The Stretchy Vegan Mozzarella Cheese of your dreams, made with just 5 ingredients and in 15 minutes! Perfect for grilled cheese, lasagna, pizza and more!
Meet the vegan mozzarella cheese of your dreams! Stretchy, tangy and oh-so-delicious. I love using this mozzarella on pizza and my new favorite place for it is on top of Vegan Lasagna. Oh my goodness, it takes the lasagna to a whole new level of amazing!
This cheese also makes a mouthwatering vegan grilled cheese sandwich, which I love alongside tomato soup. Talk about an easy meal that kids and grown-ups will love!
I’m sure you could use this vegan mozzarella in many more ways that I haven’t even discovered yet. I’m thinking french onion soup, eggplant parmesan, quesadillas, dips… The possibilities are endless.
How do you make Vegan Mozzarella?
It’s very easy. First, you soak your cashews in hot water for 5 minutes (or up to an hour). Drain them, and add to a high powered blender with all the other ingredients. Blend; the mixture will be very watery.
Add to a small saucepan and stir constantly over medium heat. After a few minutes, it will start to get clumpy. Keep stirring. And then all of a sudden it magically turns into smooth, stretchy vegan mozzarella! That’s it, it’s ready to use.
How to brown vegan mozzarella in the oven:
I’ve discovered something new lately about this cheese. It will totally brown and bubble in the oven, like real mozzarella would! Simply spray the cheese with a little oil (I used olive oil spray), and broil for 5-10 minutes in the oven. I spread some cheese on sourdough bread and broiled it, and wow, it was incredible cheesy bread. I think this would work on top of casseroles (like lasagna), pizza and more.
What is tapioca starch and where can I find it?
Tapioca flour is a starch extracted from cassava. Tapioca starch and flour are usually the same thing, but not always.
It’s a white powder and works similarly to cornstarch as a thickener. The difference is it’s the key to making cheeses like this stretchy instead of just thickened. It’s absolutely necessary and perfect for making this vegan mozzarella.
How to use vegan mozzarella:
- Grilled Cheese – Spoon the cheese between two slices of (vegan) buttered bread and grill for a fantastic grilled cheese.
- Pizza – Spoon dollops of cheese on top of pizza crust along with other toppings of choice and cook as you normally would. You can also try to spread it all over the pizza (this works best when the mozzarella is very fresh).
- Lasagna – Spoon the cheese all over the top of the lasagna in the last 20 minutes of baking in the oven. Bake uncovered with the cheese, and broil if desired to brown in spots.
- Anywhere else you’d like! Dip chips into it, make quesadillas, in enchiladas, etc.
Recipe adapted from Minimalist Baker.
EASY Stretchy Vegan Mozzarella Cheese
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup raw cashews, soaked
- 1 1/3 cups water
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice, fresh from about 1/2 lemon
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 4 tablespoons tapioca starch
Instructions
- Boil 2 cups of water (I just heat up water in my tea kettle). Pour the water over the cashews and let soak for 5 minutes and up to an hour.
- Drain the cashews, and add them to a blender along with 1 1/3 cups fresh water (not the water you soaked the cashews in), lemon juice, apple cider vinegar, salt and tapioca starch. Blend until very smooth, scraping down the sides of the blender as needed. It will be very watery at this point.
- Now pour the watery mixture into a small saucepan and bring the heat to medium. Begin to stir with a spatula or spoon.
- After a few minutes, it will begin to get clumpy. Keep stirring, constantly until suddenly it will become super gooey, stretchy, thick and smooth. It will become one big mass of stretchy vegan cheese. Remove from heat as soon as this happens.
- Use immediately, or store in a covered container in the refrigerator. It is easiest to use immediately, because it will thicken up more in the fridge and be less stretchy. So if possible, especially for using on pizza or lasagna, make right before using.
- For pizza, drop 1-2 tablespoon sized balls onto the crust and pat down a little bit. Or spread it all over. It will brown in the oven. For lasagna, drop dollops of the cheese all over the top towards the end of cooking time. Or place between bread and grill for grilled cheese.
Video
Notes
- Tapioca starch/flour is essential in this recipe, cornstarch will not create the same "stretchy" quality.
- I've never tried it with another nut, but I suspect raw slivered almonds could work.
- If you want the cheese to brown in the oven (like it looks on the bread in the post above), simply spray with a little oil and broil for 5-10 minutes, watching carefully. This is wonderful for lasagna, pizza, or just atop bread for cheesy bread.
- I have frozen this and while it is still edible, it definitely tastes best fresh. It will keep in the refrigerator for 4-5 days. But again, it will be the most stretchy and easy to work with immediately.
Pure magic! I used on top of a lasagna and my husband did not know there was no cheese! I loved it and this is my go-to mozzarella recipe forever, thank you.
