Vegan Mozzarella that can be shredded or sliced! It melts and stretches beautifully just like the real thing and only takes minutes to make! Nut free option.
I have probably tested this vegan mozzarella 10-15 times in the last couple of months, trying to get it just right for you! I decided to keep the flavor very similar to my EASY Stretchy Mozzarella since it’s so well loved.
The difference with this recipe is that the mozzarella is SHREDDABLE and SLICEABLE. Total game changer!
Why this cheese is amazing
- You can make it in a matter of minutes, and it’s ready to eat in an hour or two.
- It shreds perfectly for pizza or quesadillas, and melts super well!
- It can be sliced for sandwiches, used either cold or for grilled cheese.
- You can make mozzarella sticks! (recipe is coming soon)
- It only requires 9 ingredients.
- It’s gluten free, dairy free (of course) and there is a nut free option that works so well!
- Plus it will satisfy your cheesy cravings with it’s deliciousness!!!
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Ingredients for Shreddable Vegan Cheese
- Raw cashews OR silken tofu – This is the base of your cheese. I prefer to use cashews for a slightly richer cheese, but silken tofu actually works well! If you have a nut allergy, or you don’t have a high powered blender, use the tofu version.
- Tapioca starch – Also known as tapioca flour, this provides a wonderful stretchy texture.
- Kappa Carrageenan – This is the magical ingredient that makes the cheese solid, and allows it to melt, and then go back to solid. I ordered mine from Amazon. *There is some controversy around carrageenan, but I feel totally safe using it after doing a lot of research. Do what you feel is right, I do include an option for using agar agar instead.
- Nutritional yeast – For that cheesy flavor, however if you don’t care for it you can leave it out or use white mellow miso paste instead. It makes the cheese wonderfully flavored!
- Salt
- Refined coconut oil – Refined is the key word here! Don’t use unrefined or your cheese will taste like coconut. Oil free? You can leave it out, the cheese just won’t be quite as rich or melty.
- Lemon juice
- Apple cider vinegar, or just more lemon juice
- Boiling hot water – This is what activates the kappa carrageenan.
How to make it
- Soak the cashews, unless you are using tofu. Also get out a clean container to hold the cheese. I used a glass container that holds 3 cups.
- To a blender, add all the ingredients except the boiling water.
- Carefully add the boiling hot water to the blender and then IMMEDIATELY put on the lid and blend. Use a towel for extra protection. You need to move quickly because the cheese will start to set almost right away.
- Pour into the prepared container, right away. Don’t let the mixture sit in the blender for any time at all!
Place the container, uncovered, in the refrigerator for 1-2 hours until set and solid throughout.
Then it’s ready to slice or shred!
If you aren’t going to eat it right away, pop it out of the container, wrap in paper towels and place in a large ziplock bag or container. This will make it drier, which I think makes it better.
How long will it keep?
It will stay fresh in the refrigerator for about 1 week. It can also be frozen.
I made some simple pizzas on tortillas and OH MY GOODNESS they were amazing! This cheese melts better than any brand of vegan cheese I have bought at the store, and it tastes better, too.
I hope you love it as much as we do!
Want more Vegan Cheese recipes?
- EASY Stretchy Vegan Mozzarella
- Vegan Nacho Cheese
- 5 Ingredient Vegan Queso
- Vegan Cream Cheese
- Nut Free Vegan Cheese Sauce
Method adapted from Vegan Blueberry and recipe adapted from my Stretchy Mozzarella.
Shreddable Vegan Mozzarella
Vegan Mozzarella that can be shredded or sliced! It melts and stretches beautifully just like the real thing and only takes minutes to make!
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup raw cashews OR 1/2 cup silken tofu
- 4 tablespoons tapioca starch (also called tapioca flour)
- 1 1/2 tablespoons kappa carrageenan*
- 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 4 tablespoons refined coconut oil (make sure it's refined for no coconut flavor!)
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar, or more lemon juice
- 1 1/2 cups boiling hot water
Instructions
- Bring 2 cups of water to a boil (I use my electric kettle.) Pour the hot water over the cashews and let soak for 5 minutes, then drain the cashews and discard the soaking water. Set aside.
