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    Home » Recipes » All recipes

    The best plant based queso

    Published: Mar 3, 2021 · Modified: Feb 13, 2023 by Maria · This post may contain affiliate links · Leave a Comment

    Jump to Recipe Print Recipe
    hand holding tortilla dipping in vegan nacho cheese

    Easy vegan nacho cheese

    This plant based queso is rich, creamy and delicious. Elevat your vegan nachos to the next level. Made in a blender with cashews, nutritional yeast and more. Easy to whip together in under 20 minutes!

    Hand dipping tortilla chip into vegan nacho cheese sauce
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    Jump to:
    • Easy vegan nacho cheese
    • Why you’ll love this recipe
    • Ingredients
    • Where to buy raw cashews
    • Helpful tips
    • Storing tips
    • How to reheat queso
    • How to serve
    • More vegan cheese recipes
    • 📖 Recipe

    It’s never been easier to make nachos vegan, even if you love cheese. The world of vegan cuisine is growing by the minutes. Vegan cheese has never tasted better.

    The little trick to making creamy vegan pasta or cheese sauce is to use raw cashews.

    Why you’ll love this recipe

    • You only need a blender and a sauce pan to make this cheese.
    • It’s vegan, gluten free, easy and healthy. Unlike cow cheese, this vegan queso has zero cholesterol.
    • If you’re craving cheese, this delicious recipe hits the spot.

    Ingredients

    This plant based queso is full of easy ingredients and natural flavor.

    • Raw cashews – This is the base of the vegan nacho cheese sauce. This gives the cheese a nice fatty content and helps to thicken it up as well. Just boil some hot water and let the cashews soften in the water for at least 10 minutes to make it easier on your blender.
    • Small potato & carrot – These also make up the base of the cheese sauce. The carrot and potato help to thicken it, give it a creamy texture and the carrot adds some beta carotene.
    • Nutritional yeast – This gives an amazing cheesy flavor. It’s also full of vitamin B12 if it’s been fortified.
    • Jalapeño slices & brine – The jalapeño peppers will give the sauce that nice nacho cheese flavor with a touch of jalapeños. You can also use canned green chile peppers for a bold flavor.
    • Lemon juice – The citric acid in lemons helps to balance out the flavors. You can also use apple cider vinegar.
    • Seasonings – I use garlic powder and onion powder.
    • Salsa – At the very end, to add some texture, I love adding a spoonful or two of salsa. This adds a nice different flavor to the mix.
    • Salt – Sea salt, or whatever salt you have on hand works great.

    Where to buy raw cashews

    I love buying raw cashews in the bulk section of my grocery store. Most natural food stores have them, as well as Whole Foods.

    If you can’t find them near you, then you can order them in bulk online. Buying in bulk is the most cost effective.

    Make sure to buy sustainably and ethically sourced cashews, as they sometimes use poorly paid workers from poorer countries who work in terrible conditions. Here is a great ethically sourced brand.

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    Hand holding a tortilla chip dipped in vegan nacho cheese

    Helpful tips

    • Boil the potato, carrot and cashews together. This saves a lot of time. Then just strain the hot water and pour it into a blender with the rest of the ingredients.
    • Thicken the cheese sauce on medium low heat so it doesn’t burn. Make sure to stir the whole time.
    • If you want to add a little texture and more flavor, I love stirring in a couple tablespoons of chunky salsa at this point.
    • If you want an even stretchier cheese, add ½ teaspoon of tapioca starch to the blender with all of the ingredients. Then warm it all up on the stove on medium-low heat to activate the starch.
    • If you want to add more heat to the plant based queso, add some cayenne pepper, red pepper flakes or hot chili powder.

    Storing tips

    This keeps in an air tight container in the fridge for about a 5 days.

    This can be frozen in a freezer friendly bag for 3 months. Just thaw out in the fridge before using.

    Are you a busy vegan? Click here to download my FREE Guide "Effortless Vegan Cooking: Time and Money Saving Hacks You Need to Know"!

    How to reheat queso

    Heat it in a microwave and place a paper towel over the queso so it doesn’t make a mess.

    You can also reheat it in a saucepan on the stove on medium-low heat. Add a splash of water if it thickened too much. Stir often.

    How to serve

    This can be used like any vegan queso dip. Tastes just like the queso that you’d find at movie theaters or ball games.