You are welcome, Karen! I’m glad the cheese was a hit! Thank you for sharing your wonderful review! I appreciate you using my recipe!
Yum!
So easy and so good. Even better the second day after cooling and reheating in my opinion!
Thank you Nora for this recipe, I am excited about how easy it is and that I have all the ingredients readily on hand. It definitely satisfied my cravings for something cheesy. I used Pure Harvest oat milk to substitute most of the water hoping for a richer taste, I am not sure how it differs but I like the result. I might stir in some dried mixed herbs next time just to add more flavor. Thank you again!
You are welcome, Eunice! I’m so glad that you loved the cheese! It’s fun to experiment with different flavors! Thank you for sharing your cooking experience, as well as your fabulous review! Happy cooking!
Any suggestions to make it not taste like lemon and just like mozzarella? I like with how little lemon juice can I get away with? I used homemade lemon juice. Thank you so much.
I guess you could just leave out the lemon juice. I don’t think it ever tastes lemony, but leaving it out will only affect the flavor, so go for it.
Hi Nora! I love this recipe, it’s the holy grail of vegan cheeses. Do you think I could use this as a sauce for a baked mac and cheese? If I made it more on the watery side since it would firm up more in the oven?
You probably could!
Love this. Sometimes I even eat it as a standalone snack.
PROCESS IMPROVEMENT: Instead of a pot, heat it in a microwave-safe glass dish, stirring periodically. You can store any leftovers right in the same dish. PLUS cleanup is wayyy easier because nothing sticks to the glass dish.
Hello! Me again, hahaha, I’m wondering how much total this makes? Like what are the amounts for the serving size? Thanks again 🙂
Hi Cora. I don’t know the exact serving size, but it you were to split it up into 8 servings, that is the serving size. I think it’s about 1/3 cup, maybe a bit more. I hope this helps!
Fabulous! Been making vegan cheese for years and this is by far the best recipe ever. So good on top of our homemade pizza! Thanks Nora!
I made a mistake and used arrowroot rather than tapioca but it was perfect. I ended up adding more lemon juice and salt than called for. I had a little left over that I formed into a block that I can slice for sandwiches later. This was my first attempt at vegan cheese, now I want to try more! I wonder how I could make a gouda flavor??
I’m thrilled your first attempt was a success, Dalene! Thank you so much for your wonderful feedback and review. I haven’t tried a gouda version but that would be so delicious!
I just made it and it’s kind of grainy, do I need to cook it more?
If it’s grainy, it makes me wonder if you used a high powered blender to blend it before cooking? Likely the nuts didn’t get smooth for some reason, probably because of the blender you used I would guess. Cooking it more will not help, unfortunately.
Simply the best! I LOVE all the cheeses but this is my favorite. I’m not gonna lie. I struggled with consistency at first but I think I was making it too complicated. The measurements are exact, and if you stick to the formula, the vinegar isn’t too strong, and the flavor is sooo close to salty mozzerella. LOVELOVELOVE
Thank you so much for the wonderful feedback, Susan! I’m thrilled you loved it!
In general I like it, the texture is quite good! The taste of vinegar seems really strong after cooking and baking on a pizza, but based on the comments others don’t seem to have that issue. I checked to be sure that German ACV is the same as in the US and both should be 5% and that’s what I used. Perhaps I’ll try the tip of using more lemon juice instead of ACV and the third time will be the charm! Any tips otherwise or thoughts on why this might be the case for me?
I’m not sure, I haven’t had that issue but some people really dislike the ACV taste and seem sensitive to it. No problem, just use all lemon juice instead! Glad you enjoyed the texture, and hope you enjoy it even more next time without the ACV.
Do you think this would work with roasted unsalted cashews? Bought by accident.
It should be fine. The flavor might be a bit different but roasted nuts won’t ruin the cheese.
This was so easy to make and worked remarkably well in the two applications where I used it: a peach, mozzarella and basil flatbread and a grilled mozzarella and pesto sandwich. For the sandwich, I used the cheese after it had been in the refrigerator for a couple days, and the consistency was exactly like fresh mozzarella. Easy to slice and layer onto the bread.
Hi Angie. Your flatbread sounds amazing! I’m so glad you loved the cheese! Thanks for sharing your awesome feedback!
Hi Angie, Your peach, mozz cheese and basil flat bread sounds awesome. Are those all the ingredients; or, did you add other ingredients?
This was a win for me and my vegan kids 🙌🙌
Thrilled to hear it, Hannah! Thanks for your fantastic review and comments!
This looks great! I can’t wait to try it. Also, I want to make vegan mozzarella balls to use in a caprese salad. Do you think this recipe would work for that? or maybe let it set up a bit in the fridge and cut it into chunks?
thanks!
