This vegan cheese sauce is so creamy and amazing you won't believe it's made with a healthy vegetable base! A huge hit even with dairy eaters.
This is absolutely the best vegan cheese sauce recipe. It's made in a blender and perfect for mac and cheese, baked casseroles and anything else that requires cheese sauce!
This recipe was originally published on 7/8/2015
It's pure magic how you can take vegetables and create this incredibly creamy healthy cheese sauce, without even using milk! I know you probably doubt me, but I promise you need this. I have used this strategy to make my vegan white cheese sauce and my vegan nacho cheese sauce with success!
Ingredients
The gooey base of this cheesy vegan sauce comes from potatoes. When you blend cooked potatoes at high speed, it creates a stretchy texture.
I figured this out one day when I was making the pizza crust for my Thai Chickpea and Veggies Pizza and used a blender instead of a food processor.
You will notice this vegan cheese sauce has no nutritional yeast. I am not a nutritional yeast fan, and I don't really think it tastes cheesy, but if you like it feel free to add some in!
Here is what you need to make this recipe:
- Potato
- Red pepper
- Orange carrot
- Sweet or yellow onion
- Raw cashews
- Garlic
- Lemon juice
- Chickpea miso
- Ground mustard seed
- Paprika
- Sea salt
How to Make Vegan Cheese Sauce
Thank goodness this recipe is so easy to make, because it's in our regular rotation! Here are the steps you need to follow:
- Load all ingredients into a blender.
- Blend on high until you get a creamy gooey consistency.
- Use nice and hot!
Preparation Tips
When it comes to creating the best vegan cheese sauce, there are few key things to remember:
- If you have a regular good blender instead of a high speed one you can still get creamy awesomeness by grinding the cashews with a coffee grinder first. Grind them dry and simply add to the blender with everything else.
- You can also soak them overnight before boiling with the veggies, but this still may not give as creamy of a result as the grinding.
- You can thin out the consistency of the vegetable cheese sauce with some extra liquid.
- Use either water, dairy free milk, water from the boiled veggies, or pasta water if making mac and cheese.
- When you measure the veggies, measure them packed in not just loosely scooped up.
- Start with a little salt, and once everything is blended taste the cheese sauce. Add more salt if necessary.
What to Make With This Cheesy Vegan Sauce
This plant based cheese sauce recipe is amazing with everything! Seriously there are SO many things you can do, so little time. Here are some of my top faves:
- Mac and cheese of course, SO good.
- Drizzle it over veggies, okay maybe it's more of a drench than a drizzle.
- Enjoy as a dip with chips, crackers, or veggies, or apple slices.
- Load it onto a baked potato.
- Nacho cheese dip, I add chopped nacho jalapeño slices.
- Top your favorite tacos.
- 7 Layer Taco Dip.
- Roasted Poblano Mac and Cheese.
- Mexican Nacho Burger.
- Smother Oven Baked Fries.
- Pair with Vegan Pigs in a Blanket.
- Top Vegan Scrambled Eggs.
- Use on your favorite homemade pizza.
- Include it in your favorite dairy free cheese casseroles.
- Eat it with a spoon...Don't judge, just try it.
Substitution Suggestions
I tried a variety of combinations for this dairy free cheese sauce, I did after all spend years of trial and error, and the ingredients listed are the best for creating the correct flavor and texture. Here a few swaps you can experiment with:
- If you can't have cashews you can try other nuts such as macadamias, walnuts, or pine nuts. Just note that the flavor will be affected.
- For a completely nut free sauce try white beans or sunflower seeds. (I didn't care for the sunflower seed version but others have.)
- You can also leave out the cashews without replacing, but the texture will not be as thick and creamy.
- Red potatoes are suggested but any other starchy potato will do. Avoid sweet potatoes or other root veggies.
- Chickpea miso has the right flavor, white miso can be used but the taste will be more mild. Some have even completely left it out and still liked the flavor!
Flavor Suggestions
You can adapt this recipe to make different flavors of vegan cheese sauces. Any time you mix in an addition, start with a little and blend in more a little at a time until you get the flavor you want.
If you want chunks of the add ins, pulse them in instead of blending, or stir in with a spoon.
