The best ever vegan nacho cheese is ultra cheesy and rich and so easy to make. It’s perfect to pour over your nachos or serve as a dip.
This vegan nacho cheese is seriously tasty.
My mother’s non-vegan partner went nuts for this stuff when he happened to be visiting at the same time as we were testing this recipe.
So for anyone thinking this vegan cheese thing is only for vegans, think again. It’s for everyone you guys!
Whether you want to serve it as part of a fully loaded vegan nachos deal or just the super simple way with some tortilla chips is up to you. Either way is divine and we tried it both ways to make sure it was just perfect.
And if you love delicious vegan Mexican inspired recipes then you’ll also love our vegan taco meat and our jackfruit tacos.
How To Make Vegan Nacho Cheese
You will find full instructions and measurements in the recipe card at the bottom of the post. This is a summary of the process to go along with the process photos.
- Add raw cashews, lemon juice, nutritional yeast, onion powder, garlic powder, dijon mustard, smoked paprika, turmeric and sliced pickled jalapeños to the blender jug.
- Add vegetable stock and blend until very smooth.
- Transfer to a saucepan and heat, whisking regularly until hot (don’t let it boil). It will thicken as it heats. If it gets too thick, add more water to thin it out.
- Your vegan nacho cheese is ready to serve.
Serving Suggestions
If you’re serving a fully loaded nacho plate, then black beans, salsa, guacamole and cilantro are great additions. Otherwise just open a bag of tortilla chips and dig in.
Chef’s Tips
Consistency. Heating it up on the stove thickens it up quite a lot but while it’s hot it’s still pourable if you want to pour it over your nachos. If you want to serve it as a dip, then just transfer to a dish and serve.
If it’s too thick – add a little water while heating and whisk it in. It’s definitely preferable to have it a little too thick, which is easily fixed, rather than too thin, which is not. If it cools then it thickens more, so if it has cooled down and then you want to pour it over nachos, you will need to reheat it and add a little water and whisk it up so that it gets to the right consistency.
Ingredient Notes & Substitutions
- Raw cashews – are the best option for this. If you have a nut allergy you could try something like sunflower seeds but I have not tested this.
- Nutritional yeast – provides lots of cheesy flavor but if you have to leave it out you can.
- Turmeric – is just for color and can be omitted.
- Pickled sliced jalapeño – adds a touch of spiciness and heaps of flavor. Can be omitted.
- Vegetable stock – or broth. If you’re using a low sodium option, then you may need to add salt. Taste test and see.
Storing Instructions
Keep leftovers stored in the fridge (covered) and enjoy over the next 4-5 days. It will thicken when cold so reheat it on the stove over low heat, whisking in some water as needed to get it to the right consistency.
More Vegan Mexican Recipes
Did you make this recipe? Be sure to leave a comment and rating below!
Vegan Nacho Cheese
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups Raw Cashews (225g)
- 1 Tablespoon Lemon Juice freshly squeezed
- ¼ cup Nutritional Yeast Flakes (15g)
- 1 teaspoon Onion Powder
- 1 teaspoon Garlic Powder
- 1 teaspoon Dijon Mustard
- ½ teaspoon Smoked Paprika
- ¼ teaspoon Turmeric
- 1 Tablespoon Pickled Sliced Jalapeños
- 2 cups Vegetable Stock (480ml)
Instructions
- Add raw cashews, lemon juice, nutritional yeast, onion powder, garlic powder, dijon mustard, smoked paprika, turmeric and sliced pickled jalapeños to the blender jug.
- Add vegetable stock and blend until very smooth.
- Transfer to a saucepan and heat, whisking regularly until hot (don’t let it boil). It will thicken while it heats. If you think it’s getting too thick, add in a little water (be careful as if it gets too thin that is harder to fix than if it’s too thick) and whisk it in until it’s the right consistency.
- Serve as a dip for tortilla chips or pour over a plate of fully loaded nachos.
Video
Notes
- I did not soak my cashews first and it’s not necessary for this recipe.
- The turmeric is just for color, so if you don’t like it you can omit it.
- My vegetable stock is quite salty, so extra salt wasn’t needed but if you use a low sodium vegetable stock you might need to add salt to taste.
- This recipe makes around 3 cups of vegan nacho cheese.
- Store leftovers in the fridge. It will thicken when cooled, so when you reheat add in more water as needed to reach the desired consistency.
Wow SO good! I dipped fresh steamed broccoli in this and had it over a baked potato- it was Amazing!! Have you ever used 1/2 cashews and 1/2 beans to reduce fat? I may try that next time but I’m SO pleased with this recipe!!
