Tangy Vegan Cheddar Cheese is so easy to make with just 8 ingredients! It’s firm, sliceable and delicious on cold sandwiches, grilled cheese or as an addition to a snack platter with crackers and grapes.
Making your own vegan cheese at home is surprisingly easy, and often tastes much better than anything you can buy at a store. Depending on where you live, quality vegan cheeses can be difficult to find and are usually expensive.
My favorite cheese used to be cheddar, and since giving up dairy, I have been searching for a vegan cheddar-type cheese that tastes good on a cold sandwich. There is one brand I really love (Violife Mature Cheddar Slices), but it’s pretty pricey and hard to find. So I set out to make my own.
Why this Vegan Cheddar Cheese Works
- It tastes great cold! The flavor is incredible, mild and tangy and reminiscent of cheddar. The texture cold is firm but still soft, and can be spread on a cracker. But it’s firm enough to slice for a sandwich.
- It melts well! Making my cheddar grilled cheese dreams come true.
- It’s seriously easy to make and takes only about 15 minutes of prep time, then you just have to wait for it to firm up in the refrigerator.
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How to make it
*This is simply an overview of the recipe with photos. For the full recipe, scroll down to the recipe card.
- Soak raw cashews for about 5 minutes in hot water.
- Drain the cashews and add to a high powered blender along with the lemon juice, refined coconut oil, nutritional yeast, cornstarch, paprika, turmeric, salt and 1 cup of water.
- Blend until very smooth.
- In a small pot, combine the other cup of water and the agar agar powder. Don’t turn on the heat yet.
- Add the cashew mixture to the pot with the water/agar agar.
- Bring to a boil and whisk constantly for 1-2 minutes until it thickens.
- Pour into lightly oiled ramekins.
- Refrigerate for 2-3 hours or until firm.
Once refrigerated and firm, turn upside down over a plate to pop the cheese out of the dish. Slice and serve in cold sandwiches, make a grilled cheese, or eat with crackers. You are officially a vegan cheese maker!
Tips for the best cheese
- Make sure to use REFINED coconut oil! This is so important, and nothing else will work. If you use unrefined, your cheese will taste like coconut.
- High powered blender – You really need a high powered blender such as a Vitamix to get the cheese smooth and free of chunks.
- Use raw cashews, not roasted. Raw cashews have a neutral, buttery taste that is perfect as a base for cheese.
- Store wrapped in paper towels and plastic wrap (or in a container). Paper towels will help the cheese stay dry, which I think helps it taste even better.
Want more vegan cheese?
- Shreddable Vegan Mozzarella
- EASY Stretchy Vegan Mozzarella
- Vegan Parmesan Cheese
- 5 Minute Vegan Cream Cheese
- Easy Vegan Nacho Cheese
Vegan Cheddar Cheese
Tangy Vegan Cheddar Cheese is so easy to make with just 8 ingredients! It's firm, sliceable and delicious on cold sandwiches, grilled cheese or as an addition to a snack platter with crackers and grapes.
Ingredients
- 1 cup raw cashews
- 4 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1/4 cup refined coconut oil (make sure it is refined for no coconut flavor)
- 1/2 cup nutritional yeast
- 1 tablespoon cornstarch
- 2 teaspoons paprika, smoked for smoky flavored cheese
- 1/4 teaspoon turmeric
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 2 cups water, divided
- 1 tablespoon agar agar powder
Instructions
- Bring 3 cups of water to a boil. Pour the hot water over the cashews and let soak for 5 minutes. Prepare 2 small ramekins or 1 larger dish by lightly spraying with oil.
- Drain the cashews and discard the soaking water. Add them to a blender along with the lemon juice, refined coconut oil, nutritional yeast, cornstarch, paprika, turmeric, salt and 1 cup of fresh water (not the full 2 cups). Blend well, scraping down the sides of the blender as needed, until completely smooth.
- In a small-medium pot, add the remaining cup of water and the agar agar powder. Stir until it dissolves (this only take a minute). Now add the cashew mixture from the blender to the pot.
- Turn the heat on to high, bring to a boil and stir for 1-2 minutes, whisking constantly. It will thicken somewhat in the pot. *See the photos in the post above for reference.