- Salsa
- Jalapeños - fresh or pickled
- Taco seasoning
- Chili seasoning
- Chives
- Roasted red peppers
- Sun dried tomatoes
- Broccoli (cooked and chopped)
- Caramelized onions
- Vegan sausage
- Mushroom bacon
- I prefer this vegan cheese sauce without nutritional yeast, but for those that are a fan feel free to shake some in.
Make Ahead and Storage Tips
- Prep this vegan cheese sauce recipe in advance by cooking the veggies and roast the garlic. Store in the fridge in an airtight container until ready to use.
- Store the prepared cheese sauce in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
- You can freeze this for up to 3 months so you can have vegan cheese sauce at your fingertips any time!
- When you defrost, leave it on the counter all day so it can slowly come to room temp.
- Feel free to return the defrosted sauce to the blender
- You can reheat this in the microwave or in a pot with a splash of nondairy milk (I use cashew) and mix well. Add splashes of milk and mix until you have the right consistency. It may need more salt depending on how much milk you add.
How to Make Vegan Cheese Sauce in an Instant Pot
Instead of boiling the vegetables, you can use your pressure cooker.
- Put all the ingredients (except for roasted garlic and lemon juice) into an instant pot with 2 cups of water.
- Set it to manual high pressure for 5 minutes.
- Let it naturally release.
- Blend in a high speed blender until smooth.
Common Questions
There are a number of recipes out there that all use different methods for creating cheese sauces with only plant-based items. This recipes uses potatoes, veggies, cashews, and seasonings to create a thick and creamy sauce.
There are some plant-based store bought cheeses available, but it's best to make your own with whole foods!
Many use dairy free milk and nutritional yeast to capture the cheese flavor, but I've had better luck with veggies and chickpea miso.
This sauce for one! Vegan Parmesan is also really easy to make and tastes so good!
More Vegan Cheese Recipes
Now that you know how easy it is to make your own homemade vegan cheese sauce, you need more varieties to try! Here are more plant based cheese recipes I know you'll love:
Best Vegan Cheese Sauce Recipe
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 cups cooked potato (about 3-4 potatoes, see note)
- 2 tablespoons cooked red pepper (about ⅓ of a medium sized pepper)
- 3 tablespoons cooked orange carrot (about 4-5 baby carrots or one medium sized)
- 5 tablespoons cooked sweet or yellow onion (about ½ a small)
- ½ cup raw cashews (see note)
- 1 teaspoon roasted garlic (about 2-4 cloves, depending on size)
- 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
- ¾ teaspoon chickpea miso (see note)
- ½ teaspoon ground mustard seed
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- 1 ½ teaspoons sea salt (can use less or more depending on taste preference)
- Your favorite pasta if making Mac and Cheese
Instructions
- Roast the garlic by peeling and wrapping it in tin foil with a splash of veggie broth. Roast at 400 F (205 C), in a regular or toaster oven, while you cook the veggies.
- Put potatoes (peel if you don't want specks of skin), red pepper, carrots, onion and cashews in a pot and cover with water. If you don't have a high speed blender and are grinding the cashews, then don't boil but grind them dry and place them in the blender.
- Cook over high heat until water boils, about 15 minutes if uncovered. Turn heat to medium and boil another 20 minutes, until potatoes are tender.
- When done, drain water (keeping some to thin out sauce if prefer a thinner sauce), separate veggies and put the cashews in the blender. I use a fork to fish out the veggies, then drain the cashews over a pasta strainer.
- Measure out the needed amount of each veggie and place each in the blender. Add the rest of the ingredients.
- Blend on high until you get a creamy gooey consistency. If you have a tamper tool use it to help mix the sauce as it blends. If you don’t have one, then you will need to stop and push down the ingredients every once in a while.
- If you want to thin it out, add some of the reserved cooking water, 1 tablespoon at a time until you get the desired consistency. Use nice and hot!
To make the ultimate Mac and Cheese:
- Cook your pasta according to package directions.
- Drain pasta reserving about 1 cup pasta water.
- Add the pasta back into the pot and add desired amount of cheese sauce.
- Then add pasta water 1 tablespoon at a time, mixing well in between additions, until you get the desired consistency for your Mac and Cheese. If your pasta is too starchy (as some gluten free pastas are) you can also use regular water or even non dairy milk to do this. Add salt if needed, it most likely will since the sauce is no longer as concentrated. Devour!
