This Vegan Cashew Cheese Sauce is smooth, creamy, and can be used in so many ways. You have got to try this versatile sauce that will make your favorite dishes taste even better.
This Vegan Cashew Cheese Sauce is just what you need. Healthy, nutritious, and versatile, it can be added to some of your favorite recipes or used to spice up snacks and appetizers. It's also really easy to make. Once the cashews are soaked and ready, it takes only a few minutes to get all the ingredients together. This sauce tastes as good as any cheese sauce you've ever had and you'll love how smooth it is.
Raw cashews are the main ingredient in this recipe. In order for them to be turned into a creamy sauce like this one, you'll need to soak them for quite a while. But they're worth the wait. Once you taste the creamy texture and cheesy flavor of this vegan sauce, you'll be glad you did. Add in the spices and touch of acidity from the rest of the ingredients and this cashew cheese sauce is so tasty. Let's look at what you'll be using.
Video Tutorial
What you'll need
- Cashews. Make sure you are using raw cashews. And the nuts have to be soaked for at least 6 hours, to make sure they make a smooth sauce. I buy cashew pieces for my recipes because it's cheaper this way and they are going to be blended anyway.
- Nutritional Yeast. This ingredient adds cheesy flavor to the sauce. It is sold in most large supermarkets, health food stores, and of course, you can buy it on Amazon.
- Lemon Juice. Adds a note of acidity to the sauce. Apple Cider Vinegar can also be used.
- Spices. Chili powder, garlic powder, cumin powder, paprika, and salt.
How to make this Vegan Cashew Cheese Sauce
1. Place the soaked cashews, nutritional yeast, lemon juice, and spices in a food processor. Blend them together until they are very smooth.
2. Transfer the mixture to a small skillet or a sauce pan. Heat over medium-low heat for 5 minutes, or until it's warm and has reached the desired consistency. Stir continuously with a metal whisk to keep it from scorching on the bottom of the pan.
Creative Add-ins
- Chipotle peppers. Make your cheese sauce spicy with the addition of some blended chipotle peppers. You'll love this on nachos.
- Spinach. For a splash of green and a burst of flavor, add some spinach. Dip in some toasted garlic bread for a tasty treat.
- Sriracha sauce. For those who really enjoy the heat, adding sriracha is the way to go.
- Cooked squash or carrots. These vegetables are super smooth when blended so they'll add great texture and taste to your Vegan Cashew Cheese Sauce. (This is also a great way to sneak some extra veggies into the kids!)
How to Enjoy it
This Vegan Cashew Cheese Sauce is super versatile and can be enjoyed in a variety of ways. Here are a few tasty suggestions.
- As a dip. This sauce is great with raw or cooked vegetables, like this roasted broccoli. Offer some with your next crudités platter.
- On nachos. Oh my, this cheese sauce on tortilla chips with all the fix-ins is so good. This is perfect for homemade loaded nachos.
- With pasta. Mac and cheese never tasted so good. But this cheese sauce can be used with other pasta types as well, like penne, fettucine, or linguine.
- As a topping. Drizzle Vegan Cashew Cheese Sauce over mashed potatoes, cabbage steaks, smashed potatoes, rustic bread, or atop tacos and burritos.
How to Store this Sauce
Store this sauce in an airtight container in the refrigerator. It will stay fresh in there for up to 5 days. To reheat, just place the cheese sauce in a microwave-safe bowl and heat for a minute or two. You could also reheat it in a pan on the stove top. You may need to use a bit of water, when reheating, just to help thin the sauce.
Can you Freeze Cashew Cheese Sauce?
Yes, you can freeze it. To do so, just pour the sauce into ice cube trays and allow to fully freeze. Then transfer the cheese sauce cubes to a freezer ziplock bag and keep frozen for up to 4 months. To reheat, just take out however many cubes you need, allow them to defrost in the fridge overnight in a bowl, and then run them quickly through the food processor or blender to smooth them out before reheating.
This delicious and versatile Vegan Cashew Cheese Sauce is perfect for so many dishes. You also get plenty of healthy fats, protein, and fiber, as well as all that amazing flavor. I'm sure that you'll love this delicious recipe as much as I do.
Vegan Cashew Cheese Sauce
Ingredients
- ¾ cup raw cashews, soaked overnight
- 1 ½ tbsp. lemon juice
- ¼ tsp. chili powder
- ½ tsp. cumin powder
- ½ tsp. paprika
- ½ tsp. garlic powder
- ¾ tsp. salt
- ¼ cup nutritional yeast
- 1 cup water
Instructions
- Place the soaked cashews, nutritional yeast, lemon juice, and spices in a food processor. Blend them together until they are very smooth.
- Transfer the mixture to a small skillet or a sauce pan. Heat over medium-low heat for 5 minutes, or until it's warm and has reached the desired consistency. Stir continuously with a metal whisk to keep it from scorching on the bottom of the pan.
Notes
Creative Add-ins
- Chipotle peppers. Make your cheese sauce spicy with the addition of some blended chipotle peppers. You'll love this on nachos.
- Spinach. For a splash of green and a burst of flavor, add some spinach. Dip in some toasted garlic bread for a tasty treat.
- Sriracha sauce. For those who really enjoy the heat, adding sriracha is the way to go.
- Cooked squash or carrots. These vegetables are super smooth when blended so they'll add great texture and taste to your Vegan Cashew Cheese Sauce. (This is also a great way to sneak some extra veggies into the kids!)
How to Store this Sauce
Store this sauce in an airtight container in the refrigerator. It will stay fresh in there for up to 5 days. To reheat, just place the cheese sauce in a microwave-safe bowl and heat for a minute or two. You could also reheat it in a pan on the stove top. You may need to use a bit of water, when reheating, just to help thin the sauce.Nutrition
Pour this sauce over these Cabbage Steaks!
Can I make this without the nutritional yeast?
Hi Ellen! Nutritional yeast is what gives the cheesy flavor to this sauce. Without it, you'll end up with completely different recipe and I don't know if the flavor will be good. Let me know if you try it!
Hi! Newbie here! How long do you topically blend it? I didn’t do it long enough bc the texture wasn’t right but the flavor was amazing! We devoured it despite it not being as creamy yours.
Hi Lizie! It's important to soak the cashews properly. Blending typically would depend on how powerful your food processor or blender is. I blended for about 1 minute, but if I used other appliance, I would keep blending until it reaches the right consistency. Thanks for stopping by!
This is great have made it without cumin and chili and it’s good both ways!
Thanks for the rating, Meredith! I am glad you enjoyed it!
Tried this for the first time. Left out the chili powder because I don't like spicy foods, and left out the cumin because I wanted to see what the sauce tastes like on a more basic level. Also, I used only 1/2 cup of water. I always start out slow with water and I found a 1/2 cup was just right for me. The sauce is very good. My entire family liked it. thank you for this recipe.
Thank you so much for reporting back, Dawn! I am glad you liked the recipe!