Vegan Nacho Cheese Sauce
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Vegan Nacho Cheese Sauce– this easy vegan sauce is simple to make, nut free, and SO SO creamy! I know you’re going to love this nacho cheese and you’ll want to put this on everything!
Oh hello dear nacho cheese sauce of my DREAMS!
If you’ve been a reader for some time now then this recipe might look very familiar to you and that’s because it’s an oldie of mine. But since it has been many years since I first published this recipe, I figured that it could use a full revamp. So, that’s what we’re doing today.
Also, if I’m being 100% honest, I really just wanted a good excuse to give this recipe another try. GUILTY.
It’s just SO GOOD and I love it for that. I also love that it’s not a nut based cheese sauce. While I do genuinely love a good cashew cream sauce, I often get requests for recipes without nuts in them and this vegan nacho cheese sauce totally delivers.
So, what’s in this nacho cheese sauce anyways?
- cannellini beans
- red bell pepper
- jalapeno
- nutritional yeast
- veggie broth
- dijon mustard
- spices
- and a bit of flour (you could use oat flour for a gluten free sauce!)
How to make Vegan Nacho Cheese:
THIS Vegan Nacho Cheese recipe actually uses white beans as the base. The beans are cooked (with some spices, broth, and a bit of jalapeno for a kick) and eventually pureed which results in a DELICIOUSLY creamy cheese sauce.
After it’s all simmered for a bit and the nutritional yeast and red pepper is added in, you’ll have something that looks a bit like this:
I simply used my blender (although an immersion blender or food processor would work just fine) and blended it all up until I got a nice, smooth, and creamy cheesy consistency.
If you’re looking for a plant based, dairy-free alternative for nacho cheese, this recipe is PERFECT! And even if you’re not looking for either of those things, I think you should still try it! :)
See How to Make the Vegan Nacho Cheese Sauce:
[adthrive-in-post-video-player video-id=”KbZbxVIm” upload-date=”2019-10-29T03:31:29.000Z” name=”Nacho Cheese Sauce” description=”Nacho Cheese Sauce”]
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Vegan Nacho Cheese
- Total Time: 13 minutes
- Yield: 3 1x
Ingredients
- 1 15 ounce can of white beans (I used cannellini beans), drained and rinsed
- 2 cups of vegetable broth
- 1 large jalapeno, roughly chopped
- 1 teaspoon of garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon of cumin
- 1/3 cup of nutritional yeast
- 2 tablespoons of dijon mustard
- 2 heaping tablespoons of flour (I used al purpose flour but oat flour would be a great gf alternative!)
- 1/2 cup of red bell pepper, chopped
- salt and pepper to taste (but it doesn’t need much!)
Instructions
- In a medium pot, stir together the beans, broth, jalapeno, and spices. Bring to a boil.
- Reduce heat to a simmer. Stir in the nutritional yeast, dijon. Whisk in the flour and continue to whisk until the sauce begins to thicken. Remove from heat.
- Add in the bell pepper.
- Blend the mixture using an immersion blender OR in a blender/ food processor.
- Season to taste with S&P.
- ENJOY!!!!
Notes
Recipe adapted from 500 Vegan Recipes
- Prep Time: 3 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Category: dips
- Method: stovetop
- Cuisine: american
Keywords: vegan sauce, nacho sauce, healthy nacho sauce
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy.
44 Comments on “Vegan Nacho Cheese Sauce”
Genius! When I was younger I loved not-real 100% processed questionable cheese sauces like the ones commonly found at concession stands. Although tasty, it’s not what I prefer to put in my body. This looks like a wonderful alternative. Love that it uses beans too so you get all the benefits of the beans, as well! Sneaky that you don’t actually use any cheese either.
OMG me too! Like the orange cheese that you get with nachos at a sports game? I loved that stuff! I love this recipe! Will definitely be making it for many years to come.
looool, I know a lot of woman that got pregnant like that. They have 1-3 kids are still virgins :P
looooo, I know a couple of woman that say they got pregnant like that. A mystery case. They have 1-3 kids but are still virgins, hahahaha :P
hahaha. the world works in mysterious ways ;)
This looks and sounds incredible, I love the gif!
xx Kelly
Sparkles and Shoes
Thanks, Kelly! I’m kind of gif obsessed :)
Can the bean drainage be used as aquafaba?
Unfortunately I’m not 100% sure. This isn’t something that I have a lot of experience with. Sorry about that!