Notes
- Makes 3 ½ cups sauce. Serving size for nutrition info is ½ cup.
- Nutrition info is for cheese sauce only.
- I used red potatoes but any starchy potato will work, just don’t use sweet. It also won't work to substitute with something that is not an actual potato (such as another root vegetable).
- If you are not using a high speed blender, you can grind the dry cashews into a fine powder using a coffee grinder (do not boil them for this method). You can also soak them overnight prior to boiling with the veggies or just boil them with the veggies.
- You can make this nut free by eliminating the nuts, however you will lose some of the thickness and creaminess. It will still be pretty good in taste, but just lacking some of those elements. You can also try subbing with another nut if you are allergic to cashews, I suggest walnuts or macadamias, however the flavor will be different. I did try it with multiple nuts and liked the taste of the cashews best.
- If you don’t have chickpea miso, you can try using a white miso although it will be a little more mild in flavor so you may need more. See the comments for others that have tried using white miso.
- I did not add any liquid to this when I made it, but depending on what you use it for, you may want to thin it out with some water, water from the boiled veggies or pasta water if making mac and cheese.
- You can reheat this in the microwave or in a pot with a splash of nondairy milk (I use cashew) and mix well. Add splashes of milk and mix until you have the right consistency. It may need more salt depending on how much milk you add.
- You can also freeze leftovers in a freezer safe container as it freezes great. Defrost slowly when ready to eat. You may think it didn't freeze well, but as you heat it up the consistency comes back!
- Cook the veggies and roast the garlic. Store in the fridge in an airtight container until ready to use.
- This can be mixed into any baby food or be used for a toddler as a dip. You could also just blend the veggies on their own for baby.
Recipe by Veggies Don’t Bite, visit our site for more great plant-based recipes.
Nutrition
Nutrition and metric information should be considered an estimate.
Amanda Hyman
OK I just made this and I have made a LOT of vegan cheese sauces over the past three and a half years of being vegan. Some better than others... but nothing too amazing.. (except i will say Brandi's mexican tortilla bake cheese sauce is really spectacular, but its a salsa based one, so not really for universal use) in fact, i usually shy away from cheese sauce because, well you know...been disappointed a LOT. Even by some of the biggest names in vegan blogging.
So my official review of this is: This tastes better than actual real cheese!! I am not kidding you, and I still occassionally eat real cheese. So I am not delusional, just FYI 😉
The flavor.. i do not know how you've done it. I've made cheeses very similar to this one before, and i would classify them as good BUT this one is hands down the best!!!!
Oh and I was lazy and threw my raw garlic in the boiling water, no time to roast. I can't wait to try it actually roasted! Holy cheese sauce. Off to bury my head in it. BYE!
veggiesdontbite
OH MY GOSH, thank you so so much! I am thrilled you love it as much as we do! I totally appreciate the review from a non biased opinion. I find that often people who do not eat something for a long time, have forgotten what it really tastes like so their tastebuds are just different. I can't tell you how many times I have tried recommended recipes only to find them lacking. So I tried hard to make sure this was as close as I could get! I hope you find many uses for it!
Domini
Hi, I don’t see the garlic in the ingredient list. Please advise. Thank you, Domini Bradford
veggiesdontbite
Hi Domini! The garlic is the 6th ingredient down on the list. You need to roast it, then measure. Hope you like it!
Onaca Bennett
This is amazing!!! Definitely reminds me of nacho cheese, but it'll make great Mac n cheese. I need to avoid yeast, and I wanted something that was more natural than the highly processed vegan Mac n cheese in stores, so I'm so happy to find this.
veggiesdontbite
Thank you so much Onaca! I'm thrilled you like it as much as we do!!