- Get out a clean container that can hold about 3 cups. I prefer glass, but plastic will work. Have it ready before you start because you will need to move quickly once the cheese is blended.
- Heat up the 1 1/2 cups of water. It will need to be boiling when you add it to the blender. Again, I heat up water in my tea kettle, then measure 1 1/2 cups when I'm ready. You can also simply get it boiling in a small pan on the stovetop.
- To a high powered blender (if you use tofu instead you can use a regular blender), add the soaked and drained cashews, tapioca starch, kappa carrageenan, nutritional yeast, salt, coconut oil, lemon juice and apple cider vinegar.
- CAREFULLY pour in the boiling hot water, and immediately put the lid on and blend. Use a towel for extra protection so the hot water does not burn you! Blend until smooth, stopping to scrape down once if needed. It will only take a minute or so, and the mixture will start to harden fast so you need to work quickly.
- Immediately pour the cheese into your prepared container. It will start to harden super fast, so do not wait.
- Move the container to the refrigerator, uncovered and let chill for 1-2 hours, until solid throughout and cooled.
- After a few hours, pop it out of the container, and either slice/shred right away or wrap in paper towels, then place in a large ziplock bag or container. This will help it be drier, which I think makes it better.
- Use anywhere you would real mozzarella, such as on pizza, grilled cheese, cold sandwiches, pasta dishes, Mexican dishes, on top of soups or just for snacking.
Notes
- I have tested this with both cashews and tofu and I can hardly tell the difference! If you have a nut allergy, or you don't have a high powered blender, use the tofu. I still prefer the cashews for a slightly richer cheese, but the tofu version is really good too.
- Kappa Carrageenan is a natural substance from red seaweed that helps thicken/gels. I feel completely safe using it, but if you have concerns you can use agar agar powder instead or simply stick to my Easy Stretchy Mozzarella.
- To use agar agar instead: Place all the ingredients except for the agar agar and water to the blender and set aside. In a small pot, stir together 3 tablespoons (instead of 1 1/2) agar agar and 1 1/2 cups water. Bring to a boil, whisking constantly until it firms up and gels. Add this to the blender, blend, then transfer to the container and refrigerate. To use agar agar flakes, increase the amount to 9 tablespoons.
- If you don't like nutritional yeast, you can leave it out or sub a mellow white miso paste instead.
- Oil Free: You can leave out the coconut oil if needed. It won't be quite as melty or rich but it does work quite well.
- Storing: The cheese will stay fresh in the refrigerator for about 1 week. If you can't eat it all in that time, you can freeze it.
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 126kcal | Carbohydrates: 7g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 11g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Sodium: 437mg | Potassium: 91mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 3mg | Iron: 1mg
Did you make this recipe?Mention @nora_cooks_vegan_ or tag #noracooks!
Hi Nora, do you know the amount in weight for the cashews? I’m using small cut so I’m sure if I use the 1/2 cup there will be more than whole cashews…
About 65 grams. If you click on “metric” under the ingredient list, you can see this. Small cut cashews will be fine though. Thanks!
I made for my first time today and as it’s setting and I’m putting the ingredients away I realized I used virgin coconut oil. I snuck a pinch of it and it definitely has a coconutty flavor. Any suggestions on what I might attempt to use this on? I’m nervous the pizza would be weird ?
Also your recipes are getting me through this pandemic! I’m having a blast with your creations! Thank you!
Thank you so much, I’m really glad making recipes is helping! We are doing a lot of cooking and baking right now, it helps for sure. I would probably just go ahead and use it for pizza or grilled cheese, or anywhere else. Hopefully it won’t be too noticeable!
Hi,
I made this recipe. It was very easy to make but the only thing is i find that it doesn’t melt. What did i do wrong? I followed the recipe as written.
It does seem to melt better under pretty high heat, so if you haven’t tried that, I would. For example, for the photo of it melted on pizza, I baked it at 425 degrees F. How are you attempting to melt it? Also, for grilled cheese, I find that if I cover the pan and let it cook for longer at medium heat, it melts best. I hope that helps a bit!
Hi! I tried this last night. I was in a hurry and I forgot to put in the coconut oil. 🙁 The paste did thicken very quickly. But that is what it is now: paste.
