This Vegan Broccoli Cheddar Soup is creamy and cheesy, even without the dairy! It’s made with simple ingredients and ready in only 30 minutes.
If you enjoy the broccoli cheddar combination as much as I do, make sure to check out my “Chicken” Broccoli Rice Vegan Casserole and these Vegan Cheesy Broccoli Twice Baked Potatoes.
Easy and cheesy vegan broccoli cheese soup
This Vegan Broccoli Cheddar Soup is my go-to comfort food. Each spoonful is so thick and cheesy. It’s hard to believe that it isn’t made with dairy!
All you need are a few simple ingredients, a large pot, and a blender to put a batch of vegetarian broccoli cheddar soup together. It starts with a luscious, pureed cheese sauce base, then is elevated with fresh broccoli and vegan cheese shreds. In the end, your bowl is filled with a golden batch of cheesy, broccoli goodness!
Not only is it a sneaky veggie-packed meal, but it’s comforting too! Enjoy your creamy soup as-is or pair it with artisan bread and kale Caesar salad for a simple and cozy meal both adults and kids will love.
Ingredients needed (with substitutions)
- Olive oil – Or use vegetable broth if you want to saute the vegetables without oil.
- Onion
- Garlic
- Potatoes – The creamy, cheesy base of the soup is made from potatoes, carrots, cashews, and nutritional yeast. Russet potatoes or Yukon Gold are best but you can use any variety you already have at home.
- Carrots – Just like this vegan cheese sauce, carrots give the soup a yellow color and slight sweetness.
- Raw cashews – Blended cashews thicken the soup like a dream. If you don’t have cashews on hand, use macadamia nuts, blanched almonds, or sunflower seeds instead. A little coconut cream works for a nut and seed free option.
- Vegetable broth
- Nutritional yeast – A must for vegan cheesy soup.
- Smoked paprika – Or use regular paprika.
- Salt
- Water
- Broccoli – Chop the broccoli yourself or save a little time by using frozen broccoli or pre-chopped broccoli. You could even add more vegetables for more substance and texture, like peas, cauliflower, black beans, or celery.
- Shredded vegan cheese – Optional, but delicious! The cheese melts into the soup, making every bite super cheesy.
How to make vegan broccoli cheddar soup
Find the complete recipe with measurements in the recipe card below.
Start by sauteing the onion and garlic in a large oiled soup pot until they’re soft and fragrant.
Next, add in the potatoes, carrots, cashews, broth, nutritional yeast, smoked paprika, and salt. Bring it to a boil, lower the heat, and let it simmer until the vegetables are fork tender.
We boil the cashews right in the pot to get them super soft for blending!
Carefully transfer the soup to a blender and puree until smooth or use an immersion blender in the pot instead. Pour the blended soup back into the pot and thin it out with a little water if needed. Finish by stirring in the broccoli and vegan cheese.
Bring the broccoli soup back up to a boil, then lower the heat and let it simmer to cook the broccoli. Serve in individual bowls with more cheese on top, then enjoy!
Tips and variations
- Blending the broccoli – If you’re a fan of extra creamy soups, feel free to add in half of the broccoli florets when you add the potatoes. Blend until smooth, then add the rest of the broccoli. This way, the soup will have less texture and a smoother consistency.
- Nut free – The soup won’t be as thick and creamy without the cashews, but they can be left out if you need it to be nut free. Use a little coconut cream instead.
- Toppings – Top each bowl of soup with roasted broccoli florets, shredded vegan cheese, croutons, fresh parsley, or red chili flakes.
Frequently asked questions
- Can you make it in the Instant Pot? I haven’t tested this recipe in the Instant Pot. If you do try it, I recommend cooking and blending the soup without the broccoli and cheese first, then stirring them in and cooking at high pressure for a few more minutes.
- Do you have to soak the cashews ahead of time? Nope! Just throw them in the pot and the nuts will soften in the hot soup broth before blending.
- How long does vegan broccoli soup last? The leftovers will last for up to 3-4 days when kept in an airtight container in the fridge.
- Can you freeze it? Yes, the soup freezes quite well.
Want more creamy and comforting soups?
Vegan Broccoli Cheddar Soup
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 small sweet onion, chopped
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 medium russet potato, peeled and chopped
- 3 medium carrots, peeled and chopped
- 1/2 cup raw cashews
- 4 cups vegetable broth
- 1/2 cup nutritional yeast
- 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1 teaspoon salt, or to taste
- 1-2 cups water, as needed (see instructions)
- 4 cups broccoli, finely chopped
- 2 cups shredded vegan cheddar cheese I used Violife, optional
Instructions
- In a large soup pot, saute the onion and garlic in the olive oil for 2-3 minutes over medium heat, stirring frequently.
