Ok friends, this is it. After all of the love for my Melty Stretchy Gooey Vegan Mozzarella, it's time for a follow-up act: Melty Stretchy Gooey Vegan Nacho Cheese. (I know, I am just so incredibly original with the new name).
With the help of reader Amanda (hi Amanda!), I toyed around with different spices and flavours to achieve a cheddar-like cheese recipe. No small task, especially when you don't eat cow's milk cheddar to compare. With a little zing and zang, salty and sweet, ooey and gooey, I managed to achieve... are you ready for it?...nacho heaven. Big plate of nachos featuring Vegan Nacho Cheese! Hello again, Nachos. Oh, how I missed you. Now I will devour you!
This recipe is good for more than just nachos. You can load up a baked potato, make a grilled cheese, layer on a veggie patty for a melty cheeseburger, or stir into noodles for quick mac and cheese. Anywhere that you would use melted cheddar cheese, you can now use this recipe.
Do you want more good news? Of course you do. It's oil, gluten, and dairy free, only 150 calories per serving, omnivores love it, over 10 grams of protein, 5 grams of fiber, and only 15 minutes to make. Vegan high fives all around!
Can we see another shot of this ooey, gooey, melty-ness. Ahhh.... there we go.
Notes about this cheese:
- You have to use tapioca starch (also called tapioca flour). Corn starch, potato starch or any other starch won't have the same stretchy quality. If you can't find tapioca starch in your grocery store, you can always order it online here. If you have tapioca pearls, you can use a coffee grinder or a high powered blender to grind them into a homemade batch of tapioca starch.
- You can store the leftover cheese in an airtight container in the fridge and it should last for several days. This cheese will never turn into a solid block. It will always remain in a melty state. If you want to return the cold nacho cheese 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 tablespoon of water at a time, stirring it in until desired consistency is reached.
- Please beware, once you make a batch, you will probably eat the whole thing in one sitting. Don't say I didn't warn you!
To make this nacho cheese, first start by soaking the cashews for four hours or overnight. OR if you need to eat this immediately (and I always do), you can skip the soaking, and instead boil the cashews for 10 minutes until soft and tender, then drain before using. Sneaky deaky cashew softening trick.
Toss all the ingredients into a blender and blend until completely smooth. It will be very watery, don’t worry, it will get cheesy!
If you don't have a high powered blender, you may want to pour the liquid through a fine mesh strainer or cheesecloth into the pot to remove any cashew bits that didn't grind up. This will ensure a smooth cheese texture.
Put the pan over medium-high heat. Stir to keep anything from burning. You will start to see clumps forming.
Ooo clumpy. Keep stirring!
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.
Melty Stretchy Gooey Vegan Nacho Cheese
Ingredients
- ½ cup raw cashews (see notes)
- 1 cup water
- 3 tablespoons tapioca starch (also called tapioca flour)
- 3 tablespoons nutritional yeast
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 ½ teaspoons salt (or to taste)
- 1 ½ teaspoons white miso paste
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon maple syrup or agave
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ¼ teaspoon turmeric
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
Instructions
- To soften the cashews: Boil them for 10 minutes until soft. OR soak the cashews for four hours or overnight. Drain before using.
- To make the nacho vegan nacho cheese: Add the softened cashews, water, and all the remaining ingredients to a blender, and blend until smooth. It will be very watery.
- Pour into a small saucepan and heat over medium-high heat, while stirring. If you don't have a high-powered blender, you may want to pour the liquid through a fine mesh strainer or cheesecloth into the pot, to remove any cashew bits that didn't grind up. This will ensure a smooth cheese texture. As you stir it will start forming clumps, and then all of a sudden it will become a cheesy gooey mass of yumminess. This takes about 5 minutes. Continue to cook and stir for an additional minute or two to make sure it has firmed up completely.
Notes
Nutrition
Bon appetegan!
Sam.
Linda St. Martin says
Can I skip the miso paste? I'd like to make this but my daughter is soy free
Sam Turnbull says
Yes you can! Enjoy!
Sharon says
The miso paste I use is made from chick peas. Soy free & gluten free.
JBC says
This is totally yummy. However, once it's chilled it doesn't really melt again when reheated. So I've taken to mixing it up ahead of time, but storing it in the fridge uncooked.Then I add it to other recipes towards the end of cooking. For example, I add half a recipe of this nacho cheese to The Best Vegan Chili Mac and Cheese at the same time I add the tofu crumbles. It adds extra cheesy flavor and a meltier, cheesier texture than adding dollops of it after cooking. So this is delicious and versatile.
Eric L says
You are amazing!
And now I am amazing too because --- I made CHEESE!
The whole family loved it. Thank you, thank you, thank you
Mandi says
Yum. So good!
For an even lower cal version I leave out the nuts and put a tablespoon or two quick oats. Still turns out creamy and smooth
Si Bon says
Thank you for that alternative! I am allergic to cashews and I am going to try the quick oats
Jane says
I started making this because of your scalloped potatoes recipe, but it's great with everything. I always make it with the extra half cup of water since it still thickens up to what I consider a queso dip with that amount. Stirred it into scrambled tofu with peppers, mushrooms, onion, and salsa today. Terrific. I do leave out the turmeric, though, since I think the paprika and nooch give it a great color on their own, and the turmeric adds a flavor I don't care for in my fake cheese.
Ren says
I didn’t have lemons, so I used apple cider vinegar instead of lemon juice AND IT WORKED! It was just as stretchy and gooey and yummy as it looked in the video. It was so good to finally have “cheesy” nachos, because I normally just have guac and salsa. Thank you Sam, you flipping genius!
Sam Turnbull says
Wonderful! So happy you love it Ren!!
Laurie F says
Whoa. I just turned cashews into CHEESE! Thank you, Sam, for such an easy-to-follow recipe. I made this last night and then added it over oven-baked french fries and veggie chili with some red onions and pickled jalapenos for a quick, delicious dinner. YUM. Even my picky husband commented on how tasty it was. I'm so glad I found you!
Laura Jackson says
Sam, I only discovered you a few months ago and when I tried the first of your recipes; The Best Vegan Seitan Burger I was blown away!
This nacho cheese has impossibly topped even that!
Thank you for giving me the confidence to go forth and veganize all of my family and friends!
Five stars, Sam and I'm ordering your cookbook!
Knowledge Sourcing says
It is very good post. Helpful and Informative blog. Thanks for sharing this information with us.
Allie says
This queso is a deadly combination of easy to make and freaking delicious! The recipe makes four sizable servings and it reheats nicely. I do sub 1/4 teaspoon cayenne for the paprika and it still turns out bomb.10/10 recommend!
Theresa says
This was so good! I’m already a giant fan of your mozzarella recipe, so I had high hopes for this one and was not disappointed!
It wasn’t the “ooey gooey” that the mozzarella recipe is, but it was the per.fect nacho cheese consistency. We’re Texans, so we’re nacho cheese picky, and this was fabulous. My kids loved it... win!
I added extra miso and left out the added salt to adhere to my WFPB diet, and didn’t miss the salt at all.
Thank you so, so much!
Nikki says
Delicious for sure, however, after it's cooked, it's one big blob. How do I get it to pour over nachos? I've tried adding water after it has cooked (pulled away from the sides etc.), but it is only ever runny when it's first in the pot. What am I doing wrong?
Theresa says
I’d try cooking it just long enough for it to thicken, but not get stretchy. I also used a whisk instead of a spoon, and I think that kept it from clumping.