I was so sad about it: wasted expensive ingredients. (I had the hubris to make a *triple* batch in my first attempt. Ugh.)
Anyway: Do you have any suggestions for what I might use the resulting paste?
You are my vegan guide by the way. My 20 yo son is vegan and I am committed to having great things for him to eat whenever he is is around. Consequently, my husband and I eat vegan at least part of the time nowadays. Thank you for your work!!
Oh no! Yes, something when wrong here. I do wonder if making a triple batch may have been a problem, I have doubled it with no problems but I haven’t tried making a triple batch all at once. The most important part is probably 1. Moving quickly when you add the hot water to the blender, blend quick then pour, and 2. Your water must be boiling hot, or the chemical reaction will not occur that will harden the cheese. Hope that helps for next time! As far as what you have, you could try using it to make grilled cheese, or put dollops on pizza, and anywhere else you like, IF it tastes good.
I have made this exactly as directed but find the cheese doesnt melt completely. I have even let the cheese come to room temperature first before cooking with the same result. It tastes wonderful however wonder why it doesnt melt as shown in the picture with the pizza. Any thoughts as to why?
Hmmm I’m not exactly sure why yours is not melting like mine did. Make sure your oven temperature is hot, I usually bake pizza at 425 degrees and it melts perfectly this way.
Love this cheese, but using the apple cider vinegar, lemon juice and no oil, it has a tangy flavor. Any ideas of additions that can Flavor the cheese, to mask the tangy (maybe Garlic, onion, chives, liquid smoke, more nutritional yeast????)?
Yes, maybe using no oil it’s too tangy for some people that way. I would omit the vinegar, and I get it would be perfect. But you could also add something else if you want, like more nutritional yeast, garlic. Just go slow as something like garlic or spices will add a lot of flavor quickly. Mellow white miso is a good addition as well.
I’ve been making this cheese for about a year and LOVE it. But, I’m trying to eliminate coconut oil in my diet. I was thinking about ways to sub something else for the coconut oil and came here to read the comments for inspiration. I was pretty excited to find your comment above and tried some of your substations. I replaced the coconut oil with 1 TBSP of olive oil, reduced the acids down to 1 tsp lemon juice, 1 tsp apple cider vinegar, and added 2 tsp sweet, white miso. Everything else was the same. It turned out great! The cheese firmed up nicely, and tastes delicious. I am putting it on pizza tonight so I don’t yet know how well it will melt, but so far I’m thrilled with the substitutions. Thank you! I’d love your thoughts on the olive oil and whether I should add more? Less?
That sounds great! I hope it tastes good on your pizza. I’m not totally sure about the olive oil, I don’t think I would add more than a tablespoon or two, but it might be fine. I’d have to test it.
Once again your recipe is amazing! I just made my second batch. The first time I made it didn’t get completely firm. That was OK with me because it was the most delicious spreadable cheese!! Today it came out perfect, now to decide how to use it.
I’m so glad it worked well for you and you liked it!
Just made this amazing mozzarella ?
I have been looking for a cheese like this and now I can make it on my own! What a luxury! Thank you so much for this recipe!
You’re welcome!
Super easy to make, and it is chilling now.
It is on the very tangy side. Perhaps that will mellow as it chills and / or melts. I thought perhaps I misread 1t as 1T of each at first.
Should the refined coconut oil be melted or solid? Thanks for this recipe!
It can be melted or solid when you add it to the blender, it will melt anyhow due to the hot water.
Oh my ?❤️ Had to use agar agar, cause can’t get carrageean powder here in Norway. But let med say, I Will newer miss cheese again ? Thank you! ??❤️
I’m so happy to hear it worked well for you, thank you! And you are welcome. 🙂
You are a genius! This is soooooooo good and kid approved! I have made quesadillas and pizzas with this cheese. I can’t wait for your mozzarella sticks recipe. Thank you for all the time and effort you put in on all your recipes.
You’re welcome! Thanks for the comment!
Best vegan cheese I’ve tried. All the store bought stuff is garbage compared to this. Made pizzas. Will definitely make again. We got a little excited and tried to use it before it set entirely. Would say it definitely needs closer to two hours setting time versus one.