Kari Lake
I just made this! I think it would have been just great exactly as written, but I had to make a few tweaks (that's just me) . The biggest thing I added was about 1/4 cup nutritional yeast, I know the author doesn't like yeast, but I absolutely love it. The amount I added was just enough for a hint of "umami" not enough to scream YEAST. Also, I only had yellow miso, and I felt I needed double the amount. As I was adding the yeast and extra miso at the end, I was craving a little extra richness, so instead of adding the water from the veggies, I added about 2 T. olive oil. Then hit the blender again. The end result is absolutely amazing! My blender is a NutriBullet RX and it made a smooth sauce in seconds. Like, absolutely smooth, Velveeta smooth. A litttle off-topic now, but I do love my NutriBullet RX and it's a huge upgrade over the pro model I just retired.
veggiesdontbite
Hi Kari!! I am so happy you love it!! And yes, the yeast is not my fave HAHA! But you do you for sure, and I am thrilled you are able to make it perfect for your taste! You are right with the miso as well, a few readers used a mellow miso and needed about double since the chickpea miso is quite strong. Glad to hear that you nutribullet did the trick too, I'm sure others will appreciate that feedback. Thanks so much for being a reader!!
Mika
I don’t think I’ve ever left a review on any recipe, ever. BUT OH MY GOSH. I was super hesitant because of the lack of nooch, but Lordie Lordie hands down best cheese sauce I’ve ever had! Thank you so much! Can I give this more than 5 stars?!
veggiesdontbite
Mika, you so made my day!!! I have had failure after failure these last few days in all my recipe testing and this totally helped me feel better! Thank you so much for the awesome review and for being a reader! I so appreciate your support!
Natalie
Where do you buy chickpea miso?
veggiesdontbite
Hi Natalie! I buy mine at my local health food store (like a Whole Foods). You can also use white miso, many others have, but you may need more since it is more mild.
Roberta
And is the chickpea miso powdered? Is it a paste? I'm new to all this, so not sure exactly what I'm looking for. Do you have a particular favorite brand/product I should be looking for? Can't wait to try this! My husband LOVES cheese sauce on veggies, but I hate how fattening it makes an otherwise healthy dish. Thanks!
veggiesdontbite
Hi Roberta! The chickpea miso I use is not powdered, it is a solid dough like consistency. The brand I use is called Miso Master and it comes in a tub. It is in the refrigerated section of my store, where the tofu is. Hope you like the sauce!! Also, many people have made it without the miso, which is fine however it is much cheesier and has a sharper flavor with the miso.
Roberta Swartz
Thank you so much for the quick response! I don't think I'll be able to wait now. Wegman's has a great natural foods section, so I think I might find it there in the cold section, even though I don't see it on their website. Can't hurt to go look, right? Especially, since I need a few other things from there anywhere! Will let you know how it goes, but I'm sure I'll have a 5 star review soon! 🙂
veggiesdontbite
You are so welcome!! Hope it turns out!! I bet you will find it. If not, you can try using white miso, you may just need more. The comments have people that used white but it sounds like you need about double.
Melissa
Can you leave the red pepper out as I don't care for the taste at all or does the taste get lost in the recipe and its used for color maybe?
veggiesdontbite
Hi Melissa! Every ingredient helps contribute to the final flavor. My advice is to use less and taste it. Add more if you think it needs it. The final product doesn't taste like red pepper, but it helps with the overall flavor. Let me know what you end up doing!
Laura Shank
This a delicious and creamy vegan cheese sauce WITHOUT nutritional yeast! I love nooch, but sometimes it's refreshing not to use it. I keep coming back to this recipe again and again!
veggiesdontbite
Oh thank you SO SO much Laura!! I so appreciate the great review and am so happy you love it!
Dorothy
Best. Ever. Followed directions exactly, also left skin on potatoes. Served with broccoli and fresh ground pepper. Nex time i'll sprinkle some crushed red pepper flakes on it. Can't wait to thaw out the portion that is in the freezer and try over a baked potato or veggie bowl or.... Yeah, eating with a spoon IS a viable option also!
veggiesdontbite
Haha!! Thank you so much Dorothy! I'm so happy you love this as much as we do! And yes on the crushed red pepper flakes. That sounds amazing!
Kitty
OMG! So so happy to finally find a recipe that doesn’t use nutritional yeast!! Since becoming vegan, I discovered it was a requirement in so many recipes if I wanted a quality of life lol! As luck would have it, like so many other things, I’m unable to tolerate it. Instantly sick after I eat it. Not to mention it’s gross. Thank you thank you thank you!!! I haven’t made this recipe but it doesn’t matter. I will be soon and I will master it! Yay!
veggiesdontbite
Hahahahaha!!! You totally made my day. I would tend to agree that it does not taste cheesy. And a lot of people have issues with it too. I don't use it in any of my creamy or cheesy sauces so cook away! I hope you enjoy this as much as we do!!
