Best Vegan Queso (Ever)
Posted: 05/20/19
Updated: 01/13/22
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
This is the best vegan queso recipe EVER. Ready to eat in less than 10 minutes, it tastes so much like the real thing you won’t believe it! Rich cashew cream, a little potato, and a touch of nutritional yeast blend together with traditional Mexican flavors for a dairy-free vegan queso you’ll fall in love with. It’s paleo, Whole30, and low-carb friendly, too!
What’s So Great About This Recipe
- It’s a foolproof copycat. Seriously, it tastes so much like real queso you might worry you’re actually eating dairy.
- It’s really easy to make. A quick blend in a Vitamix gives you a smooth, hot dip that’s ready to eat in less than 10 minutes!
- It’s low-calorie and low-carb, which means you can eat as much as your heart really desires.
- It will keep in the refrigerator for up to 5 days, so you can make it ahead of an event or on meal prep Sundays. Store it in an airtight container, and add a little unsweetened almond milk when you reheat it if it’s too thick.
Vegan Queso Ingredients
Cashew Cream – The cashews and coconut milk blend into a rich, thick, indulgent cashew cream that really makes this recipe what it is. The flavor is subtle enough, though, that you don’t feel like you’re eating coconut cashew queso.
Nutritional Yeast – This deactivated yeast is what creates the cheesy flavor of this queso, so don’t skip it, unless you just have to.
How to Make the Best Vegan Queso (Ever)
The full recipe & ingredients list are below, but here you’ll find a quick overview for making this recipe perfectly, along with useful tips and info!
Whipping up this queso is so easy, you’ll feel like you’re missing a step.
Combine everything except for the chopped pickled jalapeños and the can of tomatoes and chiles (aka Rotel) in a high-speed blender, and blend until it’s very, very smooth. I blend mine in a Vitamix long enough that it heats up, but if yours doesn’t, you’ll need to transfer the queso to a saucepan and heat it up on the stove.
Stir in jalapeños and Rotel, then garnish with cilantro and serve with your favorite tortilla chips!
Chef’s Tips
- Tapioca starch is an optional ingredient in this recipe, so don’t worry if you don’t have it. It does make a difference, though. It gives this queso a gooier texture than other vegan queso recipes, making it more like real queso.
- If you don’t have a high-speed blender (like a Vitamix) that’s okay! You’ll just need to soak your cashews overnight in hot water to help them blend more easily. Simply pour hot water over the cashews and let them sit – don’t worry about changing out the water after it cools off. After blending, you’ll need to transfer the queso to a saucepan and heat it through over medium-low heat.
- If you don’t want to use coconut milk, you can leave it out! Increase the cashews to a total of 1.5 cups and use 1.75 cups of water or stock to make up for it.
- For vegan queso blanco, leave out the turmeric and the can of tomatoes and chiles. Still use the small can of green chiles, though!
More Vegan Recipes You’ll Love
- The Best Vegan Alfredo Sauce
- Vegan Chili
- Vegan Nutella
- Quick Creamy Vegan Coconut Chickpea Curry
- Vegan Crème Brûlée
- Vegan Enchiladas
Best Vegan Queso (Ever)
The best vegan queso recipe ever, it tastes so much like the real thing! Made with potatoes, cashews, and nutritional yeast, this magical combination does not taste dairy-free, paleo, or vegan – but it is!
servings
Ingredients
- 1 cup boiled potato about 2 medium yellow or red potatoes, see note for Paleo
- 4 garlic cloves peeled
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ¾ cup raw cashews soaked overnight if not using a high-speed blender
- 1 cup vegetable broth see Note if not vegan
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1 cup coconut milk unsweetened, full fat, from a can
- 1 4-ounce can chopped mild chiles
- 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
- 1 4-ounce can chopped pickled jalapeños divided and drained (reserve juice)
- 1 tablespoon pickled jalapeño juice
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon tapioca starch optional
- 1 dash turmeric optional, for color
- 1-2 teaspoons salt
- 1 can tomatoes and green chiles like Rotel, drained, optional
- fresh cilantro chopped, for garnish, optional
Equipment
- high-speed blender
Instructions
- Combine everything in a high-speed blender, excluding ¼ cup chopped pickled jalapeños and can of tomatoes and chiles. Start with 1 teaspoon salt. Blend until very smooth.
- If blender does not heat mixture, transfer to a saucepan and heat on the stove over medium-low heat. Heat until desired consistency, stirring constantly to prevent burning.
- Add extra salt if desired. Pour queso into serving bowl and stir in pickled jalapeños and drained can of tomatoes and chiles. Garnish and serve.
Notes
- If you’re not strictly vegan, you can use chicken broth instead of vegetable broth if you want.
- Make it Paleo: If you’re on a strict Paleo diet, or if you must avoid nightshade, swap the potatoes for 1 cup mashed, steamed cauliflower.
- Refrigerate: Store leftover queso in an airtight container in the fridge up to 5 days.
- Reheat: Add unsweetened almond milk if the consistency of the queso is too thick. Reheat on the stovetop or in the microwave until just heated through.
