Easy Vegan Parmesan Cheese made with a handful of ingredients in only 5 minutes. This dairy-free hard cheese has a sharp, savoury, cheesy, nutty flavour and a slightly salty edge. It can be grated, shaved, sliced and crumbled and is a great dairy-free alternative to parmesan. An oil-free option is included.
Love vegan cheese? Be sure to try my 5-star rated Vegan Feta Cheese next!
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FEATURED COMMENT:
"Sometimes when I read the prep time estimate, I think, "Yeah, maybe for you, but not for me," as I bumble through a new recipe. But this really did take just 5 minutes and it's terrific! " - Barbara ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ More reviews →
When you need a nutty-sharp-salty-cheese to serve with your favourite pasta dishes and salads, only Vegan Parmesan Cheese will do, and now you can make your own in just 5 minutes. And no, I'm not exaggerating. It really is so quick and easy you won't believe your eyes!
This hard vegan cheese tastes absolutely delicious, with a sharp, savoury, cheesy, nutty flavour and a slightly salty edge. And, because it's hard, you can grate it, shave it, slice it and crumble it!
Mel x
Vegan Parmesan Ingredients
Here is what you need at a glance, along with some important ingredient notes & substitution ideas:
- Almond flour - Almond flour is made from blanched almonds and is very fine and light yellow in colour. However, you can also use ground almonds or almond meal with one caveat: It must not have brown skin flecks throughout; otherwise, your cheese will look really strange. Raw cashews or brazil nuts ground to a flour-like consistency will also work but almonds give a better flavour in the finished cheese.
- Refined coconut oil - Emphasis on refined, which means the oil is flavourless with no coconut smell. You cannot use unrefined or virgin coconut oil in this recipe. The coconut oil makes the cheese richer, gives it a better creamy mouthfeel and helps it set firmer. You can omit it, but your cheese will be less rich and won't set quite as hard.
- Nutritional yeast - Essential for cheesy flavour. Not all nooch is created equally though, so be sure to use one that tastes good. My favourite brand is Hoosier Hill Farms.
- Miso - White miso gives the cheese more depth and enhances the cheesy flavour. It also helps hold the cheese together.
- Lemon zest - A tiny amount, but it adds a sharp brightness to the cheese. You can omit it if you prefer. It won't affect how the recipe technically works.
- Distilled white vinegar - Essential for balance and sharpness. Other vinegars do not give the same effect.
- Garlic powder - The finished cheese doesn't really taste garlicky, but it gives the cheese a more complex, pungent depth.
- Salt - I recommend using good quality sea salt and not table salt in this recipe. With limited ingredients, it's important that everything that goes in tastes really good. Sea salt is far superior in flavour. If you do use table salt, you will need to adjust the quantity because it tastes way saltier.
How to Make Vegan Parmesan Cheese
This dairy-free parmesan cheese recipe is so easy to make! For full instructions, scroll down to the recipe card, but here's a quick summary of the process with step-by-step photos. I recommend watching my recipe video if you're more of a visual learner:
1 - Simply throw everything in a food processor and blend to combine. Once it comes together into slightly grainy, doughy clumps, it's ready. Switch to pulse once you are very nearly there so you don't overdo it. If you overprocess, the vegan parm or the almond flour will turn into nut butter. Not the effect we're going for!
2 - Then shape it into a wheel, pop it on a piece of parchment paper resting on a plate or in a container with the lid left off, and let it set up in the fridge or the freezer. As this recipe is replicating parmesan, which is a very dry cheese, I prefer to leave it uncovered so it can dry out as it sets.
Grating Vegan Parmesan Cheese
Whilst you can shave and grate this vegan parmesan straight from the fridge, it is much easier, and you get a much neater outcome, if you grate or shave it straight from the freezer. For this reason, I tend to keep my cheese in the freezer all the time, unless I know I'll be needing it for snacking or for something like a cheeseboard. It keeps for months once frozen, which is an added bonus, and whenever you need some grated vegan parmesan cheese, it's ready and waiting in the freezer!
Serving Suggestions
Grate vegan parmesan over pasta dishes, soups and risottos. Shave over salads and pizza. Add a wedge to your vegan cheese boards and drizzle with vegan hot "honey". Basically use it in any way you would regular parmesan cheese.
That bowl of Vegan Penne alla Vodka, spaghetti with marinara sauce, Baked Vegan Orzo, Vegan Gnocchi, or Vegan Carbonara?...Just begging for you to grate Vegan Parmesan Cheese ALL over it! And don't forget to make a delish Caesar salad with my vegan chicken breasts ;O)
And it's worth pointing out that vegan parmesan cheese can be used in combination with my vegan ricotta to make all manner of amazing Italian dishes!
