Updated: Jun 14, 2024

You don’t have to be vegan to fall for this vegan cheese recipe! It’s creamy, tangy, and rich, with a crave-worthy oozy texture just like that of dairy-based cheese sauce. Even Jack – the biggest real cheese lover I know – adores this recipe. Last time I made it, we stood at the counter, scooping it up with tortilla chips. We only got halfway through the first batch before we decided to make a second. Yep, it’s that good!

Serve this vegan cheese as a dip with tortilla chips or fresh veggies, toss it with pasta to make vegan mac and cheese, top it onto a baked potato, or drizzle it over chips to make a vegan nacho platter. Once you have it on hand, you’ll find endless ways to use it, and you won’t be able to get enough!

Vegan Cheese Recipe Ingredients

This dairy-free cheese is not only delicious – it’s good for you, too! Unlike processed vegan cheese that you might find at grocery stores, it’s made of a short list of whole foods ingredients. Here’s what you’ll need to make it:

• Yukon gold potatoes and cashews – They’re the key ingredients for giving vegan cheese recipes oozy, creamy texture.
• Sweet potatoes – You couldn’t make a cheddar-style cheese sauce without an orange ingredient! Sweet potato gives this recipe its vibrant color, and it adds a light sweetness that’s delicious with the rich, tangy flavors here.
• Nutritional yeast – It gives this dairy-free cheese the nutty, savory flavor of the real thing!
• Garlic and onion powder – They add delicious depth of flavor.
• Apple cider vinegar – It gives this vegan cheese a bright, tangy finish. Yum!

To make this cashew cheese recipe, start by boiling the potatoes. When they’re tender, transfer them to a high-speed blender. Add the nutritional yeast, garlic, onion powder, cashews, and vinegar, along with water, extra-virgin olive oil, and a pinch of salt. Blend until the mixture is completely smooth and creamy, adding more liquid as needed. Then, enjoy!

Best Vegan Cheese Variations

Though I love this recipe as written, I also like to change it up from time to time. Here are a few of my favorite variations:

• Change the veggies. If you don’t have sweet potato on hand, swap in carrots or butternut squash.
• Make it smoky. Add 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika, to taste. I love to serve this variation as a loaded queso dip with guac, pico de gallo, and black beans!
• Spice it up. For extra heat, blend a tablespoon of pickled jalapeños or a chipotle pepper from a can of chipotles in adobo into the cheese.

Let me know what variations you try!

More Plant-Based Basics

If you love this vegan cheese recipe, try one of these plant-based basics next:

• Cashew Sour Cream
• Sriracha Baked Tofu
• Coconut Whipped Cream
• Vegan Bacon
• Homemade Oat Milk
• Marinated Tempeh

Then, check out this post for more of my favorite vegan recipes!

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Vegan Cheese

rate this recipe:

4.92 from 195 votes

Prep Time: 15 minutes mins

Cook Time: 15 minutes mins

Total Time: 30 minutes mins

Serves 4

Save Recipe Print Recipe

The BEST vegan cheese recipe! It has a delicious oozy texture and cheesy flavor. I love to toss it with pasta, drizzle it over nachos, or serve it as a dip. Gluten-free.

Ingredients

• ▢ ¾ cup peeled and diced Yukon Gold potato
• ▢ ¾ cup peeled and diced sweet potato
• ▢ 2 garlic cloves
• ▢ ¼ cup raw cashews
• ▢ 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
• ▢ 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
• ▢ ½ teaspoon onion powder
• ▢ ½ teaspoon sea salt, plus more for cooking the potatoes
• ▢ ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
• ▢ ¼ cup water

Optional add-ins

• ▢ ½ to 1 chipotle pepper from a can of chipotles in adobo sauce
• ▢ 1 tablespoon pickled jalapeños
• ▢ ¼ to ½ teaspoon smoked paprika

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Instructions

• Place the Yukon Gold and sweet potatoes in a saucepan and cover with cold water by about 1 inch. Add a few pinches of salt. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer, uncovered, until fork-tender, 8 to 12 minutes.
• Drain and transfer to a high-speed blender with the garlic, cashews, apple cider vinegar, nutritional yeast, onion powder, salt, olive oil, and water. Blend until smooth.
• For spicy vegan cheese, add the chipotle pepper or pickled jalapeños. If you’d like a smoky flavor, add the smoked paprika.
• Serve with tortilla chips for dipping or over pasta to make vegan mac & cheese.

Notes

Note: if you're using a high powdered blender, like a Vitamix, there's no need to soak the cashews. If you're using a less powerful blender, you can soak them for 2 hours. Drain before adding to the recipe.