- To the pot, add the potato, carrots, cashews, vegetable broth, nutritional yeast, smoked paprika and salt. Bring to a boil, then lower the heat and simmer for about 15 minutes, until fork tender.
- Working in batches if needed, transfer the soup carefully to a blender and blend until very smooth.
- Return the mixture back to the pot. If your soup is too thick, add water until a desired consistency is reached (I used 1 cup of water). Add in the bite sized broccoli florets and cheese, if using, and stir into the soup.
- Bring the soup to a boil, then lower the heat to simmer for 10 minutes, until the broccoli is soft and cooked. The cheese should also be melted into the soup.
- Serve, topping with more vegan cheddar cheese shreds, if desired. Enjoy! Leftovers will keep for 3-4 days in an airtight container in the refrigerator. It can also be frozen.
Notes
- Broccoli – I prefer the chop the broccoli mostly super small for the soup. You can even use a food processor to chop it super small, but I usually do this by hand with a knife.
- Nut free – If you have a nut allergy, you may make this without the cashews, it just won’t be quite as creamy and rich. Stir in a little coconut cream at the end if desired for creaminess.
- Blend it – If desired, you may use an immersion blender once the broccoli is cooked to create a creamier broccoli cheese soup without chunks of broccoli florets.
Nutrition
This recipe was first posted in September 2018 and has been republished with new photos and the addition of vegan cheddar cheese shreds. Otherwise the recipe is unchanged.
Hi Nora, I’ve made many of your recipes and there isn’t one I haven’t loved. I do not like the flavor of cheese. Do the cashews or nutritional yeast give this the cheese flavor? How could I make it without the cheese flavor, but still be thick and creamy?
The nutritional yeast is what gives it a cheesy flavor, so just leave that out for a rich, creamy soup. Thanks!
Can this be made in an instant pot?!
If yes, how do I do that!
Sure! You can use the sauté feature for the onions/garlic, then add the ingredients up to the salt to the pot, seal and cook on high pressure for 8 minutes. Then carefully release the pressure, blend the soup, and return it back to the pot (or just use an immersion blender). Add the broccoli, water if needed, and use the sauté function again to cook, stirring often until the broccoli has softened a bit.
Delicious as all your recipes are, but my soup looked more yellowish brown than the beautiful orange color you achieved in your picture. Any ideas what the culprit could be?
My only thinking was that since I make my own vegetable broth with veggie ends (including LOTS of red onion), maybe my broth is darker in color than standard veggie broth? My broth always looks a bit purple. I tried adding turmeric to the soup but it still looked pretty brown. 🙁 My only other thought was maybe since I didn’t peel the carrots (never do).
Oh well, it tasted amazing regardless of color and my husband and I really enjoyed it. But if we ever want to feed it to the nonvegans in our extended family I must get the color right so any tips would be appreciated. 🙂
I’m so glad you enjoyed the soup! I would guess it was because your broth was darker in color than mine. I usually use Trader Joe’s vegetable broth which is quite light in color. Go for a lighter broth and I bet you will get a good color next time. Thank you!
This recipe looks amazing! I want to like smoked paprika but just don’t. Could I sub it with something else? Thanks!
No worries! You can use regular paprika or just leave it out.
This soup is absolutely amazing!! I am so thankful to have found your site. My college age son recently found out that he’s very allergic to dairy, wheat, peanuts, soy and other things. It has been so difficult finding options for the foods he has loved his whole life. Your recipes have made him so happy and I cannot thank you enough!
I’m so happy to hear that! Thanks for the comment!
I adore this recipe. Wondering if you’ve ever tried making this with a sweet potato instead of a russet potato. If so, did you have to make any modifications?A sweet potato is all we have on hand right now, and getting to the grocery store is not as easy these days. ?
I haven’t tried it, but I think a sweet potato would be really good here, too. I know what you mean about the store, I’m limiting to once per week and even doing pick ups when I can!
Just made this soup — very easy and delicious — a big hit – thank you!
You’re welcome!
This was amazing! So simple and so incredibly delicious! Whole family loved it
I’m so glad to hear that!
Nora, you are a magician! This soup along with every other recipe of yours that I’ve tried is AMAZING! Thank you!
You’re welcome!
Hi there! So excited to make this! I want to use cashew milk instead of actual cashews – what would the substitution be? thank you!!
I would say use about 1 cup of cashew milk, leave out the cashews. I’ve never tried it and it won’t likely be as creamy or cheesy tasting, but it should work. Thanks!