Video
Nutrition Information
Serving: 1serving, Calories: 111kcal, Carbohydrates: 9g, Protein: 3g, Fat: 8g, Saturated Fat: 4g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g, Monounsaturated Fat: 2g, Sodium: 311mg, Potassium: 271mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 2g, Vitamin A: 88IU, Vitamin C: 9mg, Calcium: 23mg, Iron: 2mg, Net Carbs: 8g
Number of total servings shown is approximate. Actual number of servings will depend on your preferred portion sizes.
Nutritional values shown are general guidelines and reflect information for 1 serving using the ingredients listed, not including any optional ingredients. Actual macros may vary slightly depending on specific brands and types of ingredients used.
To determine the weight of one serving, prepare the recipe as instructed. Weigh the finished recipe, then divide the weight of the finished recipe (not including the weight of the container the food is in) by the desired number of servings. Result will be the weight of one serving.
Has anyone made without nutritional yeast or would there be a substitute?
We haven’t tested this swap, but theoretically you could substitute with liquid aminos. However, we haven’t tested this, and we recommend sticking with the recipe as written, if possible.
Really awful. Way better vegan queso recipes out there. I double checked measurements and used all ingredients. Threw out. Could not be saved due to the overwhelming coconut milk taste. Nothing queso about it at all.
Shannon, we’re sorry you had this experience with our recipe. We strive to create recipes that are heavily tested and easy to make at home. We certainly did not have this experience, but regardless, thanks for sharing your feedback.
This was delicious but I could still taste the coconut. I’ll try a different milk next time, but otherwise it’s superb! I also put1/2 tsp kappa carrageenan once it was super hot to give it a cheesier stickiness.
Glad you enjoyed it!
We are allergic to cashews. Wondering if you have tried with Sunflower Seeds? Most of the cream sauces I have done I use sunflower seeds and it tastes amazing.
We haven’t, but sunflower seeds are oily like cashews, so it may work. If you try it, let us know how it turns out!
Did you try it without the nuts? My kids are allergic to dairy and tree nuts, so I’d love to find a good alternative to cashews!
My son is dairy free and hesitates eating the purchased versions of dairy free dips and such because he likes to be able to pronounce the ingredients. I made this and served it before a family dinner and it was completely devoured! Great recipe! It’s a keeper for sure!
This is so awesome, Mary! Thanks for sharing. This is exactly what we strive for with our recipes. Healthier homemade versions of restaurant or store-bought favorites may require a but more work, but it always worth it!
This is such a great recipe! I’m not vegan or vegetarian, but I am trying to minimize my dairy intake so I’ve been looking all over for great vegan dishes to make. I love queso, and with this recipe you do not miss the dairy at all! I was shocked at how good this was. I made it for some family friends who are the furthest thing from vegan, and they did not notice there was no cheese in this “queso” until I told them. It’s so easy to make, keeps for plenty of time in the fridge, and you don’t feel icky or overly full after eating it like you might if you had eaten a similar dip made from cheese. I didn’t have pickled jalapeños so I just used regular jalapeños from a jar, diced them up small, and did a little bit less than the recipe called for. I enjoy a bit of heat so this was nice for me. Next time I will try it with the pickled jalapeños though to see how the recipe is actually meant to taste! The only thing I would ask is what the serving size is? It says there are 12 servings in a batch, and 91 cals per serving, but what is the weight in ounces or grams of a serving? I’m hoping somebody knows, because I didn’t weigh the batch after I made it so I have no idea.
I don’t think I saw a bad review on this so I was excited to try this recipe and it did not disappoint at all. I used it in our vegan breakfast burritos over the weekend and today mixed it with some noodles to make a “mac and cheese”. It is fantastic, great flavors, great texture and creamy. I do agree to make it ahead of time and let it sit at least 6 hours or more if you like a thicker style queso. I am so happy I found this recipe and I will be using it again and for everything I can imagine!
Sounds delicious, glad you enjoyed it! Thank you for the awesome review 🙂
It was really good and I really enjoyed it. If you are making for picky kid’s use oat milk instead of coconut milk so there isn’t the coconut flavor. It was off putting up my kids 🤦🏻♀️ But not to me. The texture was perfect and flavor great.
The taste is amazing! I don’t have a vita mix so this is more hummus than queso. Any tips to make this smoother without a vita mix? I soaked the cashews overnight. Any other thoughts? I’m hoping to serve to guests and want to nail this. Thank you!
I’m looking forward to making/tasting this recipe. I’m paleo so I will try it with the cauliflower instead of potato.
Stacy, if you’d like a smoother cashew sauce try boiling your cashews for about 15-30 minutes after they soak. This makes them soft and makes the texture silky smooth! I discovered this making cashew Alfredo sauce. I use a nutra-ninja.
This is the mic drop of vegan queso. It was so dang good. Thank you!!
Thank you for the great review!
Can this be made in advance (3 days) and kept in fridge then reheated in a dip sized slow cooker? Or will it break/separate etc or is best just served freshly made?…
Sure, that would work! Just make sure to add some unsweetened almond milk if the consistency is too thick. 🙂
Sheila Crain asks:. Can I use almond milk instead of coconut?
Milaca MN
srcrain7@gmail.com
Hi! It may not be as thick as it would be with the full-fat coconut milk. You could try substituting unsweetened cashew cream or oat milk!