Vegan Cottage Cheese

The perfect vegan cottage cheese is savory and simple, with the ideal cottage cheese texture. It’s even better than the ‘real thing’. 

A vegan cottage cheese recipe was always going to happen for this blog, because I’ve always been a cottage cheese fan.

But this time I can’t take the credit, I handed it to Jaye and said: ‘create a recipe for this please!’

And he sure delivered. Give that man a Bells! 

The base recipe was adapted from our vegan cream cheese. With just a few adjustments, we had the perfect cottage cheese flavor. 

Firm tofu crumbled up and mixed in creates that perfect cottage cheese texture. And don’t worry, it doesn’t taste like tofu. The tofu is purely for texture and it really delivers. The only thing you will taste is delicious chunky cottage cheese.

The result is perfect and tastes amazingly like actual cottage cheese. 

How To Make Vegan Cottage 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.

• Place soaked cashews, lemon juice, coconut cream, water, distilled white vinegar, salt, nutritional yeast, onion powder and garlic powder into the blender and blend until smooth.

• Pour the blended cottage cheese mix out into a bowl.

• Place the tofu into a separate shallow bowl and crumble it with a fork.

• Add the crumbled tofu and chopped chives to the blended cottage cheese mix and fold everything together gently so you don’t break up the tofu.

• Place into the fridge for at least an hour to firm up.

• Your cottage cheese is ready to serve!

Ingredient Notes & Substitutions

Coconut cream – should be canned and unsweetened. You can also use canned, unsweetened, full fat (not light) coconut milk.

Distilled white vinegar – is the perfect vinegar to use because it is amazing for creating a cheese flavor. However, you can also use apple cider vinegar in a pinch. 

Extra firm tofu – is most ideal, because you don’t want it to disintegrate into the rest of the cheese, which is what will happen if you use a soft tofu.

Success Tips

Soak the cashews. The cashews must be soaked for 1 hour in hot water. Add them to a bowl and pour boiling water from the kettle over the top so that they are totally covered, and then just leave them for exactly one hour.

If you soak them for too long, they may absorb too much water and you will end up with a cottage cheese that is less flavorful, so don’t just leave them soaking for hours, put a timer on it. 

Chill in the fridge for an hour. When you’ve finished making it, let it sit in the fridge for at least an hour before serving it. It will thicken up in the fridge and reach the perfect texture.

It’s a little soft when you first mix it, which is needed so that the tofu can mix in nicely without just breaking up completely, but then you need to let it chill and thicken up, which it does wonderfully in the fridge. 

Serving Suggestions

It’s divine served on bread, especially toast and makes a great addition to sandwiches. I love it on toast spread with jam and then cottage cheese on top! But maybe that’s just me.

You can serve it with fruit, as a dip for raw vegetables or on crackers.

Storing and Freezing

Keep leftovers stored in the fridge and enjoy within around 5 days.

You can also freeze it for up to 3 months if you like, just let it thaw overnight in the fridge when you’re ready to eat it. 

More Vegan Cheese Recipes

1. Sliceable Cashew Cheese
2. Vegan Cheddar Cheese
3. Vegan Nacho Cheese
4. Vegan Parmesan
5. Vegan Ricotta
6. Vegan Mozzarella

Did you make this recipe? Be sure to leave a comment and rating below!