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.
I made this for Thanksgiving dinner and it was a huge hit! Not one potato slice left. Thank you for this recipe. It’s the best vegan scalloped potato recipe I’ve ever made. I did use oat milk, and added fresh thyme to the onion/garlic layer. Thankful. Much gratitude.
You are welcome, Pat! I am thrilled that your potatoes were a hit, and appreciative that you used my recipe! Thanks for sharing your fabulous feedback! Happy cooking!
Can this be made in a crock pot instead of being baked?
I’m not sure as I’ve never tried it. Probably, but I couldn’t really tell you how long it would take.
Excellent dish. The only thing I would change is to chop the onions more than just slicing. Otherwise, this is comfort food at its tastiest.
Can you make this ahead and freeze it?
Yes, they freeze pretty well. Do keep in mind that potatoes do tend to get mushier once frozen.
How would you recommend thawing and reheating this dish after freezing it?
Preheat the oven to 325, place the frozen potatoes in an oven-safe dish and cover with foil. Bake for 20–30 minutes, or until heated through. You can also reheat scalloped potatoes in the microwave, or thaw them in the refrigerator before reheating. Enjoy!
How would you recommend thawing it after it has been frozen?
Another awesome recipe Nora! I made this exactly as the recipe states (except I used oatmilk) and it came out so creamy and flavorful. My boyfriend now asks for these potatoes regularly, he is obsessed with them! I find the recipe makes extra sauce (for me) and I was able to freeze the leftover sauce and use it for another batch which worked wonderfully. Thanks Nora, I love your recipes so much!
Do you think it would doable with a non-nut butter as a substitute? Working around a variety of allergies including dairy and nut.
Hi Jackie. If you are asking about a substitute for the cashews, you could try using sunflower seeds instead of the cashews. I have not tried this myself, however, think it would work. Let me know how it turns out for you.
Could I replace cashews with walnuts?
I’ve never tried it, so I’m not sure it will work. I feel like walnuts have a really strong flavor and I don’t think I’d like that. You could try it if it sounds good to you though!
Hi Nora,
I’m wondering if anything can replace the cashews and still be able to make the sauce ?
Also, would using heavy whipping cream instead of almond milk possibly make my sauce creamier ? I want it creamy. I feel almond milk is too thin and without the cashews, may not produce that creaminess it might otherwise have.
Thanks !
You can use raw slivered almonds instead of cashews, they work quite well. Are you talking about a dairy free whipping cream, because otherwise they won’t be vegan anymore (if that’s what you’re going for!). I’ve never tried anything like that, the richness comes from the cashews, but almonds work just as well I think.
Hi Nora, I have some steamed whole potatoes. If I sliced them and used them for this, how long do you recommend I bake it for?
Hmm I’m not sure, I’ve never tried that. It might not work quite the same though – the sauce is a lot, on purpose, as it soaks into the potatoes as they cook and thickens during baking. If you shorten the time, the sauce might not thicken enough. You can play it by ear and watch it, the potatoes will obviously be soft from the beginning but you want the sauce to thicken still. It’s hard for me to know for sure having never made it this way.
How many potatoes
Full amounts and instructions are in the Recipe Card near the bottom of the post. 4 pounds.
I made this without nutritional yeast (i can’t have nooch because of migraine) and it was absolutely delicious. I messed it up by putting it in a smaller dish and I had a difficult time getting it done. The top was burned and the bottom was mushy but I bet if I had put in in the correct size pan it would have turned out much better. Definitely will use the correct pan size next time because the flavor was fabulous!
Hi Wendy. Sorry your potatoes didn’t bake as hoped. I do agree these potatoes are delicious! Thank you for your positive review, and I’m glad to hear you are going to try the recipe again! Happy cooking!
Hi Wendy, I’m thinking of doing half the recipe to bake in an 8 X 8 square metal baking pan. Any thoughts on how to adjust the time to bake? TIA!
Am I able to make this dish and freeze it?
Yes, they freeze pretty well. Potatoes always tend to get mushier once frozen, but it works! Enjoy!