Yes, this recipe will work pretty well for that. After refrigerating it gets semi-firm and could be balled or cut into chunks. Hope you enjoy it!
Can use substitute other nuts?
Hi Marion. Other options are raw slivered almonds and sunflower seeds. You could try using silken tofu instead but I’m not sure it will work as well.
Thank you so much for your reply!
I make this recipe all the time. It’s so good. I trick my non vegan friends with my lasagna. In my opinion, it’s better than the “normal” lasagna.
Thank you for sharing your wonderful feedback!
Thank you for sharing the recipe! This was so quick and easy to make and such a great addition to your lasagna recipe. Really enjoyed making my own vegan cheese.
Hi Erica. I’m glad the cheese was easy to make and that you enjoyed it! Thanks for sharing your great feedback and review!
Hi ,
I haven’t made this yet. I love cheese , too bad my stomach doesn’t agree. This may be a really dumb question . The calorie count and nutritional facts are for one serving. How big or how much is in a serving ?
I read your other mozza recipe , lots of calories , is it the coconut oil ?
Thanks
Hi there! I hope you love this vegan cheese, real cheese never set well with me either and I feel so much better since giving up dairy in general. So yes, this recipe is less rich without the oil but it doesn’t taste like it. The nutrition info is based on 8 servings, but I’m not sure exactly how much that is. Perhaps around 1/4 cup of the melted stuff. You’d need to divide the finished recipe by 8 to know for sure. Hope that makes sense!
around 350 kcal are in the whole recipe (main calorie-contributor are the cashews)
This was incredible. Thank you! I haven’t put it on pizza yet, but I had a grilled cheese with sun-dried tomatoes and arugula on country bread—delicious. It shares some qualities with baked Brie, which of course has my imagination going.
You sandwich sounds perfect! Thanks for your most fabulous feedback and review!
I made this with arrowroot powder instead of tapioca and it came out great! Substituted 1:1
Hi Danielle. Thanks for sharing your experience! I appreciate your fabulous feedback and review! I’m glad the cheese turned out great!
I wonder if you mold it and freeze it and them shred it?
Hi Deborah. I’ve frozen it before and it does work to grate it then, with pretty good results. It is best fresh!
I added garlic and tasted even better. I also don’t eat cashews so I made with sunflower seeds and worked fine. Thanks for the recipe tasted delicious on my pizza.
You are welcome, Olivia. Great to know it tasted great with sunflower seeds! Thanks for your fabulous feedback and review!
I wanted to give this recipe 5 stars, but it did not pass the non-vegan husband test unfortunately. 🙁 I usually know if a vegan recipe is a keeper if he can’t much tell the difference and asks me to make it again.
First, I personally thought the texture was wonderful. It came out smooth and stretchy, just as described. I have an aversion to ACV, so I did not use it and just increased the lemon juice a bit to keep the tang-factor.
I used the cheese on a homemade pizza. I will say, if you want to spread it all over the pizza, you must work quickly and spread as you go. Dolloping and then trying to spread afterward had mixed results.
After baking, the cheese went back to gooey, which makes sense. Personally, I liked it better than other vegan mozzarellas I’ve tried, even that on restaurant pizza. I think my husband’s issue was a teeny bit flavor (because it’s not EXACTLY the same as real mozzarella), but more the consistency of the cheese. He found it to be too gooey, and it slid off his crust multiple times. Real mozzarella cheese kind of congeals as it cools and turns a bit solid. I think he was thrown off by the fact that this cheese stayed kind of gooey the entire time.
I thought it was good. I’m curious to see how it will do on the reheat of the leftovers (which I will be eating even if he won’t!).
Overall, thank you for a great recipe which I enjoyed. At least in this case, though, it did not pass the non-vegan husband test.
I’m glad you enjoyed it, Stephanie! Vegan mozzarella will never be exactly the same as the real thing, so it makes sense how your husband was able to tell the difference. Thanks for sharing your feedback!
This was great on my homemade pizza! I ended up making too much, what other recipes do you recommend I make with the extra before it goes bad?
Perfect for grilled cheese, lasagna, pizza, dips, and more! I’m glad you loved the cheese! Thanks for your wonderful feedback and review!
We really loved this. Wondering about the acid — it was very sour, and we wonder if the acid level is essential from a chemistry POV, or if that can be dialed back to taste. Other than that, we added a touch of nutritional yeast and a pinch of sugar and a little more salt. Texture and taste was excellent. Great recipe.
I think you’re talking about the apple cider vinegar taste, which some people really don’t like. Just leave it out and use more lemon juice instead. That will cut back on the vinegar taste. Glad you enjoyed it anyhow, but I think that will be more to your taste next time.