Jen
Made this for the first time today and everyone loved it including my kids (12 & 10). My husband and I made it “together“ making sure we followed the recipe exactly! I can’t tolerate nutritional yeast so I’m very happy we found this.
veggiesdontbite
That is so awesome to hear Jen!! Thank you so much for letting me know. And welcome to the non nutritional yeast club! LOL!
Rebecca
I have tried several different recipes for cheese sauce and always been disappointed. I am going to try yours today. It looks delicious and the comments are so positive! I hope to find your newly published one before I start, but if not I will go with this and plan on serving my husband his favorite Mac and cheese for dinner! Thanks for your recipes!
veggiesdontbite
Hi Rebecca! It's all updated with exact measurements. I hope you like it! Here are a few more links to cheese sauces that people seem to love as well: https://www.veggiesdontbite.com/crispy-baked-mac-and-cheese-balls-vegan-gluten-free/ and https://www.veggiesdontbite.com/vegan-queso-blanco-mexican-white-cheese-dip/. I have many others on the blog too, just search cheese sauce on my blog! I'm sure there is one you will love!
Lisa
Thank you...a million times thank you. I too tried many recipes. Yours is the best..hands down!! I'll be making this over and over!!!!
veggiesdontbite
Ah! Thank you so so much Lisa!! What is so funny, is that I have had it on my to do list to redo the recipe with EXACT measurement amounts of each thing versus size of veggies (as requested by a few people). And I have finally finished it! I am reposting this recipe on Monday as an updated post!! So it's even better now!! I'm so happy you love it as much as we do. Tonight it went over broccoli. YUM.
Brittany
Yes, yes, yes and yes. I have been MULLING over vegan cheese sauces for months. I have pinned way too many recipes and never made a move on making any of them, either because I was not sure of all the ingredients (I try to cook oil-free at home and have been having issues with nuts lately) or scared away by the split-down-the-middle comments ("I hated it!" "It was AMAZING!") Finally my craving for cheesy pasta took all the way over and I told myself I would finally find THE vegan cheese sauce recipe. I googled "no nuts vegan cheese sauce" (or something along those lines) and this was one of the recipes that popped up.
Sophia, you had me at the first two sentences of the post. "Two years. That’s how long I have tested and trialed cheese sauces." I knew then that you had done allll the due diligence I needed to trust your cheese sauce over others, lol! Off to the store I went. I left the cashews out and used a yellow bell pepper instead of red. Other than that, I followed the recipe to the T.
I just got done eating chickpea pasta + steamed broccoli + roasted garlic + jalapenos + your ultimate cheese sauce...and I. AM. HOOKED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! A home run on my first vegan cheese sauce try!!! My mom (who is not vegan) really enjoyed it, as well! I had some tortilla chips in the cabinet and started dipping them in the sauce and had to stop myself because I need to save some for lunch tomorrow. LOL. This sauce is giving me all the cheesy satisfaction I need without the extras (post-nasal drip, hormonal issues, etc.)
Thank you SO much for all the work you put into developing this recipe. I've had a few misses since going plant-based and this has given me a little bit more confidence. I'm so excited!
P.S. For those who are nut free, you will not miss the cashews!!!!
veggiesdontbite
WOW Brittany! You truly made my night! What a fantastic review to come to after a particularly tough evening with my three monsters. Thank you so much for reviewing this!! I am really happy you loved this as much as we do, especially without the cashews. As I have extra time, I am working to find measurements in cups instead of vegetable sizes, for those people that prefer it, but it's not totally done yet. I hope you have a fantastic night and thank you so much for being a reader!
Abbie
Hi! How long will this sauce last in the fridge?
veggiesdontbite
Hi Abbie! It doesn't last long for us but I would say the standard up to a week. I make it in batches and freeze it. If you leave it on the counter to defrost, then slowly warm it and give it a good stir, then it will get back to the creamy smooth consistency!