This vegan cashew queso is cheesy, creamy, and the perfect dip. Healthy, delicious and dairy free!

This queso is perfect as a dip. I serve it with corn tortillas, pita chips, and veggies like carrots, red peppers, and cucumbers.

For nachos, drizzle over tortilla chips, and garnish with your favorite toppings, like tomatoes, chopped jalapeños, chopped peppers, and black olives.

Don’t let the long list of ingredients in this vegan cheese sauce recipe turn you off! This recipe comes together fairly quickly.

Can you freeze this vegan queso?

This vegan queso freezes well! To serve, simple defrost in the microwave on low until warm.

How long will this store in the fridge?

Keep leftovers in the fridge for up to four days. Just reheat this non dairy vegan nacho cheese dip in the microwave, stirring frequently, until warm.

Do I need a high speed blender?

No, you can blend this using an immersion blender in the the saucepan instead. It won’t be quite as smooth and creamy as in a high speed blender.

You can also use a food processer to blend the mixture. It will be a little less smooth than with a high speed blender.

Grocery list

Here’s what you’ll need to make this cashew based vegan cheese sauce.

• extra virgin olive oil
• medium yellow onion
• potato
• garlic
• raw cashews
• nutritional yeast
• sun dried tomatoes
• pickled jalapeños
• white vinegar
• hot sauce
• chunky salsa

You’ll also need these spices: paprika, turmeric, chili powder, cumin onion powder, garlic powder, and salt.

How to make creamy vegan cashew queso

This is not the quickest vegan queso recipe. I wanted to make the cheesiest, best vegan queso recipe around, do I experimented and took my time. The result was this warm, creamy, dairy-free vegan cheese sauce. It’s well worth the effort!

Soak cashews for half an hour. Rinse and drain.

Cook onion on medium high in olive oil. Add garlic and spices, and stir. Add potatoes and cook for 2 minutes.

Add soaked cashews and water, and cook for 10 minutes, or until potatoes are tender.

Add mixture to a high speed blender.

Add nutritional yeast, hot sauce, sun dried tomatoes, and white vinegar to blender. Blend on high until smooth, or about 3 minutes. If the sauce is too thick to blend easily, add water 2 tablespoons at a time, until blended.

Pour the sauce into the saucepan. Add salsa and jalapeños. Cook over medium, stirring constantly, until warm.

More delicious dip recipes

If you’re in the mood for a cheesy, creamy artichoke dip, try this hot asiago artichoke dip with spinach, served with pita chips, carrots, and sweet red peppers. So good!

This easy cold layered taco dip is one of Pinterest’s favorites!

This homemade chunky salsa for canning is one of our family’s must-make recipes every season when the garden is ready!

Continue to Content

Dairy Free Vegan Cashew Queso

Yield: 4 cups

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 35 minutes

The best vegan queso recipe, made creamy with cashew and potato, and packed with plenty of cheesy flavor. Makes 4 cups of dairy free queso.

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Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 medium yellow onion, chopped finely
• 2 cups peeled and grated potato
• 4 cloves minced garlic
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
• 1/2 teaspoon ground chili powder
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup raw cashews, soaked for 30 minutes
• 1 3/4 cups water
• 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
• 4 tablespoons sun-dried tomatoes
• 2 teaspoons hot sauce (I used Frank’s hot sauce)
• 1 teaspoon white vinegar
• 2/3 cup chunky salsa
• 2 tablespoons chopped pickled jalapeños
• Optional toppings: chopped fresh parsley, chopped fresh tomatoes, chopped fresh cilantro, chopped jalapeños

Instructions

1. Soak cashews in hot water for 1/2 hour, drain, and rinse well.
2. Cook onion in olive oil in a large saucepan on medium heat until translucent, or about 6 minutes.
3. Add the grated potato and garlic and cook 2 minutes.
4. Add paprika, turmeric, chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, onion powder and salt, and stir to combine. Stir constantly, for 1 to 2 minutes to enhance their flavors.
5. Add cashews and water, and stir. Simmer for about 10 minutes until potatoes are tender.
6. Add mixture to high speed blender. Set the saucepan aside; you’ll use it later.
7. Add nutritional yeast, hot sauce, sun dried tomatoes, and white vinegar. Blend on high until smooth, or about 3 minutes. If the sauce is too thick to blend easily, add water 2 tablespoons at a time, until blended.
8. Pour the sauce into the saucepan. Add salsa and jalapeños. Cook over medium, stirring constantly, until warm.

Notes

If your queso is too thick, just thin with a little bit of water.

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 10 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 159Total Fat: 9gSaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 7gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 401mgCarbohydrates: 17gFiber: 3gSugar: 3gProtein: 6g

All information and tools presented and written within this site are intended for informational purposes only. I am not a certified nutritionist and any nutritional information should only be used as a general guideline.