My favorite recipe for vegan scalloped potatoes- ultra creamy, cheesy, garlicky and comforting. Absolutely NO dairy!
Oh vegan scalloped potatoes, where have you been all my life?
Not to toot my own horn or anything, but I nailed it with this recipe! Sometimes (ok, often…) I have complete recipe testing failures. I try, I fail, I try, I fail again, and hopefully get it after several tries. But with these scalloped potatoes, oh my word, they were amazing from the start!
These potatoes are SO creamy, garlicky, flavorful and over-the-top delicious. The epitome of comfort food, and a must have at any holiday meal! They will be gone so fast, and no one will guess they are vegan.
HOW DO YOU MAKE VEGAN SCALLOPED POTATOES?
- First, peel and slice your potatoes about 1/8 inch thick. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
- Make your creamy sauce in a high powered blender like a Vitamix (raw, soaked cashews, vegetable broth, unsweetened non-dairy milk, nutritional yeast and salt)
- Saute an onion, thinly sliced and some garlic.
Now, layer half the potatoes in a 9 x13 inch greased baking dish.
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Pour half of the sauce on top. It will be very watery at this point, which is fine. It will thicken up as the potatoes bake. Spread the onion/garlic mixture on top.
Add the rest of the potatoes, and pour the rest of the sauce on top. It will look like this before you put it in the oven:
Bake, uncovered for 60 minutes, then remove from the oven and check for doneness. The sauce should be bubbly and thick, and the potatoes should be fork tender. If not, bake a little longer, 10-20 more minutes. Then, sprinkle with vegan parmesan and fresh chopped chives, if desired and serve warm!
CAN I MAKE VEGAN SCALLOPED POTATOES AHEAD OF TIME?
Yes, you can. Simply make the potatoes as instructed and let cool completely to room temperature. Cover tightly and refrigerate 2-3 days. I wouldn’t go longer than that. When ready to serve, bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes until warmed through.
Want more vegan comfort food recipes?
Vegan Scalloped Potatoes
Ingredients
- 4 pounds yukon gold potatoes
For the creamy sauce
- 1 1/2 cups raw cashews, soaked in hot water for 5 minutes
- 2 cups vegetable broth
- 2 cups unsweetened non-dairy milk (I used coconut milk)
- 1/2 cup nutritional yeast
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
For the rest
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 large onion, thinly sliced
- 4 large garlic cloves, minced
- Optional for serving: vegan parmesan, chopped fresh chives
Instructions
- Peel your potatoes, and slice them into 1/8 inch thick rounds. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F and lightly grease a 9 x 13 inch baking dish. Set aside.
- Make the creamy sauce: Drain the cashews. In a high powered blender like a Vitamix, add all the sauce ingredients (cashews, vegetable broth, non-dairy milk, nutritional yeast and salt) and blend on high for a few minutes until very smooth.
- Heat the olive oil in a large saute pan over medium heat. Add the sliced onion and saute for 3-4 minutes, until translucent. Now add the garlic to the pan and cook, stirring constantly for another minute. Turn off heat and set aside.
- Spread half of the sliced potatoes in the baking dish. Top evenly with half of the creamy sauce, and then add the onion/garlic mixture across the top of the sauce.
- Layer the rest of the potatoes, and then the rest of the sauce. Bake for 60 minutes, then check a few potatoes to make sure they are fork tender and cooked through. If not, put back in the oven for 10-20 more minutes, until done. The sauce should be bubbly and thick.
- Sprinkle vegan parmesan and chopped fresh chives on top, if desired and serve. Enjoy!
Video
Notes
- May leave out the onions and garlic if desired, but they add a lot of flavor to the dish.
- I like using yukon gold potatoes in this recipe, but russets will work as well. Or try sweet potatoes for variety!
- Try to slice your potatoes similar levels of thickness; this will help them cook more evenly. If you slice your potatoes thicker, they will take longer to cook, so keep this in mind.
