The best-tasting vegan butter! It's plant-based, super buttery, smooth, rich & creamy & can be made in minutes. Use it for all of your spreading, baking and frying needs. This is a real reader favourite with hundreds of five-star reviews. No fancy ingredients are required and it is palm oil-free.
This vegan butter recipe is tried and true. It has been one of my most popular recipes since 2015 and it comes with hundreds of five star reviews. And if there is just one new vegan recipe you are going to try this month, let it be this vegan butter. It is life-changing!
Make it in your blender in minutes and then use it just like regular butter for all of your spreading and baking needs. You can even use it to make vegan brown butter!
What is vegan butter?
Vegan butter is a dairy-free alternative to regular butter, which is most commonly made from cow's milk, but also sometimes sheep, goat, yak or buffalo milk. Vegan butter is made from plant based milk and it has a very similar texture, mouthfeel and flavour to butter made from animal's milk.
Is it like real butter?
This easy vegan butter is so unbelievably smooth, rich and creamy. It spreads beautifully and melts perfectly.
A slice of no knead sourdough bread, toast or light whole wheat bread just isn't the same without a thick layer of butter and when you make your own you can avoid the palm oil, emulsifiers etc that are in most store bought vegan butters.
Obviously it isn't identical to regular butter made from dairy but this plant based butter recipe tastes as good, if not better than most store bought vegan butters and looks the same, melts the same, behaves the same and bakes the same as dairy butter. Try it in my vegan butter tarts!
What is vegan butter made of?
Homemade vegan butter is made from just 8 easy to find plant based ingredients. Here is what you will need and why:
- almond flour - This is crucial for the best buttery flavour and emulsification. Almond flour is made from blanched skinless almonds and is super fine, powdery, soft and pale creamy yellow in colour. It has a mild, buttery flavour. Almond meal on the other hand is made with raw almonds, often with skins still on. It is coarser and grainier than almond flour, slightly stronger in flavour and darker in colour with small brown flecks throughout if the skins were still intact. For best results you need to use almond flour for this recipe. Almond flour is found in almost all grocery stores and it will be clearly labelled on the bag that it is made from blanched almonds. I buy mine in bulk from Costco but Bob's Red Mill is a popular brand of almond flour carried in most stores in North America. In the UK you can buy almond flour from Holland and Barrett.
- non-dairy milk - For creaminess and emulsification.
- nutritional yeast - For a buttery depth of flavour
- salt - flavour. Salt makes everything better!
- apple cider vinegar - It needs some acid to balance the flavours and apple cider vinegar is milder than most other culinary acids.
- refined coconut oil - For setting. Note that it must be refined (i.e flavourless and odourless). Without it the butter will stay liquid so it is absolutely essential.
- olive oil, avocado oil or canola oil - Essential for texture and spreadability
- turmeric - For colour. This is the only ingredient you can safely omit.
How to make plant-based butter
This vegan butter recipe takes literally a couple of minutes to make, plus some time for it to set. Here's how it's done:
- Add all of the ingredients except the oils to a blender and blend until smooth.
- Add the refined coconut oil and the olive oil and blend again until incorporated and light and airy.
- Pour into a lidded container and place in the fridge to set.
Success Tips
- Measure everything carefully and don't omit or change anything (except the turmeric which can be safely left out if you don't have it because it is only used for colour).
- You must use refined coconut oil. It's sometimes labelled as "deodorized". You absolutely cannot use unrefined or virgin coconut oil because your butter will smell and taste of coconut. If you aren't sure if yours is ok, check the label. It will say somewhere. Or give it a sniff and taste. If you can smell or taste any trace of coconut it is not refined and not suitable for this recipe.
- Make sure the refined coconut oil is liquid but at room temperature. Don't add it while it's hot.
- Blend until completely smooth but don't let the liquid butter get hot while blending or it could split. If it starts warming up give the blender a break for a minute or two before continuing.
- Let it set thoroughly before using.
- Store in the refrigerator
- Let is soften at room temperature for a few minutes before spreading for ultimate creaminess and ease of spreading.
- Omit the almond flour if you plan to use the recipe for sautéing or frying. More details are in the recipe notes.
Serving Suggestions
Slather this vegan butter on everything! Some ideas include:
- on bread or toast
- on homemade English Muffins
- on quick breads like my healthy banana bread, spelt bread, pumpkin bread and zucchini bread
- in mashed potatoes
- on baked potatoes or steamed potatoes
- on popcorn
- in pastry dough
- on steamed vegetables
- on vegan banana scones
- slathered on vegan sweet potato biscuits
- in vegan cream cheese frosting or buttercream
- to cook pancakes and on pancakes like my vegan banana pancakes, giant blueberry vegan pancake and my vegan spelt pancakes
- on oatmeal waffles
- in Risi e Bisi (Italian rice and peas)
- in cakes, cookies or other baked goods
- in my vegan lemon curd
Is vegan butter healthy?