Recipe FAQs
I haven't tried to make this nut-free, but I think hemp seeds would work really well as a substitute for the almond flour. You will just need to get them to a flour-like consistency in the food processor before you begin. Perhaps raw sunflower seeds would work too?
The coconut oil makes the cheese richer, gives it a better creamy mouthfeel and helps it set firmer. You can omit it if you prefer, but the cheese won't have such a good mouthfeel, and it will set a little softer.
For best results, I recommend following the recipe as written. There are so few ingredients in this recipe that any changes will have a big impact. The miso is really important for flavour and also for sticking everything together. I don't recommend using anything else instead or omitting it. If you need the cheese to be soy-free, use brown rice miso or chickpea miso.
No. The cheese is way too thick and stodgy for even a high-powered blender to handle. Food processors handle things like this much better. If you don't have a food processor, some people have told me they've made it by hand, but you will need to use some elbow grease, as it will take some mixing!
Recipe
Vegan Parmesan Cheese
Author:WATCH HOW TO MAKE IT
Ingredients
- 1 cup (100 grams) almond flour, or ground almonds (or ¾ cup (100 grams) of raw almonds with no skin processed to a flour-like consistency)
- ¼ cup (20 grams) nutritional yeast
- 1½ teaspoons fine sea salt, not table salt
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 tablespoon white miso
- 2 tablespoons distilled white vinegar
- ½ teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
- 1 tablespoon refined coconut oil, optional
RECOMMENDED EQUIPMENT
INSTRUCTIONS
- Add everything to a food processor and process until the mixture becomes a clumpy, damp, slightly grainy dough. This should only take a minute or two. Scrape down as necessary to make sure everything gets combined. It should hold together well if you squeeze the mixture in your hand. There is a photograph in the post showing what it looks like.
- Remove the blade and tip the mixture out onto a clean counter. Bring it all together into a rough ball then shape into a wheel/round about 4 inches wide and 1 inch high. Be sure to compact it really well while doing this.
- If any cracks appear around the edge, wet a finger under the tap and rub/squeeze the crack to bring it together and neaten it up.
- Place the wheel on a piece of parchment paper on a small plate in the fridge. Don't cover it with anything so it can dry out a bit. Let it set ideally overnight or for up to 48 hours. This lets it dry out and allows the flavours to develop. If you need to rush it, place the cheese carefully, on the parchment paper, in the freezer. After about 30 minutes you should be able to grate or shave it.
- Once it's nicely solid, transfer to an airtight container (or wrap it well), and store it in the fridge for up to 2 weeks or the freezer for up to 3 months. It can be grated or shaved from the fridge, but it's much easier, and you get cleaner shavings if the cheese is frozen. I tend to keep mine in the freezer because of this unless I want it for cheeseboards/snacking on.
NOTES
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Lisa says
Is there a substitute for miso? The asian store is a bit too far for me
Melanie McDonald says
Not really.It's what holds the cheese together and gives it most of its flavor. It's really not hard to find. I buy it at any regular grocery store. They all sell it. Even the likes of Walmart etc.
Lisa says
Awesome, I’ll check out our local walmart!
Jameelah Jordan says
This is delicious! I accidentally put unrefined coconut oil in it. What will happen when unrefined oil is in it?
Melanie McDonald says
Unrefined coconut oil tastes and smells of coconut. Refined coconut oil doesn't. That's why it's important in this recipe. Glad you're enjoying it anyway though and it will be even better next time now you know!
Barbara says
Sometimes when I read the prep time estimate, I think, "Yeah, maybe for you, but not for me," as I bumble through a new recipe. But this really did take just 5 minutes and it's terrific! Good uncomplicated vegan cheese is the last frontier, IMO!
But I expect that it took you a lot longer than 5 little old minutes to perfect this recipe, so we're benefiting from your dedication to get things right. So thank you for sharing the fruits (cheese?) of your labors with us!
Melanie McDonald says
I'm really pleased you are enjoying the recipe Barbara, and thank you for taking the time to leave a review. It's much appreciated!
Ellen Romain says
I just made this and snook a little taste when I popped it in the fridge to set. OMG! I really love this! Couldn’t be any simpler. I plan to freeze it and grate it as needed. But let’s see how long this lasts…
Melanie McDonald says
It's so handy to have in the freezer...If it makes it that far. Enjoy!!
Lynda says
Hi, When you list eg oil, as optional, is that ingredient included in the nutritional breakdown? Makes quite a difference when following a low fat regime!
🙏
Melanie McDonald says
Yes it is included.
Silma says
can we substitute miso? Thank You
Melanie McDonald says
I wouldn't recommend that. It's very much needed for flavour and helps to hold it all together.