Yay! I love this cheese for pizza, I’m so glad you enjoyed it! The time it takes to set is pretty dependent on the container, a more shallow container will set faster. Thanks!
Hey Nora, I just made this and it’s in the fridge cooling. The mixture really starts to harden right away!!! Faster then imagined. Is it possible to blend everything(including the boiling water) without adding the Kappa Carrageenan so that I can make sure the mixture is smooth, then add the Kappa Carrageenan at the end to incorporate it then pour the mixture in the container?
Yes, you could do that. It definitely starts to harden quickly! Though I am always able to get it smooth fast. But I don’t think it would be a problem to add it after everything is smooth, as long as you don’t let the water cool down as it needs to be hot to activate the carrageenan. Thanks!
The taste was absolutely delicious! I possibly made a mistake though. I was talking with my teenage daughter while making this and may have added the lemon juice twice. The cheese was tangy but tasted great. The problem I had though was I could not get the cheese to melt. I even put it under the broiler. My daughter suggested that perhaps the extra lemon juice changed the melting point, and after re-reading the post I wonder if my kappa carregeen made the difference. I used the brand on your link but I had purchased it a while ago. Any thoughts as to why I couldn’t get it to melt? I definitely will be making it again ( without interruptions) and will reorder some kappa but curious as to what you think.
As always, Thank you Nora for what you do for the vegan community. I appreciate what you !
Hi Yolanda! I don’t know that the extra lemon juice would make a difference or not, I wouldn’t think so. You didn’t leave anything else out? All I can figure is that maybe the kappa carrageenan was too old. Sorry it didn’t melt well for you, I do hope you try again! Thank you so much.
I can’t wait to try this! However, I’m trying to reduce saturated fat for my husband. Do you think subbing olive oil for the coconut oil would work?
Thanks for all your amazing recipes!
Hi there! I haven’t tried it, but I do think it would probably work ok. You could also leave out the oil entirely, I have done this before and it worked quite well. Thanks and I hope you enjoy the cheese!
When would be a good time to add this cheese to your lasagna recipe? I know you say to add your other mozzarella recipe 20 minutes before the lasagna is done. Would this be added at the same time? TIA
I would actually do the same thing with this cheese, that will give it time to melt on top.
Do you think this would work in a food processor? Thanks in advance:)
If you use the tofu version then yes. With the cashews, I don’t know that they would get smooth enough without a high powered blender. Hope that helps!
I use a Breville Sous Chef food processor for this and it works as well as a high powered blender. Of course this is a high powered food processor that I use to knead seitan. I don’t know if they all work as well as this one.
Hi, can tapioca starch be replaced with corn or potato starch?
Tapioca starch really gives the “cheese” a stretchy quality so I wouldn’t recommend substituting it, but it probably would work in a pinch.
Will using Agar change the way it melts?
Yes, it’s not quite as melty but I think it’s pretty good still.
Hi, what brand of the kappa carrageenan do you use? I have never used it before, but willing to try! Thank you!
I have only used this brand. It’s not too expensive and will last through several rounds of vegan cheese making! Now I always keep some on hand. Thanks!
I’m not a fan of nooch so I’m going to try your suggestion to use miso. Although would chickpeas miso work as well as white miso?
I believe it would yes, it just will have a stronger flavor than a mellow white miso. I bet it would taste good though!
Just a thought, but if you haven’t tried non-fortified nutritional yeast you might want to try it. I hated fortified nutritional yeast. It had a chemical taste to me. I tried Sari Foods Non-Fortified Nutritional Yeast and just love it. That is the only one I’ll ever use now. Of course being non-fortified it does not have B-12 so you’d need to make sure to take a B-12 supplement.
Do you have a recipe that requires no oils? I am not supposed to have oil.
You can make this without oil, I give the option in the Notes section. I tried it and was impressed it worked quite well, it just wasn’t as melty.
I just made pizza with this and it really was the best mozzarella I’ve ever had! SO easy too!!! Thank you?
That’s so wonderful to hear! Thanks for the comment.
This looks delicious!!! Are you going to make a cookbook?
Thanks so much. I hope you get a chance to make it. I hope to have a cookbook one day!
…is the amount of agar shown for the flakes or the powder? There is a big difference between the two…thank you ?
Ah yes, powder not flakes.