This is the best vegan queso recipe ever, and I will challenge you to a duel to prove it! ⚔ Well, maybe I’ll just make this vegan queso for you instead… My child needs me to live! But one bite, and you’ll be convinced. With rich cashew cream, bright green chiles, and spicy jalapenos, you’ll fall in love with this vegan queso and finally get nachos into the weekly dinner rotation. This recipe is a paleo queso blanco, too, so long as you don’t mind potatoes. Comes together easily with a high-speed blender like a Vitamix.
To claim that I don’t speak in hyperbole would be something of a hyperbole itself. I’m so freaking enthusiastic about things most of the time, that subtlety is not my strong suit. That said, I try to keep superlatives out of my recipe titles unless they’re absolutely, totally justified.
Enter… the best vegan queso blanco. Only because the “best damn vegan queso” isn’t uh, super SEO-friendly. Just being honest, y’all. ?
I’ve been making dairy-free cheese dip for years, and we’ve made this vegan nacho cheese dip more times than I could count. But this vegan queso blanco recipe kind of took my breath away. One, singular bite was loaded with so much promise: visions of weekly nacho nights flashed before my eyes! And I might have groaned with delight.
Don’t judge; you’ll do it, too. Pinky promise.
We ate it two ways over the next few days: first, with paleo Instant Pot carnitas, guacamole, and pico de gallo. The next? With medium-rare steak tossed with fresh chimichurri and smashed avocado. Epic, indulgent, yet… healthy? ?⚔????
All. The. Things.
The reason I call this the best vegan queso is because some paleo-ers have beef (yeah…) with white potatoes. I personally find white potatoes unoffensive, and we don’t eat them all that often. In this recipe, they’re paired with a fairly significant quantity of cashews, which are a decent source of fat. Paired together, the cashews can help offset the glycemic load of the white potato. And also? There’s only 1 cup of white potato per batch of this paleo queso blanco recipe, which easily serves 4-6 as a main course (with nachos, not like… soup). All that to say this: if you’re super, super strictly paleo, the inclusion of the white potato here is probably a no-go for you. Try 1 cup of steamed, mashed cauliflower instead! If you’re not super, super strict about tubers? Consider this the best paleo queso recipe as is. Huzzah!
If you don’t have a Vitamix, I don’t really know what you’re waiting for? This thing is LIFE-CHANGING, y’all. You should get one.
Stay tuned for some awesome ways to use this dairy-free queso soon! Make sure you’re subscribed so you don’t miss the awesomeness coming soon!
Best Vegan Queso Blanco (Paleo Queso Blanco)
Well, maybe I'll just make these vegan queso for you instead... My child needs me to live! But one bite, and you'll be convinced. With rich cashew cream, bright green chiles, and spicy jalapenos, you'll fall in love with this vegan queso and finally get nachos into the weekly dinner rotation. This recipe is a paleo queso blanco, too, so long as you don't mind potatoes. Ingredients
- 1 cup boiled potato about 2 medium yellow or red potatoes, see note for strict paleo diets
- 4 garlic cloves peeled
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 3/4 cup raw cashews soaked overnight if not using a high-speed blender like a Vitamix
- 1 cup vegetable or chicken broth
- 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
- 1 cup coconut milk unsweetened, full fat
- 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 jalapeno juice
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1-2 teaspoons salt
- fresh cilantro chopped, if desired for garnish
Instructions
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Combine everything except for 1/4 cup chopped pickled jalapeños in a high-speed blender like a Vitamix. Start with 1 teaspoon salt. Blend until very smooth.
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Transfer mixture to saucepan and put on the stove over medium-low heat. Add 1/4 cup chopped pickled jalapeños. Heat until desired consistency, stirring constantly so as not to burn the bottom. Taste and add extra salt if desired.
Recipe Notes
If on a strict paleo diet or if you must avoid nightshade, swap the 1 cup white potato for 1 cup mashed, steamed cauliflower.
Keep leftover in an airtight container in the fridge about 5 days. When reheating, add unsweetened almond milk, if desired, to thin to desired consistency.
Oh my!!! I can’t wait to make this!!! The ‘rents are vegan & I like to make little snacks for them when they come visit.
Oh, they’ll love it! The perfect snack for sure. I can’t wait to hear how you like it!
The best damn queso blanco….haha! Damn SEO…
I’ve never done anything with cashew cream before but this has me totally wanting to!
Ha! Right?! SEO always cramping my style. I can’t believe you haven’t worked with cashew cream before! You’ll fall in love ❤️
Yum! Looks delicious. Love the Mexican flair
Thanks Megan! Mexican everything all the time = my life ?
I’ve been wanting to try a vegan queso!! Yum!!
The best part… you can eat a whole batch totally guilt free! ?
This dip looks amazing!! My husband can’t have cashews right now, but I plan on trying it as soon as he can. Yum!!
I promise you’ll love it, Jessica! Let me know how you like it as soon as hubby is cashew-approved 🙂
Can you use any type of non-dairy milk instead of coconut milk?
It would still work, it just wouldn’t be as rich. You might be able to counteract that by adding a little less milk, a little oil or fat, etc. I personally would recommend the canned coconut milk, and it doesn’t give it a coconutty taste at all. But if you can’t have it, it’s still doable!
Do you leave the skins on the potatoes ?
I would peel them if you’re using Russett or red potatoes. If you’re using yellow/Yukon, I personally would leave them on, especially if you have a high-speed blender
How is chicken broth vegan ?
The recipe offers the option of either vegetable or chicken broth. The title of the recipe states it has a paleo option, hence the chicken broth, just like when I offer a vegan option to a paleo recipe 🙂
I am wondering what that beautiful brown chip is – It looks like something
I could go for whole30 or no.
Those are my very favorite Red Hot Blues from Garden of Eatin’! They’re unfortunately not Whole30 OR paleo since they’re corn, but they’re organic so we like to splurge on them here and there 🙂
http://amzn.to/2zsqYam
For a Whole30-compliant option, you could make some sweet potato chips or plantain chips at home! Mmmm
THANK YOU! 12th day of Whole30 and my family is so impressed with this recipe!
That makes me so happy! Family-approved queso-free queso! 😍 What did you eat it with/on?
Can you taste the coconut milk? also is there a way to substitute it out? Thanks
You can’t! I would not substitute it if you don’t have an allergy. It adds a lovely velvety richness to the queso. I just made it yesterday and no coconut taste to me at all. Make sure you use canned coconut milk, and I prefer the Kroger and Sprouts brands. I find that a couple I get at the international markets taste really “coconutty”
I just got finished making this and doubted it every step of the way. I thought it would be edible at best or end up down the sink at worst. How elated am I that I was wrong!!!! My kids didn’t even believe I made it—they thought I had picked it up at a restaurant. Sooooo good. Thank you from the bottom of my empty quest bowl!
Ha!! I’m so so so glad you love it, and that it beat your expectations! It does sound totally like it won’t work, but it somehow really does! <3
Oh wow this looks so decadent and tasty!!!
It is definitely both of things!! 😀