This vegan butter is homemade, contains simple ingredients and does not contain trans fats, hydrogenated oils, additives and preservatives, so in that respect it does have healthier ingredients than most store bought vegan butters. However it is still very high in fat and calories, so like all butters, it should be eaten sparingly.
Is vegan butter the same as margarine?
Vegan butter and margarine are similar but not the same. Margarine has a really distinctive flavour and a really soft texture that is not like traditional dairy butter. It is also not always vegan. It often contains milk derivatives amongst other things, even the ones that are sometimes labelled as plant-based" so be careful. Look out for ingredients like whey, lactose and casein. Also be wary of lecithin and vitamin D3 which can sometimes be derived from animals.
My vegan butter recipe is more like dairy butter in flavour and texture than store bought margarines.
How to store
Be sure to pour the butter into a container with a lid so that it's easy to keep it covered. I put mine in small or shallow jars mason jars.
You might be wondering how long vegan butter lasts? Store it in the refrigerator and it will keep for about 2 weeks. This does depend to some extent on the milk you use to make it with though. If you use store bought milk it lasts longer than it does if you use homemade milk. That's because store bought milk has preservatives in it and homemade doesn't.
This vegan butter freezes really well. If you make more than you think you will comfortably eat in 2 weeks, or if you want to make a really big batch every couple of months, store it in the freezer where it will keep for up to 3 months.
- To freeze in an airtight freezer safe container - When you make the butter pour it into the freezer safe container cover with a lid and put it straight in the freezer. You can also freeze the already set butter if you prefer.
- To freeze in a silicone ice cube tray - Pour the liquid butter into the silicone trays. Place them gently and evenly in the freezer. Once the butter has solidified you can wrap the ice cube trays up really well or put them as they are in a sealed freezer bag. Or you can pop the frozen cubes out and store them in a bag or container so you get your ice cube tray back for other things.
- How to defrost - When you want some butter remove from the freezer and allow to defrost overnight in the fridge. If you have frozen it in an ice cube tray it will defrost really quickly so you can pop one out and leave it at room temperature until it's ready to use. It usually takes about 30 minutes.
Recipe FAQS
If you use unrefined or virgin coconut oil, your butter will end up tasting and smelling of coconut. It will not taste of butter. Refined coconut oil has no coconut flavor or smell which is why it is essential for this recipe.
I have a few readers who use ground up cashew nuts, sunflower seeds or pine nuts instead of almonds. Almonds give a more buttery flavour but the results are still ok when using these substitutes.
About 2 weeks. See my freezing instructions if you want to keep it longer.
The nutritional yeast helps with the buttery flavour and the butter is at it's best when it is included so I highly recommend using it. However if you omit it the recipe will still technically work, it just won't taste quite as good.
No. Baking yeast and brewer's yeast is completely different to nutritional yeast and will not work in this recipe.
There is no substitute for coconut oil in this recipe. Nothing else will work.
Recipe
Vegan Butter
Author:Ingredients
- 1 cup (240 mls) refined coconut oil , it must be refined NOT unrefined
- ½ cup (50 grams or 8 tablespoons) almond flour
- ½ cup + 2 tablespoons (150 mls) plant milk , NOT almond milk. Soy, cashew or oat milk work best. (the milk must be unsweetened and unflavoured)
- 2 teaspoons nutritional yeast
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
- 1 pinch ground turmeric , optional but helps make colour a little more yellow
- ¼ cup (60 ml ml) neutral tasting liquid oil like light olive oil, avocado oil or canola oil
RECOMMENDED EQUIPMENT
INSTRUCTIONS
Please see the recipe notes before proceeding if you intend on using this butter for frying or sautéing.
- Melt the coconut oil. I put it in the microwave for 20 or 30 seconds but you can also stand the jar in some hot water. Measure it when it's liquid and not when it's solid, then set it aside for a few minutes to cool. Don't use it while it's hot or warm. Allow it to get to room temperature first.
- Place the almond flour, milk, salt, nutritional yeast, vinegar and turmeric into a blender and blend until smooth.
- Pour in the refined coconut oil and olive oil then blend until velvety smooth. I use the smoothie setting on my blender. Don't let the blender get too warm while it's blending or the butter can split a bit. If your blender does run a little warm then blend in short bursts and give it a break for a minute or two in between.
- Pour the liquid butter into a container, cover and refrigerate until set.
- Let is soften at room temperature for a few minutes before spreading for ultimate creaminess and ease of spreading.
NOTES
- To freeze in an airtight freezer safe container - When you make the butter pour it into the freezer safe container cover with a lid and put it straight in the freezer. You can also freeze the already set butter if you prefer.
- To freeze in a silicone ice cube tray - Pour the liquid butter into the silicone trays. Place them gently and evenly in the freezer. Once the butter has solidified you can wrap the ice cube trays up really well or put them as they are in a sealed freezer bag. Or you can pop the frozen cubes out and store them in a bag or container so you get your ice cube tray back for other things.
This recipe was originally published on March 15th 2015. I've added new photographs & some new content and now I am republishing it for you. The actual recipe remains the same. I hope you enjoy it. Thank you for following A Virtual Vegan!
