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    Home » Vegan Cheese

    Classic Vegan Cashew Cheese Sauce

    Published: Apr 4, 2017 Updated: Nov 11, 2021 by Alison Andrews This post may contain affiliate links

    Jump to Recipe
    Cashew Cheese Sauce

    Super cheesy vegan cashew cheese sauce. This smooth and creamy sauce is wonderfully satisfying and simply delicious drizzled over almost anything!

    Cashew cheese sauce drizzled over baked potatoes and broccoli on a white plate.

    I suddenly realized that we didn’t have a fabulous cashew cheese sauce – that you can use to drizzle over things – on the blog yet. So I had to remedy that situation quickly.

    Because this is really a staple recipe. Something to drizzle on anything and everything. Pizzas, pastas, potatoes, salads, you name it, if it’s a savory dish, it would likely benefit from a drizzle of this cashew cheese sauce.

    For those who don’t eat nuts, we have a vegan cheese sauce that is entirely nut free, and when it comes to cashew recipes, we have a sun dried tomato cashew cheese and a cashew dressing that you will also love.

    But when it comes to a cashew cheese sauce that is just dying to be drizzled on a homemade vegan pizza, well, this is the stuff.

    Cashew cheese sauce drizzled over baked potatoes, broccoli and avocado on a white plate.

    How To Make Cashew Cheese Sauce

    You will find full instructions and measurements in the recipe card at the bottom of the post. This is a summary of the process to go along with the process photos.

    Whipping up a batch of cashew cheese sauce is super easy, you just need a nice sturdy blender to do it.

    We don’t even pre-soak the cashew nuts, it’s just too easy!

    But if your blender is a less sturdy machine, then soak the nuts first. Put them in a bowl and pour over some boiling hot water from the kettle. Let them soak for 15 minutes, and then drain and rinse.

    If, however, you have something like a Vitamix then you can also just go for it. No soaking required!

    Just add raw cashews, nutritional yeast, crushed garlic, lemon juice, sea salt, ground black pepper and some water to your blender jug.

    Ingredients for cashew cheese sauce in a blender jug ready to blend.

    Blend until smooth, and that’s it. 

    Freshly blended cashew cheese sauce in a blender jug.

    Storing Tips

    Make up a batch and then keep it in a sealed container in the fridge where it will last up to 5 days.

    It is also freezer friendly if you do want to freeze it. Thaw it in the fridge and then stir it up very well before using.

    Cashew cheese sauce drizzled over baked potatoes, broccoli and avocado on a white plate.

    More Vegan Cheese Recipes

    1. Sliceable Cashew Cheese
    2. Vegan Cheddar Cheese
    3. Vegan Cream Cheese
    4. Vegan Nacho Cheese
    5. Vegan Mozzarella
    6. Vegan Ricotta

    Did you make this recipe? Be sure to leave a comment and rating below!

    Cashew cheese sauce drizzled over baked potatoes and broccoli.

    Classic Vegan Cashew Cheese Sauce

    Super cheesy vegan cashew cheese sauce. This smooth and creamy sauce is wonderfully satisfying and simply delicious drizzled over almost anything!
    4.88 from 66 votes
    Print Pin Rate
    Course: Sauce, Savory, Side
    Cuisine: American, Vegan
    Diet: Vegan
    Prep Time: 10 minutes
    Total Time: 10 minutes
    Servings: 4
    Calories: 217kcal
    Author: Alison Andrews

    Ingredients

    • 1 cup Raw Cashews (150g)
    • 2 Tablespoons Nutritional Yeast
    • 1 Clove Garlic crushed
    • 1 Tablespoon Lemon Juice freshly squeezed
    • ¼ teaspoon Sea Salt
    • ¼ teaspoon Ground Black Pepper
    • 5 Tablespoons Water
    Prevent your screen from going dark

    Instructions

    • Add the cashew nuts, nutritional yeast, crushed garlic, lemon juice, sea salt, black pepper and water to the blender jug. Blend until very smooth and creamy.
    • For a thicker cheese, use less water. For a thinner salad dressing consistency, use a little more water.
    • Serve drizzled over baked potatoes, vegetables, pizzas or pastas.

    Video

    Notes

    1. If you have a strong blender then there is no need to soak the cashews first. If you know that your blender will struggle though then you can soak them in hot water for 15 minutes before blending. Place the cashews into a bowl, pour over boiling hot water from the kettle and leave to soak for 15 minutes. Drain and rinse and then continue with the recipe. 
    2. Leftovers can be stored in a sealed container in the fridge for up to 5 days. 

