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Easy Vegan Nacho Cheese Sauce: Made with cashews, this vegan nacho cheese sauce is a cinch to make, healthy and kid-friendly!
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4.95 stars (160 ratings)

Easy Vegan Nacho Cheese Sauce

This Easy Vegan Nacho Cheese Sauce is made from raw cashews, nutritional yeast and dried spices. It is quick to make, kid-friendly and perfect on chips, or even drizzled over steamed broccoli or a baked potato!
Prep Time20 minutes
Cook Time5 minutes
Total Time25 minutes
Course: Appetizer, Main Course
Cuisine: Mexican
Servings: 12 servings
Calories: 128kcal
Author: Nora Taylor

Ingredients

  • 2 cups raw cashews
  • 3 tablespoons lemon juice (from about 1 large lemon)
  • 4 cups water, divided, plus more as needed to thin
  • 1/2 cup nutritional yeast
  • 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
  • 2 teaspoons salt, or to taste
  • 1-2 teaspoons Sriracha, optional
  • 1/2 teaspoon turmeric, optional for color
US Customary - Metric

Instructions

  • Soak the cashews: You can either do a quick soak, or soak the cashews for several hours or overnight. To quick soak, simply boil water in a tea kettle or on the stovetop, cover the cashews with the boiling water and set aside for 10 minutes. Drain.
  • Blend: In a high powered blender, add the cashews, lemon juice, 3 cups of the water, nutritional yeast, smoked paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, chili powder, and the salt. Add optional turmeric to make the cheese more yellow/orange.
  • Warm: In a medium saucepan, add the cheese sauce from the blender. Using a whisk, warm over medium heat, whisking constantly, until it begins to bubble and thicken. Add the last cup of water, depending on how thick or thin you want the sauce to be.
  • Add more salt to taste, and Sriracha if using, depending on your spice preference. If the cheese sauce sits for a while, or you refrigerate the leftovers, it will thicken. Simply warm it again on the stove, adding water as needed to thin. Serve over tortilla chips, steamed broccoli, baked potatoes and more.

Video

Notes

  1. Raw slivered almonds may be able to subbed for cashews, but they will need to be soaked very well. If you need a nut free cheese sauce, check out my Nut Free Vegan Cheese Sauce.
  2. You do really need a high powered blender for this cheese to get smooth and creamy. A food processor or regular blender just won't be able to get it very creamy. I use a Vitamix blender and love it.

Nutrition

Serving: 1serving | Calories: 128kcal | Carbohydrates: 8g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 10g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Sodium: 405mg | Potassium: 185mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 66IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 10mg | Iron: 2mg