Love this recipe I use it for potato bake as well as a veggie bake, pasta and veggie bake.
Love your ideas! Thanks for sharing them! How great you are loving the recipe!
These are awesome . We made them for a dear friend of ours who is vegan and she loved them. Thanks.
I”m so glad they were a hit with your friend! Thanks for sharing your wonderful feedback and review!
Hello!
I love this dish! I was curious what the serving size was!
Hi, I’m so glad you love the potatoes! There are 12 servings total, so if you divide it by 12 that’s your answer as far as the nutrition information is concerned. Hope that helps!
Wonderful taste, texture and so easy to put together. I will add more garlic next time (personal preference) and maybe some chopped jalapeños as we like things with a little zip but the base recipe is just like the old school taste – so good! I diced my potatoes as I just have better luck with them diced instead of sliced. This is comfort food for my husband and he never knew it was vegan.
Hi Lisa. Thanks for sharing your terrific feedback and ideas! I like it! This is definitely one of my favorite comfort foods!
Hi Nora
Thank you so much for your scalloped potato recipe. I made it to share with my other half and with a new friend who we met in our new neighborhood, all three of us loved it. It was tasty, creamy and utterly decadent.
I would never had thought to put a layer of onions in scalloped potatoes, but it worked really well flavour wise. I will definitely be making this dish again…
Cheers,
Brian
Hi Brian. I’m thrilled you all loved the scalloped potatoes! It is one of my favorites! Thanks for your fantastic feedback and review! Happy cooking!
I just made these. We cant really do onions or garlic, so I left those out. I also used plain water instead of veggie broth, and unsweetened soy milk, since that’s what I had un the house.
Soooooo Yummmmmm!
So glad you liked the potatoes, Cheryl! Thanks so much for your feedback and review 🙂
Hi Nora, thanks so much for all your recipes – I love them!! My son is allergic to milk and eggs, so your recipes are gold in our household. Is there a way to make this recipe without cashews please? (My son is also super allergic to cashews and most tree nuts). No worries if it can’t be done. Thanks very much.x
Hi Erin! It’s on my mind to create a nut free recipe for vegan scalloped potatoes, and I intend to do it in the future! However, for now, you could try using sunflower seeds instead of the cashews, if those are safe. I haven’t tried it myself, but it might work. Otherwise, stay tuned!
This is one of my favorite recipes, and my non-vegan family always enjoys it when I make for holidays. Sometimes I’ll add a couple sweet potatoes or a little rosemary, and it’s always a hit!
Hi Hillary. Your ideas sounds delicious! I’m thrilled you are loving the scalloped potatoes! Thanks for your wonderful feedback and review!
I made this recipe many times. Super yummy. Thank you!
You are welcome! I’m so glad you are loving the scalloped potatoes! Thanks for your terrific feedback!
Hi Nora I love your recipes!!
I want to make these scalloped potatoes but my Daughter-in-law is allergic to coconut so I was going to sub with oat but tried that once before & it didn’t turn out very good it was too watery any other suggestions for a non-dairy milk option?
Hi Lori. I am thrilled you are loving my recipes! Thank you! Any plant based, unsweetened milk should work in this recipe. I have used soy, almond, coconut and oat. Hope this helps!
Hi Nora
I made three trials of vegan scalloped potatoes using my own intuition, before finding your recipe. I tried the three beta recipes on friends 2 weeks before Christmas dinner, and they all chose the recipe with the nutritional yeast! But it was still missing something, then I found your recipe using Google search. The only difference was yours used vegetable stock and coconut milk; mine used oat milk which was all I had on hand. I also used a food processor to slice the potatoes at .4 cm, small creamer organic potatoes with skins on, and green onions.
Those two things made all the difference and your recipe was much loved at the Christmas eve dinner. But I want to make it again with mushrooms, as those improved a traditional cheesy scalloped potato recipe my friend makes. What kind of mushrooms would you recommend?