- Immediately pour the cheese into the prepared ramekins and smooth out the top with a spoon.
- Refrigerate for 2-3 hours until firm, then turn upside down on a plate to remove the cheese from the container. Slice and serve in sandwiches, make a grilled cheese sandwich, spread on crackers and eat as a snack.
- Storing: I like to wrap it in paper towels and then plastic wrap to keep it dry and firm. It will keep in the refrigerator for 5-6 days. I haven't tried freezing it but I think it will work okay.
Notes
- I can't stress enough that you use REFINED coconut oil, not unrefined. Refined coconut oil has no coconut taste whatsoever, and if you use anything else, it will not work.
- May sub tapioca starch for cornstarch if needed.
- I have only tested this using agar agar powder, but if you have flakes 3 tablespoons should work. You typically need more flakes than powder.
- Kappa Carrageenan - If you would rather use this than agar agar, it will work but the process is a bit different. Simply add 1 1/2 tablespoons kappa carrageenan to the blender along with 2 full cups of boiling hot water and carefully blend. The cheese will be more firm, and I don't believe it tastes as good cold. But it will shred better.
Nutrition
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 82kcal | Carbohydrates: 4g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 7g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Sodium: 219mg | Potassium: 85mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 3mg | Iron: 1mg
Did you make this recipe?Mention @nora_cooks_vegan_ or tag #noracooks!
Can this recipe made oil free
You could try it without the oil but it might be a lot less firm, as the oil helps it firm up in the fridge.
Just made this and it’s delicious! Thank you for the recipe and pictures – I only had the small ramekins so it made 5 small rounds which I can share with my kids.
Hi Nora.
It’s Rania again another question, do you think after almost 28 hours in the fridge can I cook it again?
Hi! I’m not sure why it didn’t firm up, but I don’t think it will work to cook it again. I would start over and make sure you follow the instructions exactly, not missing a step so it firms up.
I got so excited to do this cheese, specially that now I have 2 Vegan kids, and one of them is very picky eater. I fallowed the recipe all the way, but it didn’t firm up at all,
IS there any way to get it firm again. Specially that it is the second day in the refrigerator and it still the same as I took it off the stove.
This cheddar cheese recipe is awesome. It tastes like the real deal!
I was wondering if I could use this cheese to make mac and cheese, and if so, how would it be best to melt the cheese?
Thank you, I’m glad you enjoyed it! I haven’t tried making mac and cheese with this particular cheese, but it might work. You would probably want to mix and melt it with a roux similar to regular mac and cheese recipes, but I’m not sure.
Hey there. What can I use instead of cashew nuts please
X
I haven’t tested it with anything else. Possibly raw slivered almonds, maybe tofu but I’m not sure.
hey nora, is it cheese shreddable? i mean can we use the shredded cheese to make lasagna or pasta?
It’s a bit soft but it will shred somewhat.
Hi Nora! I Love all your recipes and so does my family! I’m writing from Buenos Aires, Argentina. I have 1 question for you. Can I freeze this cheese?
Thank you!
Yes, it can be frozen. Hi in Argentina! 🙂 Thank you so much!
I submitted a question about this recipe yesterday and am very surprised to see it no longer awaiting moderation. It’s just gone. It was a very simple, completely inoffensive question: what could I have done wrong with this recipe that the cheese never firmed up? It’s softer than cottage cheese.
Hoping the deletion of my comment was an oversight and not some sort of creepy “NOTHING NEGATIVE ALLOWED!” situation, which would not only be odd but a real shame, because I enjoy this blog.
Hi there! I don’t see a comment from you yesterday, I’m not sure what happened. Sometimes comments automatically go to a spam folder even when they shouldn’t, so perhaps that’s what happened. Sorry about that! So to answer your question about the cheese not firming up, it does sound like something went wrong if it’s cottage cheese consistency. This cheese is not super firm, in fact it’s sliceable but also able to be spread on a cracker (like the photos show). I wonder if you used a high powered blender to get the cashew mixture very smooth? The other problem could be that you didn’t heat it up enough in the pan so the chemical reaction with the agar agar could not fully happen. I hope that helps somewhat, thank you!