Mary says
I love this butter I have made it several time today it's in process thank you so much
A Virtual Vegan says
So glad you are enjoying it!
mary says
Thank you so much for this wonderful better-butter recipe! It has all the mouth feel and drippy salty yum-ness I crave on baked sweet potatoes and mmm some gluten free oatmeal muffins right out of the oven. I found that one batch of this made plenty for me to use daily for just over two weeks (have not baked with it yet, that will be fun!). The coconut oil is much easier to digest than dairy... excellent for my eating protocol to help heal my poor sad gut. Major appreciation to people like you out there putting together these recipes and helping us all get healthy!
A Virtual Vegan says
Thank you so much Mary! I'm thrilled you are enjoying it so much. Happy new year to you!
Hannah says
Hi there, can I use unrefined coconut oil instead?
A Virtual Vegan says
It technically works with unrefined but it will taste and smell of coconut. To get the best buttery result it needs to be refined coconut oil.
Janie says
Love this recipe!! Wonderful flavor. I’m just enjoying the last of my first batch on a sourdough baguette. Another batch...coming right up! This will become a staple in our house. Thank you!
A Virtual Vegan says
I'm so pleased you are enjoying it Janie! You can't get a much better accompaniment to it than a fresh sourdough baguette either. My weakness is good bread and butter! Thank you so much for stopping by to leave feedback!
Jess says
This recipe is amazing! I couldn’t believe how thick and buttery it turned out. Took 5 minutes and was easy. Taste really good.
A Virtual Vegan says
Thank you! I'm so glad you enjoyed it!
MJudge says
Regarding the Easy Vegan Butter recipe, I have a dilemma. I am allergic to wheat, palm oil and coconut oils. They give me hives. My 8 year old grandson is now dairy free. What can I do for butter that we both can use? Can I substitute the coconut oil in this recipe for another, ie, avocado, grape seed oils? Thank you..
A Virtual Vegan says
I'm afraid that it isn't possible to make this recipe without the coconut oil. It is needed to set the butter. Sorry!
Michelle says
You could try food grade babassu oil? it has a very similar texture, consistency, and melting point as coconut oil, and a mild flavor.
francesca says
Hey Mel, I wanted to drop by and thank you for this amazing, easy and foolproof recipe! Made it last night in just under 5 minutes, and enjoyed it this morning on a lightly toasted, warm baguette (here in France it's a pretty typical breakfast).
So thank you, I'll probably be making this all the time now, instead of buying commercial non-dairy butter
♥
ps: happy holidays!!
A Virtual Vegan says
Thank you so much Francesca! Personally I think the best way to eat it is on fresh bread and I'm slightly jealous you have a freshly baked French baguette! I love the bread in France! I'm so glad you are enjoying the recipe and thank you so much for stopping by to leave feedback. I really appreciate it. Happy holidays to you too!
MissB says
Would this butter work for making pastry or vegan croissants?
A Virtual Vegan says
Yes it's great for all kinds of baking. I regularly make pastry and croissants with it.
Kate says
Can you bake with it?
A Virtual Vegan says
Yes you can bake with it. It's great in cakes, cookies etc and for frosting!
Sophia Greacen says
This sounds perfect! Do you think it would also be suitable to whip into a buttercream? I’m trying to shock my family with a decadent vegan cake but I don’t want butter with palm oil in it!
A Virtual Vegan says
It works perfectly for buttercream! I used it in this recipe https://avirtualvegan.com/earl-grey-vegan-cake-lemon-frosting/ .
Camille says
Cant wit to try this recipe, however due to an allergy to coconut oil, is there an optional replacement?
A Virtual Vegan says
I'm sorry but there is no alternative to the coconut oil. The recipe will not work without it because it's needed to solidify everything.
Jori says
You can use this in baked goods too, like you would for traditional butter when called for?? If so, I'm sold! Cannot wait to try it :)
A Virtual Vegan says
You sure can. It's awesome in cakes, cookies etc, and for frosting!
Michaeline McDonald says
This recipe tastes pretty darn close to real butter! I am impressed! Can't wait to bake with it and see how my sugar cookies turn out! Good job!
A Virtual Vegan says
Yay! I'm so glad. It makes great cookies by the way!
Carolyn Herbert says
Do you have to use the nutritional yeast? I'd love to make this butter as I'm dairy intolerant but I'm also yeast intolerant which means it's a no no for me if it can't be left out :(
A Virtual Vegan says
You can omit it. It adds a little depth to the flavour but it will still technically work without it.
Modia Nefer Ra says
This is an excellent recipe. This is the best butter I have ever had. You're a scientist! Than you much.
A Virtual Vegan says
I'm thrilled you like it so much! Thank you!
Sara says
Why not use unrefined coconut oil? If it just the taste of another reason? I don't usually buy refined at all
A Virtual Vegan says
If you use unrefined the butter will taste strongly of coconut. It wont taste buttery.