Thank you so much for the kind words, Max! I’m so glad it was such a hit! I haven’t tried making this recipe with mushrooms but I’m sure sliced baby bella or cremini mushrooms will work well. Happy cooking!
Super tasty! But I needed 2 9×13 pans and it was brown—not this pretty yellow in the picture
These are amazing! Made them for Christmas Eve Dinner! Question – do you think these can be frozen and then thawed?
Hi Corrie. I’m so glad you are loving the scalloped potatoes! Yes, they freeze pretty well. Potatoes always tend to get mushier once frozen, but it works. Thanks for your great feedback! Happy cooking!
this was delish! will be making this again.
Thank you for your terrific feedback! I’m glad you love the scalloped potatoes!
Nora, I absolutely love so many of your recipes but this one is a show stopper! My daughter just requested these scalloped potatoes for her 18th birthday brunch as they are typically a part of our holiday and celebratory meals. Thank you for doing what you do so well and for sharing it with the world. 🙏😘
Hi Beth. Thank you for your wonderful and kind words! They really made my day! I’m so glad that you guys love the scallop potatoes, and that they are part of your holiday and celebratory meals! I appreciate your fantastic feedback!
Hey Nora, looks like maybe you did a rebrand since I was last on your site- looks great:)
Anyway, this recipe is my fav! I sent my sister a pic once I took it out of the oven and turns out she uses the same recipe! Sending love from two plant-based sissies!!
Hi Alex. Yes I do have a new look on my site! I really like it as well! How fun that you and your sister use the same recipe! I’m so glad that you both are loving the scalloped potatoes! They are one of my absolute favorites! Thank you for sharing your wonderful feedback.
Making this for Christmas dinner for my grandchildren who are allergic to dairy. They also don’t “prefer” nutritional yeast. Can you suggest a substitute? Thanks in advance!
I don’t know of a replacement but you can leave it out if needed. Hope everyone enjoys!
I was absolutely stunned by how yummy these came out! You would never miss dairy cheese in this, they’re so creamy and delicious
Hi Nora! Ive now made this twice and this will for sure be one of our go to recipes! My 23 yo son devours this! I think he has been missing creamy scalloped potatoes.
The first time I only had red potatoes, so I used them and layered onion and garlic between layers. The second time I used organic yukon golds as you recommend, and cut a corner by not even peeling them. Skin didn’t bother us at all. The second time I also chose to add the onion and garlic mix to the blender with cheese sauce. That sauce is heavenly and can be used in any casserole in my opinion. We had some left overs and son used it in a broccoli casserole. One container of left over sauce had been kept in a freezer and then thawed for future use.
We love your recipes – thank you!
Hi Isa. I love reading about your experience with the recipe! I appreciate your kind words, they make me happy! I love to know that folks enjoy my recipes! Thanks for sharing your wonderful feedback and review! Wishing you lots of happy cooking!
I made these for Thanksgiving and they were delicious!! I added dried thyme to mimic an old family recipe which was yummy. Question….do you use unsweetened canned coconut milk or milk in the carton called coconut milk beverage? Thanks!
I use the kind of milk in a carton, not canned full fat coconut milk. I have used soy, coconut, cashew and almond milk. As long as it’s unsweetened and not flavored, it will work well. Thanks!
I made this for Thanksgiving today. I’m not vegan so not very experienced with the outcomes of vegan cooking (although vegetables are my favorite food). Nevertheless, I knew that two guests would be vegan so I found your recipe. And I’m so glad I did.
I’ve made the traditional French Gratin Dauphinois scalloped potatoes before (with butter, heavy cream, and cheese) and it was delicious. But I was shocked that this dish was actually tastier.
Vegan or not, everyone loved it. And there was none left.
Thank you.
You are very welcome! I love reading your comments, and am thrilled that the scalloped potatoes were a hit! Thank you for your wonderful feedback! I invite you to try out more of my vegetable recipes!