So glad you enjoyed it! I haven’t tried it with half beans but I’m sure that would also be delish. Thanks for the awesome review! 🙂
I do that all the time for the sliceable cheese. It should work fine fir the nacho cheese recipe.
This is a great site trying the vegan nachos today.
I do not consume garlic, onion, leeks or chives.
What can I use in replacement of the garlic and onion powders then?
There isn’t a replacement, you can leave them out, but you will lose some of the cheesy flavor as these spices contribute to creating those flavors. But it will still be good even without those! 🙂
there goes the dip! ha!
This was a brilliant addition to my burritos the other day! I halved the recipe since we’re only 2 people, but even then it was quite a lot, so I was wondering whether this is freezable..?
Hi Sina! So glad you enjoyed it! Yes, you can freeze it! 🙂
This recipe is wonderful! It has opened my eyes to the possibilities of cashew cheese! How long can you keep the uncooked mix refrigerated before it goes bad?
So glad you enjoyed it! You would definitely need to use it up within about a week. 🙂
Made this for my vegan sister and even my non-vegan beau liked it! We followed the recipe exactly and poured over chips. Very tasty, thanks!
Fantastic! Thanks so much Danielle. 🙂
Hi,
I was wondering if the recipe could be made with water instead of veg stock. I don’t use store bought and would have to make my own from scratch, so too lazy.
Same with dijon mustard, can that be substituted with ground mustard or something not factory/store made?
Sure, it’s for flavor, so you can add other flavorings instead.
Sure, you will lose some of the flavor of course, but can adjust that with added salt if needed. 🙂
Amazing!!! love making this with nachos and as a normal dip. 🙂 🙂
This recipe is amazing, as all your recipes are! Thank you so much for bringing “cheese” in my life (since I’ve found out I have a milk allergy).
So happy to hear you like the recipes and I’m thrilled we were able to help with bringing cheese back! And thank you for the awesome review! 🙂
I can’t wait to try this! I cannot tolerate spicy, Is it spicy with the jalapeños? Wondering if the recipe will be as good if I omit them?
Hi Tina! I definitely lean more towards the very mild side of things myself, and I don’t find this to be too spicy, but you can also leave out the jalapeños if you prefer. 🙂
I love this recipe. My boyfriend and I have been going to this place veggie galaxy for a while now and I’ve always dreamed of recreating their vegan nacho cheese. This queso is just as good and maybe even better. I used 1-1/2 cups of veg stock to make sure it was as thick as I wanted , I didn’t have a lemon so I skipped it, and I also was feeling super lazy and didn’t add the jalapeños- but it worked out perfectly and I am in complete love with this recipe. When I make it again I will definitely try the recipe exactly how it’s supposed to be so that I can really appreciate the full complexity of flavors. I gotta give you a thumbs up for making this vegan cheese so easy- if I could give it more stars I would. We had taco Tuesday last night, and I poured this queso all over our corn tortillas, soy chorizo from traders, some guacamole and cauliflower rice. I dreamt about left overs all day at work. The taco itself was okay- but I was really just using it as a vehicle for the queso LOL, I have to be careful with this recipe cause I secretly wanted to drink it straight out of the pitcher ❤️❤️❤️❤️
Hahaha that’s so awesome! So glad it was a success, thanks so much for your awesome comment and rating! 🙂
This is now my go-to nacho cheese recipe! We all LOVED it!
Yay! So glad to hear this Jackie, thanks so much! 🙂
Super tasty and a great hit with non vegans too!
Hi, Alison,
I’ve been a vegan for about nine years and am always looking for new and tasty recipes, which drew me first to your grillable burgers, which mentioned the Nacho Cheese. Unfortunately, I can’t have nuts — or fat. So I wondered if you might have an idea for a substitute for the raw cashews, which seems to be a major ingredient in the recipe.
Meanwhile, I plan to try your burger recipe.
Many thanks for any suggestions you might have for the Nacho Cheese.
Roland
Hi Roland! I don’t have a way to make this particular nacho cheese without cashews, but I have seen a great recipe on Minimalist Baker that uses eggplant to get that creaminess and looks really good! Hope you enjoy the burger recipe when you make it! 🙂
I love that you added jalapenos to this recipe! It definitely adds a little extra kick to it. I want to make this for a little get together this weekend but NOT tell people it’s vegan. I want them to talk about how great it is first haha
Hahaa, that’s an awesome plan! 🙂
Thanks for posting this recipe, I am definitely going to try it as I have now bought raw cashew and nutritional yeast. It looks quite yummy