Author: This is my love language. 💛 Ooey, gooey, stretchy, melty, where have you been all my life- vegan mozzarella. I'm pretty sure I just made all my vegan dreams come true. I made this recipe four times this week, FOUR. That's how amazing this is. Just dip some tortilla chips in this bad boy and welcome to heaven.
You can also use this anywhere you would like a melty mozzarella experience, which is, um, everywhere! Let's see... pizza, lasagna, grilled cheese, dips, the possibilities of deliciousness are endless.
I haven't even gotten to some of the best news yet. This takes only 7 ingredients, one of them being water. It takes only 15 minutes to make, AND it doesn't even have any oils or "bad stuff". Can you tell I'm excited? I'm SO excited.
So what makes it stretchy and gooey. Tapioca! Who knew right? It's the main ingredient in Daiya, a well-known brand of vegan cheese, and I found that Somer McCowan from the blog Vedged Out also used tapioca starch in her Fresh Moxarella Cheese. She is one smart cookie, er.. well some smart cheese, because she knew what was up. I adapted her original recipe to make a mozzarella that suited my own taste buds but be sure to try her original recipe and check out her blog. So many delicious vegan recipes to be had!
Back to tapioca. Tapioca provides this amazing stretchy, melty quality that any good vegan cheese deserves. It is an absolute must for this recipe. Any other starch will make a thick sauce, but only tapioca will give it that stretch. If you can't find it in stores you can pick it up on Amazon here.
This recipe will stay in a melty stretchy state, even when cold, but if you are looking for a grate-able cheese, try my recipe for The Best Vegan Mozzarella.
To make melty stretchy gooey vegan mozzarella:
To make Melty Stretchy Gooey Vegan Mozzarella: Boil the cashews for 10 minutes until softened. Then toss into the blender with the remaining ingredients, and blend until completely smooth. It will be very watery, don't worry, it will get cheesy!
Pour it in a small sauce pan, and heat over medium-high heat. Stir to keep anything from burning. You will start to see clumps forming.
Then all of a sudden, magic! Everything comes together and makes this cheesy, melty, deliciousness. Keep stirring and cooking for another minute or two, to make sure it's finished firming up. It should take about 5 minutes to cook total. That's it! Done. So easy.
If you want to save it for later, store in an air tight container in the fridge. It won't firm up like a hard cheese, it will stay pretty soft, but let's get real, who needs hard mozzarella anyways?
Serve as a dip, spread onto some toast, dollop onto pizza, do whatever your creative cooking spirit tells you. Don't worry if you eat it all in one sitting (cause I would never do that), you can always make more.
Bon appetegan!
Sam.
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Melty Stretchy Gooey Vegan Mozzarella
Servings: (makes about 1 cup)
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Ingredients
- ½ cup raw cashews,, softened (see step 1)
- 1 cup water
- 3 tablespoons + 2 teaspoons tapioca starch, (also called tapioca flour)
- 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
Instructions
Softening the cashews:
- Softening the cashews first helps them blend. If you have a high-powered blender you may be able to skip this step, but if not, this step is important to get a smooth cheese. You can either boil or soak the cashews. To boil the cashews (the fast method): add the cashews to a small pot, cover with water, and boil for about 10 minutes until the cashews are very tender. To soak the cashews: add the cashews to a bowl, and cover with water. Let soak for 4 hours or overnight until tender. Drain and rinse cashews before using.
To make the vegan mozzarella:
- Add the cashews along with the 1 cup of water and all the remaining ingredients to a blender. Blend until completely smooth. It will be very watery.
- Pour into a small saucepan and put over medium-high heat. Continually stir. The cheese will start forming clumps, keep stirring and it will continue clumping until the mixture turns from watery to a thicker melty cheese sauce. This takes about 5 minutes. Serve hot or allow to cool and store in an air-tight container in the fridge for 2 - 3 days. The cheese will get thicker as it cools but will stay in a melty state.
Notes
- Tapioca starch is essential for this recipe. It's what gives the cheese it’s gooey and stretchy texture. Any other starch or flour will not get the same result.
- If you want to return the cold mozzarella back to dipping consistency, reheat over medium heat while stirring constantly so it doesn't burn. Once it is hot and bubbling it might have thickened up too much. You can thin it out by adding a splash of water at a time, stirring it in until desired consistency is reached.
