Savory Creamy Cashew Sauce {Vegan}

This Creamy Cashew Sauce is a great vegan alternative to cheese sauce! It's flavorful, without nutritional yeast and is perfect as pasta sauce, dressing and dipping sauce too!

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Ingredients
Instructions
Tips and Substitutions
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A couple facts about cashews, such a useful and versatile ingredient, especially in vegan cooking!

Is a cashew a fruit?

Cashews are the nuts (seeds) extracted from the fruits of the cashew tree (also called anacardium or acajou tree).

How is a cashew grown?

Cashews are nuts (or seeds) that grow inside the cashew tree fruits.

Is cashew a legume?

No, cashews are not legumes, but nuts. They are rich in fibers, carbs, proteins and fats.

Ingredients

The ingredients for homemade cashew sauce are few and simple:

natural cashews, unsalted, they can be used raw, but I always prefer to blanch them for extra creaminess
gluten free plant based milk, best if neutral-flavored. I usually opt for rice milk
salt and pepper, to taste. Always add them a little at a time and taste as you go
seed or any neutral flavored oil
vinegar, I prefer apple cider one, but wine vinegar is ok too
lemon juice, for that nice tanginess
garlic, you can omit it if you don't really like (or can't eat it) but it does give that extra kick to the cashew cream sauce

Find all quantities in the recipe card below

bowls with ingredients for vegan cashew sauce

Instructions

Making this vegan cashew cheese sauce without nutritional yeast is SO easy and quick:

you can use raw cashews, but my advice is to blanch them a couple minutes to make them softer. So bring a small pot of water to a boiling, add the cashews and boil them for 3-4
drain the cashews, then add them and all the other ingredients to a blender and blend until creamy. Add salt and pepper a little bit at a time and adjust according to your liking
store in the fridge in an airtight container

Tips and Substitutions

I don't like / can't eat garlic, how can I replace it?

You can totally omit it, or substitute the garlic with onion powder.
Add it half teaspoon at a time and adjust to your liking.

What if the cashew cream is grainy?

Blended cashews can have a bit of grainy texture, that is why I prefer to soften them by blanching them first.
Anyway, if the sauce is too grainy, you can add a couple tablespoons of vegan milk and keep blending until it gets smoother.

What are some uses for this creamy cashew sauce?

This cashew sauce is incredibly versatile.
It is great for a pasta sauce, on rice bowls or buddha bowls.
It is a delicious dressing for veggies, salad, tacos and these gluten free tortillas too.
And if you want to use it as a dipping sauce, try it with these baked veggie tots!

How about using this vegan cashew cheese sauce in lasagna and bakes?

Absolutely and it makes them extra tasty! I love to add it to my gluten free lasagna, to these pesto crepes lasagna and this veggie casserole! YUM!

And on pizza?

It sure makes it more flavorful. And if you are looking for a gluten free pizza crust just as quick to make as this cashew sauce, check out this yeast free pizza base!

Can I make cashew cream quiche with this recipe?

Well, not exactly this recipe, but you can check out my gluten free vegan quiche, soy free and made with cashews.

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Ciao!
Sonia

📖 Full Recipe