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    Home » Recipes » All Recipes

    Published: Nov 11, 2018 · Modified: Jun 21, 2022 by Melanie McDonald · This post contains affiliate links · As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. · 98 Comments

    Easy Vegan Cheese Sauce (with no nuts!)

    4.91 from 120 votes
    JUMP TO RECIPE WATCH VIDEO
    A silky smooth, lusciously creamy, Vegan Cheese Sauce that is nut free, gluten free and really low in fat. Whip it up in minutes in your blender!

    A silky smooth, lusciously creamy, Vegan Cheese Sauce that is nut-free, gluten-free, low in fat, high in protein and can be whipped up in your blender in minutes! It's one of my favourite super quick dinners. Toss it through freshly cooked pasta and serve alongside some veggies or a salad. Dinner done fast!

    Vegan Cheese Sauce in a small stainless steel pan

    This super easy Vegan Cheese Sauce is a gamechanger. It's seriously good and like my Cauliflower Alfredo, it's nut-free, gluten-free and really low in fat.

    In this post:

    Jump to:
    • How to make vegan cheese sauce
    • Nutritional yeast
    • Serving Suggestions
    • Recipe
    • Reviews & Questions

    There aren't many nut-free vegan cheese sauce recipes around. Cashews tend to be used on repeat for creamy sauces in the vegan world, like in my cashew cheese sauce recipe, and although they make a really tasty, glossy, yummy sauce that I love, hey, sometimes there are times when you could use a recipe without them.

    Maybe you have guests with allergies, maybe you don't want to spend an arm and a leg on a bag of nuts (cashews aren't exactly cheap!), or maybe you are trying to be good after eating your way through an entire cookbook for the past 5 or 6 months!

    vegan cheese sauce being poured from a jug onto pasta

    Whatever the reason you want a nut-free vegan cheese sauce, I've got you covered, because this recipe is just perfect for any of the above occasions.

    It's a super simple Vegan Cheese Sauce, made in seconds, and it's luscious, smooth and creamy and can be used in any recipe where you want a thick, creamy, cheesy sauce. And did I mention it's got no nuts, no gluten and no fat in it? I did but I feel the need to repeat myself.

    a bowl of vegan cheese sauce covered pasta

    Because it's made from silken or soft tofu, it is super, super velvety and smooth. So much more so than a nut-based sauce and it tastes lighter.

    How to make vegan cheese sauce

    This simple, Vegan Cheese Sauce couldn't be easier to make.

    Here's what you need:

    Ingredients for vegan cheese sauce

    And here's how it's done:

    1. Put all of the ingredients in a blender or a food processor and blend. (That is incidentally actually another good thing about this recipe. Because everything in it is super soft, you don't need a fancy pants high powered blender to make it super smooth. Any blender or food processor should be able to take care of it).
    2. Warm it gently through in a pan on the stovetop or use in any recipe calling for cheese sauce.

    That's it. It's the easiest sauce ever!

    Nutritional yeast

    Please be sure to use a good tasting nutritional yeast for this recipe. All nutritional yeasts are not created equally. Some brands taste a lot better than others.

    I personally do not like Bob's Red Mill nutritional yeast, even though I love all of their other products. I do not recommend you use it in this recipe as you won't get the intended cheesy flavour. It's ok used in small amounts but in a recipe where you use a lot like this it will make a big difference to the overall result.

    My personal favourite is Hoosier Farms and an added bonus is it's super cheap too. It comes in a massive tub that lasts ages. I get mine from Amazon.

    Vegan cheese sauce covered pasta twisted around a fork in a bowl

    Serving Suggestions

    The possibilities are endless though. I'm thinking:

    • easy pasta dinners
    • as a dip
    • cauliflower cheese
    • mac and cheese
    • lasagna
    • pasta bakes
    • cheesy soups
    • loaded nachos

    You get the idea.

    If you try this recipe, let me know how you like it by leaving a comment and rating below! And be sure to join my mailing list for more deliciousness!

    Recipe

    easy vegan cheese sauce

    Easy Vegan Cheese Sauce (no nuts!)

    Author: Melanie McDonald
    4.91 from 120 votes
    A silky smooth, lusciously creamy, Vegan Cheese Sauce that is nut-free, gluten-free, low in fat, high in protein and can be whipped up in your blender in minutes! It's one of my favourite super quick dinners. Toss it through freshly cooked pasta and serve alongside some veggies or a salad. Dinner done fast!
    PRINT PIN SAVE Saved!
    PREP TIME: 5 minutes minutes
    Total Time 5 minutes minutes
    Servings 450 mls

    Ingredients
      

    • 12 oz (340 grams) silken or soft tofu
    • ½ cup (35 grams) nutritional yeast , make sure it's a good tasting one
    • 1½ teaspoon onion powder
    • ½ teaspoon garlic powder
    • ¼ teaspoon smoked paprika , or chipotle powder
    • 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
    • 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
    • 1 teaspoon salt
    • ½ cup (120 mls) unsweetened milk of choice , soy or cashew milk gives the best result tastewise
    Prevent your screen from going dark

    INSTRUCTIONS
     

    • Add all of the ingredients to a blender and blend until completely smooth. Taste and adjust seasonings if necessary. 
    • Warm the sauce through gently in a pan on the stove top before serving. 