    Nutrition

    Serving: 1Serve | Calories: 217kcal | Carbohydrates: 12.6g | Protein: 7.8g | Fat: 16.5g | Saturated Fat: 2.9g | Sodium: 45mg | Fiber: 1.6g | Sugar: 2.3g
    DID YOU MAKE THIS RECIPE? Rate it & leave your feedback in the comments section below, or tag @lovingitvegan on Instagram and hashtag #lovingitvegan
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    About the Author

    Hi I'm Alison Andrews, I'm the voice and cook behind Loving It Vegan. I love making delicious vegan food and creating vegan versions of all your old favorites, so that you’ll never feel like you’re missing out. Find out more about me here.

    Loving It Vegan is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. This site may contain some of these links to Amazon.com. If you make a purchase through one of those links, Loving It Vegan will receive a small commission from the purchase at no additional cost to you.

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Ada says

      October 20, 2022 at 7:08 pm

      I liked it, but I didn’t love it. One reason why was probably my fault, I used powdered garlic instead of fresh garlic because I didn’t want the garlic flavor to take over. This made the sauce too mildly flavored. The other reason I didn’t love it had to do with the consistency. I used my food processor and the consistency was not creamy, even when I kept adding water. So, I will use my blender and fresh garlic next time I make this sauce. One change I made that I did like was adding extra nutritional yeast, because I just love the stuff 😊.4 stars

      Reply
      • Alison Andrews says

        October 21, 2022 at 8:19 am

        You can definitely bump up the flavors if you want it stronger. The blender does make it much smoother as well.

        Reply
    2. Jana says

      October 13, 2022 at 9:47 pm

      Delicious! It works so much better in my Vitamix than my food processor… much creamier. I added about 3 tablespoons of Pace Picante (NO sugar salsa) and it was sooo delicious! Thank you!!

      Reply
      • Alison Andrews says

        October 14, 2022 at 10:26 am

        Awesome! And salsa sounds like a GREAT addition!

        Reply
    3. Kylie says

      September 23, 2022 at 11:15 pm

      LOVE THIS! We made this last night to have with nachos, and it was the tastiest vegan nachos we have had. So happy to find this recipe and so easy to make. Can’t wait to try it on Pizza and pasta!5 stars

      Reply
      • Alison Andrews says

        September 26, 2022 at 11:01 am

        Awesome! Thanks for the wonderful review Kylie!

        Reply
    4. Divine Femedian says

      August 16, 2022 at 3:10 am

      I loved this! Especially since it didn’t have oil. I put it over broccoli and Mexican vegan crumbles. It makes like a casserole I guess lol. I boiled my cashews for half an hour and used an immersion blender. Thank you!5 stars

      Reply
    5. Corinne says

      March 16, 2022 at 12:51 am

      I soaked my cashews for several hours. My blender is a standard one so I had to add extra liquid. I doubled the nooch and garlic, and added more black pepper and a little lemon zest to kick up the flavor a notch. Good base recipe.4 stars

      Reply
    6. Patricia Hubbard says

      December 30, 2021 at 1:04 am

      I was amazed how good this recipe is!!5 stars

      Reply
    7. Jamie says

      October 18, 2021 at 9:50 pm

      Taste amazing!! 10/10 would recommend!5 stars

      Reply
      • Alison Andrews says

        October 20, 2021 at 10:59 am

        Thanks so much Jamie!

        Reply
    8. Shelley says

      August 20, 2021 at 4:38 pm

      Can this be heated? how would I do that without issues? I want to pour over my cauliflower 🙂

      Reply
      • Alison Andrews says

        August 21, 2021 at 2:07 pm

        The best way to heat it is over a double boiler, it can thicken a lot when heated though so its best to add extra water as it heats and whisk in.

        Reply
    9. Janet G Cook says

      February 19, 2021 at 10:27 pm

      I made this recipe with my brand new food processor. It turned out great!
      Thank you for the recipe.4 stars

      Reply
      • Alison Andrews says

        February 20, 2021 at 12:02 pm

        Wonderful! Thanks for sharing Janet.

        Reply
    10. Veronica McEwan says

      December 23, 2020 at 3:56 am

      Hi Alison,
      I just made your cheese sauce recipe.
      I love it. Can’t wait to try more.
      With thanks
      Veronica

      Reply
      • Alison Andrews says

        December 23, 2020 at 9:43 am

        Awesome! Thanks Veronica!

        Reply
    11. Karla says

      December 19, 2020 at 9:51 pm

      Love this however, the 5TBSP of water was nowhere near enough to get this to even blend, i had to add a cup of water total to get it to the consistency of a spreadable pudding tho texture.

      Reply
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