Hi! The recipe calls for onion powder but the video says garlic powder. Just wondering which one is correct. Thanks!
Oh! good catch and so sorry about that! I’ve actually made it with both but typically I use garlic powder. I updated the recipe to reflect that. Thanks again!
hi what about chick peas? It’s hard to find the others around here sometimes.
You mean chickpeas instead of white beans? I’ve never tried this. I think that it *could* work but it would definitely have a much different consistency (I think). Sorry I can’t be of more help here.
I tried it with the chickpeas and I thought it tasted amazing. Will have to try it with the others when I find them to see the difference but can attest for others that the chickpeas work just fine.
yay!! SO good to know. I might try that soon myself. I had a few other people asking so it’s to know that I can give them an alternative for the recipe!
When you use chick peas/garbanzo beans, you will typically have a slightly different texture and flavor profile. Think it would be good, just more of a sort of hummus rather than a creamy dip/sauce.
★★★★★
What veggie broth did you use..ingredients says “I used this broth base” (maybe I missed something)
Thank you, June
Oops. Sorry about that! I switched over recipe cards on my blog and some of the links got lost. Here is what I was referring to: http://amzn.to/2anle4d I’ve been using this “better than bouillon” brand for a few months now and I really like it!
I used homemade veggie broth & this ‘cheese’ is divine !! (This way I’m in charge of the salt content of my broth?)
Making this for the 7 Layer Dip I’m making tomorrow! Can’t wait?
I can’t wait to try this! I stay away from the better than bouillon (and most other concentrated broth-things) because it contains MSG (“yeast extract”). I’m not trying to be elitist here (promise!) just wanting to inform others because the food industry is very sneaky and intentionally deceitful.
Hi, which flour do you use cause it doesn’t show the link
Sorry about that Lucy! This is the gluten free flour that I use: http://amzn.to/2iEnIzA
Can this beade without the jalapenos as just a regular “cheese” sauce for veggies or Mac and cheese?
Be made*
I’ve never tried that but I think that it would probably work well! Let me know if you try it!
Can this awesome recipe be made in advance?
I’ve made it the day before serving it. Stored it in the fridge and then heated it up on the stove before eating. Hope that helps!!
Omg! Thank you so much. This was amazing! I used tapioca starch to make it stretchy, and served it with salsa, cilantro and baked corn chips. This is the best substitute cheese sauce ever!
This dip looks delicious!!!
It says yields 3.. is that 3 cups or three servings, I am looking for nutrition information mainly.
3 servings for sure.
Incredible. I used five habanero peppers instead of jalapeno. Mixed in half at boil, half during simmer. Insanely spicy. And that better than bouillon stock base is amazing too. My mouth is currently on fire, great recipe.
★★★★★
My sauce stayed pretty runny. Tips to thicken it?
I like using a little cornstarch of arrowroot powder to thicken it a little. Just be careful bc a little goes a long way. I usuall do 1 teaspoon mixed with a couple tablespoons of water and then mix that into the sauce
I made this at a friends house-giving her a hand in the kitchen for a party she was hosting, and I couldn’t stop eating it! Luckily she had pulled it up on the computer. Now I can quit bugging her to share a copy. I’m off to explore what else you have!
★★★★★
aww yay!! SO SO glad that you liked it!! This is one of my favorite recipes on the blog :D
What a great recipe! My nacho craving was satisfied, but without all the added fat that cheese would bring.
Will definitely make again!
★★★★★
This recipe is Garbage and it tasted horrible will not make again
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Would like to know how much in grams for the white beans…?? As it shows “1 15 ounce can”, little confusing for me as I’m living in Australia. Thanks heaps.
425.24 grams is about 15 ounces. They’re tinned beans with liquid. I hope this helps. :)
★★★★★
I LOVED this recipe. I’ve tried so many before and this takes the win for sure! Had it with the loaded nachos and wow, amazing! Will definitely be making it a lot.
★★★★★
This recipe was so good!! I added salsa instead of red onions and jalapeños, and it turned out amazing!! I didn’t have any vegetable broth, so I used water! Still turned out great!!
★★★★★
I used 1 cup of carrots, 1/2 cup of white bean and 1/4 a teaspoon of salt. It turned out delicious.
I wanted to try this to have with tortilla chips and salsa but only had a can of pinto beans and it turned out awesome! My first time making a “cheese” sauce and I’m so happy, thank you! Another sub I made was 1/2 cup roasted red peppers I had in a jar. Looking forward to making this again with the white beans!
★★★★★