    NOTES

    Unused sauce will keep for up to 5 days in the fridge. 
    Every single ingredient in this recipe plays a part in giving the best flavour possible, so I do not recommend omitting any of them or subbing them. 
    Please see my notes in the post above the recipe about the brand of nutritional yeast I recommend to make this recipe. They are not all created equally!

    NUTRITION

    Serving: 112ml serving (about ¼ of entire recipe) | Calories: 98kcal | Carbohydrates: 6.9g | Protein: 12g | Fat: 2g | Sodium: 410mg | Fiber: 2.3g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 150IU | Vitamin C: 0.8mg | Calcium: 70mg | Iron: 1.6mg
    Did you make this recipe?Rate it & leave feedback in the comments section below. I love seeing your remakes too. Tag @avirtualvegan on Instagram! 🌟
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    22.6K shares

    Reader Interactions

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      Recipe Rating




    1. Di says

      May 28, 2022 at 1:31 pm

      5 stars
      Love it! I don’t make “cheesy“ sauces too often because of the calorie count, but this is completely and totally doable… And delish. Served on a bun over a carrot dog with chili, this makes a delightfully sloppy wonderful yummy chili cheese dog. :-)

      Reply
    2. Shellie says

      May 24, 2022 at 5:24 pm

      5 stars
      This came out great. Delicious. Thanks!

      Reply
    3. Paula says

      May 02, 2022 at 10:48 am

      5 stars
      Best 'cheese' sauce I have tasted, right up there with your vegan ricotta! Thank you for this recipe!

      Reply
    4. Angie says

      March 26, 2022 at 7:44 pm

      5 stars
      This is amazing! Got the nutritional yeast you recommended and seriously want to put this on everything. Definitely will be making this again and again and again.

      Reply
    5. Margaret Montoya says

      February 15, 2022 at 10:24 am

      5 stars
      Hello Mel. The packs of silken tofu I use here in the UK are 300g, so adjusted the rest of the ingredients accordingly, but used Colman's English mustard instead of Dijon. I made it for me and my omnivore husband, who ate most of it and he said he would definitely have it again!

      Reply
    6. Candace says

      October 16, 2021 at 3:52 pm

      5 stars
      Such a great recipe. I'm really pleased to have one on hand that's low fat and still tastes great. I mean cashew-based sauces are lovely but the calories pile up and it can work out expensive. Thank you for the recipe.

      Reply
    7. Tam says

      October 16, 2021 at 2:10 pm

      2 stars
      Just made this..exactly..and it tastes nothing like cheese sauce. I even added garlic, onion and green chilis to make it a queso and all it tastes like is tofu and nutritional yeast.

      Reply
    8. Simon says

      July 01, 2021 at 2:35 pm

      5 stars
      Loved it!

      Reply
    9. Valerie says

      May 22, 2021 at 12:13 pm

      This looks really great! I prefer silken tofu over nuts, too. Although, a high speed blender isn’t needed, if you have one you can actually heat the sauce while blending it! Pretty cool & saves on dishes. I love my Vitamix for so many reasons.

      Reply
      • Meena says

        May 31, 2021 at 6:19 am

        Hi! I would like to know which model vitamix do you use. I would like to buy one but an confused as to which one since there are so many models! Thank you in advance.

        Reply
    10. Casey says

      May 17, 2021 at 7:27 pm

      5 stars
      Hands down the best vegan cheese sauce I’ve ever made! I subbed the vinegar for lemon juice and used stone ground mustard just cause that’s what I had, and it turned out AMAZING! And I love that this is WAY lower in fat than any other vegan cheese sauce I’ve ever tried.

      Reply
      • Melanie McDonald says

        May 17, 2021 at 7:47 pm

        Thank you so much Casey. I'm really pleased you enjoyed it so much!

        Reply
    11. Jackie Marie says

      December 23, 2020 at 3:58 am

      Can you put this sauce under the grill like you would a macoroni to get a crust on it .
      Has anyone tried?
      ?

