This is the ultimate vegan nacho cheese sauce! Quick and easy and free of dairy, oil, nuts, and gluten, yet this sauce has a rich and creamy texture and the sharpness of real cheddar cheese! It's perfect for a cheese dip, vegan nachos, tacos, broccoli, or loaded baked potatoes.
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❤️ Why you'll love this recipe
- It’s easy and can be made in about 5 minutes!
- There are no nuts, oil, or gluten, but it is still creamy and delicious!
- It can be made extra stretchy!
- Kids love it and will eat their veggies with cheese sauce poured over them!
- The closest tasting vegan nacho cheese to the real thing!
- It has a real cheddar cheese flavor!
- Nacho cheese sauce works great on broccoli, baked potatoes, and of course… nachos!
🧾 Ingredients and substitutions
- Plant-Base Milk – I usually use soy milk, but you can use any plain flavored plant-based milk that you choose. This milk makes it rich and creamy. (You can also use a can of coconut milk instead).
- Nutritional Yeast – to give it that cheesy umami flavor. Check out this link for more about nutritional yeast.
- Corn or Potato Starch – to thicken the sauce.
- Tapioca Starch – to make it stretchy like real cheese.
- Salt – for the saltiness of real cheese.
- Turmeric – for color. (optional)
- Miso – to give it that cheddar cheese bite! (This is optional, but you will want to use it if you are seeking a true cheddar flavor).
🔪 Helpful tools
- Small Saucepan
- Whisk
🥄 Instructions
- Mix together miso with a small amount of water and set aside.
- Add 1 ½ cups of cold plant-based milk to a saucepan.
- Put in the starches, nutritional yeast, salt, and turmeric and stir well with a whisk.
- Turn on the heat to medium and stir constantly while heating. After a few minutes (once your sauce starts to boil) it will thicken very quickly.
- Allow it to boil for about 30 seconds and then remove it from heat.
- Pour in your miso mixture and stir until smooth.
- Serve warm over broccoli, cauliflower, potatoes, or nachos!
👩🏻🍳 Pro tips
- Make sure to add the starches while the milk is still cold and give it a good stir before turning on the heat!
- Stir very frequently and do not walk away from the stove!
- Your sauce with thicken very quickly once it reaches a certain temperature and if you are not stirring it at that time it will burn.
- Add the miso at the end of cooking after it has cool off for a minute as to not overheat the miso and reduce its beneficial probiotics.
- If you don't use it all, it will keep in the fridge for up to 5 days in a sealed container.
- You can reheat the cheese sauce by adding a few teaspoons of water and reheating in the microwave or on the stovetop.
🍲 Serving Suggestions
Pour it over broccoli, cauliflower, or any veggies and watch them disappear!
Use it to make loaded baked potatoes! Topped with nacho cheese and homemade bacon bits you will have the ultimate vegan baked potato!
Pour it over corn chips and make easy loaded vegan nachos! Add all of your favorite toppings for vegan nachos supreme!
🥡 Storage and reheating
Store this cheese sauce in the refrigerator in a sealed container for up to 5 days.
To reheat the nacho cheese, add 1 tbsp of water and microwave for 1 minute or reheat in a saucepan on the stovetop for about 3 minutes. Stir with a whisk until smooth and creamy again.
Note: The cheese sauce will get much thicker when it is cold. This is normal and it will regain the melty texture when it is reheated.
🌟 More vegan cheeses
A rich and creamy vegan nacho cheese sauce for veggies, potatoes, and nachos.
- 1 teaspoon white miso (optional)
- 2 tablespoon warm water (to mix with the miso)
- 1 1/2 cup soy milk (cold) or any other plant-based milk or a can of coconut milk
- 1/3 cup nutritional yeast
- 1 tablespoon corn starch or potato starch
- 1 tablespoon tapioca starch
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 dash turmeric
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Mix together miso with a small amount of water and set aside.
-
Add 1 ½ cups of cold plant-based milk to a saucepan.
-
Add in the starches, nutritional yeast, salt, and turmeric. Stir well with a whisk.
-
Turn on the heat to medium and stir constantly while heating.
-
After a few minutes (once your sauce starts to boil) it will thicken very quickly.
-
Allow it to boil for about 30 seconds and then remove from heat.
-
Pour in your miso mixture and stir until smooth.
-
Serve warm over broccoli, potatoes, or nachos!
Recipe Video
For thicker stretchier cheese sauce...
- Add an additional tablespoon of tapioca starch to the cold milk and follow the rest of the instructions the same way.
Tips for making a great cheese sauce every time!
- Make sure to add the starches while the milk is still cold and give it a good stir before turning on the heat!
- Stir very frequently and do not walk away from the stove!
- Your sauce with thicken very quickly once it reaches a certain temperature and if you are not stirring it at that time it will burn.
- Add the miso at the end of cooking after the mixture has cooled off for a minute as to not overheat the miso and reduce its beneficial probiotics.
- If you don't use all of the sauce, it will keep in the fridge for up to 5 days in a sealed container.
- You can reheat the cheese sauce by adding a few teaspoons of water and reheating in the microwave or on the stovetop.
*Originally published on Sept. 16, 2018. Updated on 2/6/20 to include new images and an instructional video.
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