Wonderful!!! If I hadn’t made this myself, I would never guess it wasn’t made with dairy cheese. It’s soooooo good. And comforting. And yummy. And yes, we liked it VERY much — in case you hadn’t guessed that already! Thank you for the recipe.
You’re welcome! So glad you liked it.
Made this for dinner and served with fresh Multigrain bread. It was easy, healthy, fast, and rich and creamy even though I only used half the cashews. If I hadn’t made it myself, I would probably think there was cheese in there. Definitely will make it again!
Thanks for the great comment! Glad it was good. 🙂
Just found you’re mr recipes the other day and this is the third I’ve tried and loved! This soup was delicious, but it took a lot longer than 10 minutes for my broccoli to cook. I’m a cooking novice so, I’m not sure what the culprit was. Any suggestions?
So glad you enjoyed the soup! So, the smaller your broccoli are cut, the faster they will cook. And you will want your soup to be simmering, or it will take even longer. Thanks!
Hi Nora!
This looks lovely. Have you tried using an Instant Pot for this recipe? I figure I could do everything except the broccoli – which I’d add after the pressure release to finish cooking.
Any advice?
I haven’t tried this recipe in my Instant Pot, so I’m not exactly sure. I would probably cook it first without the broccoli, then blend it, then add the broccoli and maybe cook at high pressure for a few more minutes. Good luck!
Omg, you are a saint!! I am not a great cook, and even usually when I try to follow recipes something ends up not totally right. This one was really easy to make though and I think it actually turned out perfect, my bf licked his plate. The instructions are straight forward and this recipe is on point!! Thanks so much for sharing, I am going to make this one all the time.
You’re welcome! I love this kind of comment, knowing a recipe works and is simple to follow!
I love this recipe, I make this often and it’s always a crowd pleaser! You are fabulous
Aww, thanks so much!
I just made this soup and oh my it is SO GOOD!!! Only changes I made:
I used a block of very soft tofu instead of cashews (allergy in the house) and used frozen broccoli processed in the food processor for 10 seconds, instead of fresh broccoli. The flavor was out of this world! Thank you so much for a wonderful recipe.
PS: I used Edward and Sons Not-Chicken cubes for the broth and they worked wonderfully.
I’m so happy you enjoyed the soup Carina! Thank you. I’m glad to know it worked with tofu in place of cashews.
This soup is absolutely delicious! We had it as our main meal tonight but this would now be my go to Christmas starter. I’ve been vegan for 10 months now and didn’t think I would find a broccoli cheese soup that would taste so good! Thank you! X
There won’t be any of this batch left so when I make it again if I double up would this freeze well?
I’m so glad you enjoyed it! One of my personal favorites. Yes, it does freeze well!
Thank you! X
This afternoon I was meal prepping and got distracted. I was busy roasting veggies and forgot that I’d put some of the broccoli in the steamer. uh oh. Overcooked broccoli is not good for much EXCEPT broccoli cheese soup. I’ve been vegan for two years now but somehow hadn’t made a vegan version of this soup yet. How is that possible? Thanks to the magic of Google, I found your recipe and even though I had to modify it for less volume AND I already had some cashew cream that I needed to use, I followed the basics and it came out perfect. I’m now subscribing to your blog. Glad I found you. Thanks so much!
I just made this, and it was soo good! Thank you for posting this, definitely making it again ?
Made exactly as suggested and it was a very delicious soup. It didn’t bring back the broccoli/cheddar feeling of my dairy-consuming days BUT it was very very tasty, and I’d definitely make it again. And it might be as close as you’ll ever get in the vegan world. 🙂
I made this for dinner recently and thought it tasted wonderful. I didn’t chop the broccoli small enough so yeah, that was fun to watch. ? Thank you for sharing this recipe.
Hello! This sounds great and the comments seem to back it up. Question, what can be substituted for cashews? Severe nut allergy! Thank you!
Thanks Nancy! You could replace the cashews with soaked almond slivers (unless you are allergic to those as well), or perhaps soaked sunflower seeds. Or maybe even a block of silken tofu, the kind in the aseptic package. I think that would add a lot of creaminess. Hope that helps!
I made this and it was delicous!! I added a little red pepper flakes to add some heat. I am definitely making it again!!
Yay! So glad you enjoyed the soup. I often add Sriracha on top.
Hi Nora. This looks delicious. Do the cashews need to be soaked first?
No they don’t, because you boil them right in the soup. 🙂
Thank you!
Very good soup. I made it in the Instant Pot. Sautéed the onions and garlic for a few minuets then added all the other ingredients. Manual high pressure for 10 minutes and NR. Blended with immersion blender. Easy, quick and good.
Glad you enjoyed the soup, Sam! Thanks for sharing.