Thanks Nora! I don’t think it was my blender so it must have been the agar-agar. I kind of panicked because I thought I had overcooked it so maybe I didn’t cook long enough.
Is there a way to “recook” it, I wonder, and try and firm up the texture? Maybe I could try that with a very small amount to see what happens. It tastes fine (a bit strong on the lemon for my taste) but I made it in hopes of it coming out like yours, so it’s probably worth a shot!
I don’t think it would work at this point to recook it unfortunately. I’m sorry it didn’t work! You do have to move rather quickly to transfer it once it’s cooked in the pot. If you let it sit in the pot too long before pouring into the containers, I have found the texture gets a bit weird for some reason.
Ignore my last comment!! I see the note about paprika now!
I just tried it with cracked pepper and chipotle powder, so excited to try!
I’ve made this a few times now and it is great. I’m wondering if younger have made any versions such as a smoked type cheddar or peppery?
Thank you, I’m glad you are enjoying it! I have used smoked paprika which makes it very smoky tasting, I love it. You can definitely play with the seasonings for different variations.
We love this cheese! Fantastic.
Great to hear! Thanks!
How many grams per cup?
Just below the ingredient list there is a tab for ‘metric’. If you click that, it will give you all the measurements in metric. Thanks!
My 6 year old son is AIP, so no cornstarch allowed. I was wondering if maybe arrowroot powder would be a good substitute? Any ideas? I’d love to surprise him with a grilled cheese sandwich!
Thank you for sharing this recipe!
Sure, that should work just fine!
This was easy to make and delicious on crackers.
I’m so excited to hear that!
My daughter has life threatening dairy AND coconut allergies. Can I substitute a different oil for the coconut oil?
Unfortunately you can’t sub out the coconut oil on this recipe.
Do you think tapioca starch be use in place of the Agar? Thank you!
No, I don’t think it would work. The cheese wouldn’t get as firm.
Can you skip the oil? I’m trying to be oil free in my eating.
Sorry, not for this recipe! The coconut oil is necessary for helping make the cheese firm.
Can I use almond milk instead of water? I made one of my other cheeses this way and it actually tasted better!
Sure!
Oh Nora I’m so excited to try this! I buy Violife cheese which is pretty good but I’d much prefer to make my own so I know what’s really in it! this sounds perfect – thank you – can’t wait to try:)
I hope you love it!
Hi,
Made this and haven’t tasted finished product, but when were we supposed to add the cornstarch? I put it in with all the other ingredients. Went back and read recipe again and didn’t see it in the instructions.thanks
Karla
Sorry about that, it’s fixed now! You do add it with the rest of the ingredients in the blender. Hope you enjoy!
Hi Nora. Thank you for sharing all your amazing recipes. I’ve made several dishes and loved them all. My kids and husband are picky eaters so if they like it, you know it’s a good recipe to keep.
My question is, do you think I can use almonds instead of cashews. I have a daughter who is allergic to almost every kind of nut except almonds.
Renee
Hi! I think raw slivered almonds will work if you soak them really well.
This look do good! How much does this recipe make? Trying to figure out what size ramekin to use and I can’t tell how big yours are in the photos. Tahnsk, can’t wait to try this!
I use 2 small ramekins in the photos (I know it’s hard to tell size in photos!), they hold about 1 cup I believe. So you can use two small ones like me, or 1 larger one, perhaps with a 3 cup capacity. It can be round, square or rectangle. Thank you, and I hope you enjoy it!
Hi Renee,
Cashew allergy in my house too! I haven’t tried this recipe yet (looking forward to it!), but I have done similar recipes with almonds and they’ve worked well. I use whole raw almonds (less likely to be cross contaminated)— boil them then take off the skins and soak! Good luck!
can you use arrowroot powder to thicken? I don’t have either one you suggested nor have I ever used them.
Yes, that should work.
Is there a substitute that I can use for the coconut oil? I’m highly allergic to coconut.
Unfortunately there’s not a sub for it in this recipe. Sorry. 🙁
Is the coconut oil a solid or liquid?
Thank you
It doesn’t matter. It can be liquid or solid.
thank you