Nora the simplicity of this recipe makes it all the better. My vegan cheese sauce is always very thick, as yours would be with less liquid. Your end result looks great so I will thin my sauce more in line with yours. And, even before I try it, I completely agree with you, the onion and garlic mixture layered in will add so much depth to the flavors. Otherwise it’s just cheesy potatoes! Great recipe Nora! Excellent job.
Thank you, Frank, for your encouraging words! I hope you enjoy the recipe as much as our family does! It is delicious! Happy cooking!
This looks so good, but unfortunately I am allergic to cashews!! 😩 Can you suggest an alternative? I know how creamy they make everything and I am so sad I can’t eat them any more.
Hi Robin. You could use raw, slivered almonds in place of the cashews for good results. Soak the almonds very well before blending, and it should work great! Though I have not tested it myself, a couple of bakers commented they used white cannoli beans with success.
Robin I use white beans, like cannellini or navy, when I make this type of sauce. Sub in an equal quantity of beans for nuts. No the sauce won’t taste beanie and you’ll still get a creamy smooth texture.
Potatoes will turn grey if you cover them with foil. Maybe that is what happened?
I loved the dish. My only issue is that it turned out kind of grey. The next day, it was even more grey and it looked a little unappetizing. Any suggestions? I’d like to make it again, but I’d like it to turn out like your picture. Thanks in advance.
Hmm, if it was baked long enough then I’m not sure why it would have turned grey! You could try blending a pinch of turmeric in with the creamy sauce to help it look a little more yellow/cheesy. I hope this helps!
Thanks Nora. I’ll try that. I really have no idea why it turned grey. I did choose to leave the potato skins on and used red onions instead of yellow. Maybe that had something to do with it. Thanks again. I’ve loved all the recipes I’ve tried of yours!
You are welcome!
Nora – If making this ahead, do you just get up to the cooking stage and then refrigerate? Or do you actually cook it the 60 minutes, let cool, then refrigerate and later re-heat? If you cook it ahead of time does it not get soggy? Thanks.
Hi Kelly. Yes, you can prepare it ahead of time, store it covered in the refrigerator and then bake it. Then it will be fresh out of the oven!
I’m so sorry I still don’t get it. When I refrigerate it, will the potatoes be raw or will I have already cooked it for the 60 minutes?
Apologies for the confusion, Kelly. Cover and refrigerate the prepared dish with raw potatoes. When ready to bake, let them sit on the counter for about 10 minutes prior to putting into the oven. I hope this helps!
Fantastic recipe! I added a couple teaspoons of vegan chicken bouillon and had unsweetened cashew milk on hand, so I used that instead of coconut milk and it was so good! So creamy and savory. (Made ahead 2 nights in advance, turned out awesome!)
Hi Kelly. This is hands down one of my favorites! Especially around holidays! I’m so thrilled that you loved it! Thank you for sharing your wonderful feedback and review!
About to make this recipe…we saw a picture of scalloped potatoes made in a cast iron pan with all the potatoes layered on their sides… I loved the presentation. Have you ever worked with cast iron? If so how would it affect this recipe? What temp do you think for the oven? Thanks
I haven’t tried this specific recipe in a cast iron pan, but I think it would work quite well because cast iron distributes heat so well. Keep the temperature and time the same, but keep an eye on the potatoes after 45 minutes or so just in case.
Just tried your Vegan Scalloped potatoes. They were soooo creamy and since I recently found out I cannot eat diary – this recipe was sooooo appreciated!! The potatoes were so creamy! I couldn’t believe how all the liquid absorbed into a nice creamy garlicky sauce. Thank you Nora!
I used red potatoes and it worked very well. I also didn’t have veggie broth so used water and the some Epicure Nourish spice and I used cashew milk. Plus I added Watkins black pepper.
Hi Laurie-Ann. Oh gosh, I also love the creaminess and flavor of the scalloped potatoes! I’m so glad that you love them! Thanks for sharing your fantastic feedback and great ideas! Wishing you happy cooking!