Pamela says
Can we use a Vitamix in lieu of a food processor?
Thank you
Melanie McDonald says
You (or should I say the Vitamix) might struggle. It's really thick and stodgy. I haven't tried it in mine because I know from past experience that food processors handle things like this much better.
Karen says
Is there a substitute for the miso?
Melanie McDonald says
There are so few ingredients in this recipe that any changes will have a big impact. The miso is really important for flavour and also for sticking everything together. I don't recommend using anything else instead or omitting it.
Tracey says
Hay Melanie McDonald: I haven't made this recipe yet I was just wondering what happened to your video? I love being able to watch how to do it, it just makes life & learning easer. They say a picture is worth a thousand words so a video must be worth a million words. Please bring your video back.
Melanie McDonald says
It's there in the recipe card. The only reason you wouldn't be able to see it is if you have started using an ad blocker since you last looked. They wipe out some functions on websites like mine including the videos. Hope that helps and that you enjoy the cheese!
Tracey says
Thank you Melanie that must be it because there's nothing there.
I did make the cheese though, and it was very easy to make, the hardest part was the waiting, and it is wonderfully delicious. Thank you so much for responding and for this wonderfully delicious recipe.
Shelly Hawes-Smith says
This is so f'ing good Melanie!! I make my own cashew parm as well and I love that but this is next level. I love this in salads but also just to nibble on. SO GOOD.
Melanie McDonald says
So pleased you're enjoying it Shelly!
Judy says
This looks very good. I''l try it.Unfortunately I can't have any soy products so no tofu for me( althoigh I liked it)
Katy says
Can it be made with other nuts? I have an almond allergy.
Melanie McDonald says
Check the recipe FAQs. This question is covered there :O)
Joan says
So ours has been aged and we’ve been using it. We are really, really enjoying this recipe! We have grated it on baked potatoes, pasta and even spread it on toast and crackers. It’s also fantastic just out of the jar! I don’t think we will ever be without it in our fridge. Love this super healthy cheese substitute! Thanks so much.
Melanie McDonald says
That's awesome Joan. Thanks for giving the recipe a try. I'm really pleased you're enjoying it!
Cheryl says
I made this cheese 48 hours ago - so now that the 'cure' time is behind me, I was able to take a slice off it today to try & it tastes fantastic! I haven't had the need to try grating it yet. The flavours are delicious...the vinegar gives the cheese a nice tang, nutritional yeast gives it a nutty edge and the lemon is so Spring fresh! It has the perfect amount of salt too - it will be a keeper in my 'favourite' recipe folder. Thank you for sharing your recipe Melanie :-)
Melanie McDonald says
Love this! So pleased you're enjoying it Cheryl!
Lorinda says
Why not table salt? I don’t like sea salt as it lacks the iodine I need.
Melanie McDonald says
It doesn't taste as good and in something like this with so few ingredients, and an emphasis on the slightly salty flavour, it's important to have a good tasting salt. Good quality sea salt tastes way better than table salt. Table salt is also much stronger so a different amount is needed in recipes.
Ed says
Looks interesting. Does it melt like real parm?
Melanie McDonald says
It gets softer but doesn't melt.
Avie says
What can be substituted for white miso, thanks 😊
Melanie McDonald says
There is no substitute. It's essential in this recipe for flavour and for holding everything together. It's easy to find in most good grocery stores.
nylongirl says
I don't like to use miso either as it's high sodium content. Wish another substitute too!
Joan says
Just finished making this. I had some almonds I’d slightly over processed so they were perfect for this recipe. I didn’t have lemon zest so I subbed in 1/2 tsp lemon juice. The flavour is wonderful even with my substitutions. I can’t wait to try it after the 48 hour rest period! I haven’t rated it yet but will after I’ve tried it out in some recipes. I am excited to see how this works out!
Melanie McDonald says
Yay! So pleased you're liking it so far. Let me know what you think once it's hardened up and "matured" a bit!
Pat McKenzie says
This looks brilliant! Can’t wait to try it!
Melanie McDonald says
Hope you enjoy it!
Janice says
I haven't tried this recipe yet, but was wondering if there was a substitute for the white vinegar, which I don't use.
Melanie McDonald says
You can omit it but the cheese won't be as sharp. There isn't a substitute in this recipe.
Marie says
Take 2 Tbsp of water and dissolve 3/4 - 1 tsp ascorbic acid powder into it. Taste it for desired tartness. I do this as I cannot use white vinegar or any vinegar. For apple cider vinegar, I use apple juice like Tree Top but not the transparent sweet kind and mix ascorbic acid powder into it. It works great. I use Earthborn Elements Ascorbic as it is a very fine one, or NOW Brand.