    • Put it on top of tortilla chips or vegan nachos. I love putting red onions, hot sauce, red bell peppers, beans, lettuce and salsa on my nachos.
    • Put it on top burritos
    • Use it as a cheesy dip, like a chip dip
    • Put it on a vegan hot dog with some vegan chili for a chili cheese dog.

    More vegan cheese recipes

    • Homemade Vegan cream in a small glass mason jar.
      Easy vegan cream recipe
    • Tofu cream cheese spread out over a toasted bagel topped with green onions.
      Tofu cream cheese
    • A plate of vegan pesto pasta with roasted vegetables
      Dairy free pesto
    • Vegan Jackfruit Nachos
      Easy jackfruit nachos
    • Piece of bread dipped in vegan fondue
      Easiest vegan fondue (dairy free cheese fondue)
    • Vegan wings surrounded by a bowl of vegan ranch dressing
      Creamy vegan ranch dressing
    • Nut free vegan mac and cheese in a bowl.
      Easiest vegan mac and cheese (without cashews, one pot)

    If you loved this recipe, leave a 5 ⭐️ rating on the recipe card and comment below!

    📖 Recipe

    Hand holding tortilla chip dipped in vegan nacho cheese

    Plant based queso (vegan nacho cheese)

    The best vegan nacho cheese recipe. Rich, creamy and delicious. Made with cashews, nutritional yeast and more.
    4.34 from 9 votes
    Print Pin Rate
    Course: Side Dish
    Cuisine: Mexican
    Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes
    Cook Time: 5 minutes minutes
    Total Time: 20 minutes minutes
    Servings: 4
    Calories: 244kcal
    Author: Maria
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    Ingredients

    US Customary or Metric
    • 1 cup raw cashews
    • 1 small potato
    • 1 carrot
    • 6 pickled jalapeno slices
    • 3 tablespoon pickled jalapeno brine
    • 2 teaspoon lemon juice
    • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
    • 1 teaspoon onion powder
    • ⅓ cup nutritional yeast
    • ½ teaspoon salt
    • 2 cups water
    • 2 tablespoon salsa (optional. Add this in the end and don't add this to the blender)

    Instructions

    Boil

    • Peel and roughly chop potatoes and carrots. Place carrots, potatoes and raw cashews into a sauce pan and cover with water. Bring to a simmer and cook until potatoes and carrots are tender. About 8-10 minutes.
      1 cup raw cashews, 1 small potato, 1 carrot

    Blend

    • Drain the water from the sauce pan and add the potatoes, carrots and cashews to a blender as well as all the ingredients, MINUS THE SALSA, above. Blend on high until well combined. Add a splash of water or two if it's too thick.
      1 cup raw cashews, 1 small potato, 1 carrot, 6 pickled jalapeno slices, 3 tablespoon pickled jalapeno brine, 2 teaspoon lemon juice, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, 1 teaspoon onion powder, ⅓ cup nutritional yeast, ½ teaspoon salt, 2 cups water

    Warm up on the stove

    • Transfer the cheese sauce to a sauce pan and heat on low until sauce thickens, stirring the whole time. Stir in a couple spoonfuls of salsa if you'd like. Taste, and add salt if needed.
      2 tablespoon salsa
    • Serve over tortilla chips and top with your favorite nacho toppings.

    Notes

    This keeps in an air tight container in the fridge for about a week.
    This can be frozen in a freezer friendly bag for 3 months. Just thaw out in the fridge before using.
    Re-heating – When you re-heat, you will need to add a few splashes of water, since this thickens up a lot after storing.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 244kcal | Carbohydrates: 23g | Protein: 9g | Fat: 15g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Sodium: 747mg | Potassium: 597mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 2970IU | Vitamin C: 13mg | Calcium: 36mg | Iron: 3mg
    Tried this recipe? Tag me today!Mention @DamnTastyVegan or tag #DamnTastyVegan!

    The nutritional information on this website is only an estimate and is provided for convenience and as a courtesy only. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed. It should not be used as a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

    « Easy eggless french toast (vegan)
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    About Maria

    Maria is the creator of the blog and YouTube channel Damn Tasty Vegan. She has been a vegetarian since 2005 and vegan since 2015. She loves showing new vegans how easy and delicious living a vegan lifestyle can be. She is passionate about animal welfare and strives to help change the way animals are viewed and treated, by helping people transition to a vegan lifestyle.

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    Hi, I'm Maria Rose! I'm a professional singer by night, and recipe developer by day. I run this blog and am also the creator of the One Month (30 minute) Meal Plan. I love helping people learn how to cook easy and delicious plant based meals.

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