      Reply
    12. Jo says

      September 06, 2020 at 9:01 am

      4 stars
      Tastes great - really cheesy. I substituted white wine vinegar for apple cider vinegar and attempted to bake some of the sauce with pre-cooked cauliflower in the oven for a cauliflower cheese dish. Sadly, it curdled, but would definitely make this again and use without baking. I wonder why it didn't bake very well? I didn't heat it up before baking. Any advice appreciated.

      Reply
    13. Ruth says

      August 03, 2020 at 4:45 pm

      5 stars
      I've made this queso many times. It's my favorite cheese sauce because it's a nice boost of protein and no fat. I also like that there's no lemony flavor like in some sauces. I have made it as written and it's amazing. But my favorite way to make it is add a TBS of miso and about 1/2 cup of roasted red pepper with the liquid drained.

      Reply
    14. Y says

      June 21, 2020 at 11:18 pm

      5 stars
      This is the first time I tried a vegan cheese recipe. I am FODMAP sensitive so I had to skip the garlic and onion. I added in a bit freshly grounded pepper and a pinch of turmeric for color. I don't have white wine vinegar and used yuzu juice for sub. Despite all these, it still turned out tasty and very satisfying. The umami of nutritional yeasts of course plays the main tone, but my biggest impression is how the dijon mustard really shines through the recipe. Glad that I found this!

      Reply
    15. Martinne says

      May 01, 2020 at 9:19 am

      Looks fabulous! Have you tried freezing it?

      Reply
      • A Virtual Vegan says

        May 01, 2020 at 11:44 am

        I haven't. Tofu's texture changes when it freezes so I think this might get a little grainy if you do. That's why I've never tried. It keeps for a good 5 days in the fridge though.

        Reply
    16. Liberty says

      April 09, 2020 at 9:24 pm

      This looks amazing! Can I sub the vinegar for lemon juice? And do you think it would it work with wholegrain instead of dijon?

      Reply
      • A Virtual Vegan says

        April 10, 2020 at 9:10 am

        Maybe use a little less lemon juice as you don't want any lemon flavour coming through. Add it to taste at the end once everything is blended up. It just needs a bit of acid to balance the flavours.
        As for mustard, wholegrain will work but only if you have a good enough blender to blend up the grains as they'd look a bit funny otherwise. Hope that helps!

        Reply
    17. Heather says

      March 21, 2020 at 3:21 pm

      4 stars
      This is delicious made as is, except I'm a saltaholic so I added extra salt! I see as I'm commenting that it calls for silken tofu and I used firm, it is still creamy and smooth.

      Reply
    18. Clare says

      March 03, 2020 at 11:11 am

      5 stars
      This sauce is delicious and incredibly easy to make. I discovered the sauce improves in flavor if allowed to rest in the refrigerator for 24 hours or so. As Melanie states, the choice of nutritional yeast is important as flavor varies from brand to brand. Also, the ingredients called for should be not be substituted or varied; they’re critical to the balance. I have made this sauce twice and have loved it both times.

      Reply
      • Raelin Hansen says

        March 12, 2020 at 9:57 am

        Hi, I am on a strict low FODMAP diet - SEVERE consequences from eating garlic or onion! Is there anything I can substitute for the garlic and onion?
        Thanks!

        Reply
        • A Virtual Vegan says

          March 12, 2020 at 10:46 am

          Sorry but there isn't really anything you can use as a substitute for garlic and onion powder. You'd just have to omit them but bear in mind that the sauce isn't going to taste as good then.

          Reply
        • Lea says

          March 21, 2020 at 8:19 am

          Maybe give Hing (asafoetida) a shot? It's used in indian cooking to mimic those flavours. A little goes a long way.

          Reply
    19. Heayo says

      February 22, 2020 at 11:23 am

      The nutritional yeast recommended in Korea is too expensive to buy. Can you recommend another product?

      Reply
      • A Virtual Vegan says

        February 22, 2020 at 1:00 pm

        There really isn't anything else like nutritional yeast. Milder miso can add a bit of a cheesy flavour but not in the same way. I'd recommend you look for a cheese sauce recipe that doesn't rely on nutritional yeast for its flavour. Sorry!

        Reply
        • Rylin Mariel says

          March 12, 2020 at 9:53 am

          I think this commenter was asking if you could recommend a different brand, not a different food product altogether.

          Reply
          • A Virtual Vegan says

            March 12, 2020 at 10:47 am

            If that's the case then no I can't. I'm not familiar with brands or groceries available in Korea.

    20. Barbara Morgan says

      February 22, 2020 at 6:43 am

      5 stars
      Should you press the tofu first?

      Reply
      • A Virtual Vegan says

        February 22, 2020 at 8:05 am

        If it needs pressing it will always say in the recipe. In this recipe you don't need to as its silken tofu and is just blended up in the sauce.

        Reply
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