- To ensure a smooth cheese, you may also want to pour the liquid through a fine mesh strainer or cheesecloth before cooking to remove any cashew bits that didn't grind up. This will ensure a smooth cheese texture.
Nutrition
⭐ Did You Make This Recipe?
I’d love if you left a rating and comment, it helps others find the recipe and makes my day! 💕
Ann says
Love this recipe. So easy too make.
Sam Turnbull @ It Doesn't Taste Like Chicken says
So glad you enjoyed it, Ann! 🙂
Samira says
Delicious! I just made it and it exceeded my expectations! I used lemon juice instead of ACV as I didn't have any on hand. I also added some olive brine. Thank you for this recipe!
Sam Turnbull @ It Doesn't Taste Like Chicken says
That sounds delicious, Samira! So glad you enjoyed it 🙂
Kim Pierce says
Fabulous recipe!!!
Sam Turnbull @ It Doesn't Taste Like Chicken says
Thanks so much Kim! 😊
Leslie P says
I've made this several times. The key is, as Sam says, to blend the softened cashews thoroughly. Perhaps mine are old but I have to cook them much longer, even after soaking all night, to get them soft enough. But once the cashews are soft enough, the recipe works great. I've used the cheese in pizza, mac 'n cheese, as a dip and a spread.
Sam Turnbull @ It Doesn't Taste Like Chicken says
Yes exactly!! Getting the cashews super soft and well blended makes all the difference. Great tip about cooking them longer if needed. So glad it’s working well for you!
Jen says
This was really delicious! Will go in my regular rotation, what an amazing mozzarella substitute. I dont think i will buy vegan pizza cheese again 🙂 its a bit too mild for my taste why I substituted the salt with 1 1/2 tsp of white miso and a small cube of fermented tofu (furu), which added some funky umami that fully satisfied my gooey cheese craving. I really recommend experimenting with furu, its such a great ingredient to add depth to vegan dishes!
Thank you for another great recipe, this rocks!
Jen says
Also wanted to add that the texture is soo on point!! Mimics the consistency of molten mozzarella relly well 😀
Sam Turnbull @ It Doesn't Taste Like Chicken says
Jen this comment is AMAZING 😍 I love the furu + miso idea for adding funky umami!! Thank you so much for sharing your tweaks — and I’m so happy you loved it!
Brianna says
I don’t have apple cider vinegar handy. Are there any worthy substitutes? Or should I just make it a different day?
Sam Turnbull @ It Doesn't Taste Like Chicken says
Hi Brianna! Yes, you can swap the apple cider vinegar for white vinegar or lemon juice 😊 It will still work great!
Connie O. says
Love this recipe! Yummy, simple, easy. It’s perfect. Happy I happened upon this. Thanks so much!
Sam Turnbull @ It Doesn't Taste Like Chicken says
Connie yay!! I’m so glad you found it and loved it 🥰 Thank you so much for the sweet review!
Karl says
I love many of your recipes, but the texture of this cheese is so thick and artificial feeling in the mouth.
Sam Turnbull @ It Doesn't Taste Like Chicken says
Hi Karl! Thanks for the feedback. This style is meant to mimic melty, stretchy mozzarella rather than a firm cheese, but I appreciate you giving it a try. It sounds like you might have over cooked it a bit. You could try adding a bit more water next time. I hope that helps!
Karen says
Does anyone know it there anything I can use other than cashews ? I can eat almonds if they might work ? Look forward to trying the recipe soon !
Jess @ It Doesn't Taste Like Chicken says
Yes, blanched almonds would also work.
Jen says
I find sunflower seeds to be a cheap but tasty alternative to a lot of cashew recipes 🙂 does taste a bit different tho.
Sam Turnbull @ It Doesn't Taste Like Chicken says
Yesss!! I’m so happy you said that 😄 Thank you for the extra note, Jen!
Sue says
is there anything to replace nutritional yeast? I cannot tolerate yeast products.
Sam Turnbull @ It Doesn't Taste Like Chicken says
Hi Sue, not for this recipe, I would simple omit it and add a bit more of the other seasonings. Enjoy!
Veronica Crespo says
hullo,
I have tapioca pearls I usually use to make fruit pies, would that work? should I grind them if so?
thanks
Sam Turnbull @ It Doesn't Taste Like Chicken says
Hi Veronica! Yes, tapioca pearls can work if you grind them into a very fine flour (no gritty bits), but for the smoothest, easiest results, I recommend using ready-ground tapioca starch. Enjoy!