The ultimate vegan grilled cheese sandwich that will make your mouth water! This recipe is 100% plant-based and contains simple ingredients. Homemade vegan cheese meets flavorful veggies and delicious sandwich bread. No cashews and no blender are needed for this quick vegan snack!
Easy & Quick Vegan Grilled Cheese
I am sure you know how much I love vegan cheese. Yes, I adore it. #cheeseaholic
So it’s no wonder I came up with this vegan grilled cheese sandwich recipe. And holy moly, I am glad I did! These sandwiches are homemade from scratch, you don’t need to buy store-bought cheese!
You might love this recipe as well because it is:
- The perfect vegan side dish and snack
- Hearty, cheesy, flavorful, comforting
- 100% plant-based, nut-free, and healthier than most grilled cheese sandwiches!
How To Make The Best Vegan Grilled Cheese?
Do you want to know how to make the best vegan grilled cheese sandwiches at home? Check out the following step-by-step photos and explanation below.
Cook the carrot
- Slice one large carrot lengthwise into strips (about 1/4 inch or 0.6 cm thick).
- Heat 1/2 tbsp oil in a skillet. Once hot, add the carrot slices. Sprinkle some salt on top.
- Add 4-5 tbsp of vegetable broth or water after a few minutes to avoid burning.
- Cook with a lid on over medium heat until tender, about 12-15 minutes (adding more broth/water if needed). Flip halfway through.
Spinach/onion mixture
- At the same time, heat 1/2 tbsp oil in a different pan and add the diced onion. Sauté for 4-5 minutes, or until nicely browned.
- Add all spices, soy sauce, balsamic vinegar, and spinach. Turn off the heat after 60 seconds and set the pan aside.
Assemble the sandwiches
- Drizzle 4 slices of bread from both sides with a little oil and sprinkle some garlic powder on top. Heat them up in a pan or on the grill for a few minutes.
- Prepare a batch of my vegan cheese sauce, or skip this step if you use store-bought vegan cheese.
- Top two slices of bread with a heaped tbsp of the vegan cheese sauce.
- Then add the spinach, onion mixture, followed by the carrot slices.
- Add another layer of vegan cheese sauce and finally, top with the other slice of bread.
- Cook on medium heat in a skillet or on the grill for 2-3 minutes, or until golden brown. Flip and cook for 2-3 minutes more, then remove from pan. Enjoy!
Use Your Favorite Veggies
I love carrots, especially when they are roasted or grilled. However, you can make these vegan grilled cheese sandwiches with different other veggies of choice. Some examples would be:
- Pumpkin/Squash
- Zucchini
- Sweet Potato
- Tomato
- Peppers
- You could also add cauliflower or broccoli
- Mushrooms are another great choice
Simple Ingredients
This recipe contains simple ingredients which you might already have at home. If not, they are easily available in most supermarkets.
- For the vegan cheese sauce, you’ll need coconut milk (or plant-based milk of choice), tapioca flour/starch, and nutritional yeast flakes.
- You can use regular sandwich bread or gluten-free bread. Just make sure it’s dairy-free!
- Spinach and carrot (or see other veggie examples above).
- A couple of condiments such as onion powder, garlic powder, soy sauce, etc.
If you don’t want to make the vegan cheese sauce, you can also use store-bought vegan cheese of choice (if you live in the United States, you can check out the brand “Follow Your Heart” or “Daiya”).
This Vegan Grilled Cheese Recipe is:
- Dairy-free
- Nut-Free (no cashews!)
- Gluten-free if you use gluten-free bread
- Plant-Based
- Hearty
- Satisfying
- Flavorful
- Comforting
- Healthier than most grilled cheese sandwiches
- Easy to make with simple ingredients
Should you give this recipe a try, please leave a comment below and don’t forget to tag me in your Instagram or Facebook post with @elavegan and #elavegan because I love to see your remakes and often share them in my Insta Stories!
If you like vegan cheese dishes, definitely also check out the following recipes:
- Black Bean Quesadillas
- Spinach Eggplant Quesadillas
- Cheesy Rice And Bean Casserole
- Vegan Calzone Recipe
- Crispy Spinach Tacos
- Healthy Vegan Mac And Cheese

Vegan Grilled Cheese Sandwich
Ingredients
- 1 large carrot
- 1 1/2 tbsp oil divided
- 4-5 tbsp vegetable broth or water
- 1 onion diced
- 1 batch (200 g) vegan cheese sauce or 7 oz store-bought vegan cheese
- 2 oz of (56 g) fresh baby spinach
- 4 slices of sandwich bread gluten-free if needed
- 1/2 tbsp soy sauce gluten-free if needed
- 1/2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1/2 tsp garlic powder
- 1/3 tsp smoked paprika
- 1/2 tsp Italian seasoning
- Sea salt and black pepper to taste
- Cayenne pepper optional
Instructions
- Check the easy step-by-step process shots in the blog post above.
Cook the carrot
- Slice one large carrot lengthwise into strips (about 1/4 inch or 0.6 cm thick).
- Heat 1/2 tbsp oil in a skillet. Once hot, add the carrot slices. Sprinkle some salt on top.
- Add 4-5 tbsp of vegetable broth or water after a few minutes to avoid burning.
- Cook with a lid on over medium heat until tender, about 12-15 minutes (adding more broth/water if needed). Flip halfway through.
Spinach/onion mixture
- At the same time, heat 1/2 tbsp oil in a different pan and add the diced onion. Sauté for 4-5 minutes, or until nicely browned.
- Add all spices, soy sauce, balsamic vinegar, and spinach. Turn off the heat after 60 seconds and set the pan aside.
Assemble the sandwiches
- Drizzle 4 slices of bread from both sides with a little oil and sprinkle some garlic powder on top. Heat them up in a pan or on the grill for a few minutes.
- Prepare a batch of my vegan cheese sauce or skip this step if you use store-bought vegan cheese.
- Top two slices of bread with a heaped tbsp of the vegan cheese sauce.
- Then add the spinach, onion mixture, followed by the carrot slices.
- Add another layer of vegan cheese sauce and finally, top with the other slice of bread.
- Cook on medium heat in a skillet or on the grill for 2-3 minutes, or until golden brown. Flip and cook for 2-3 minutes more, then remove from pan. Enjoy!
Notes
- Recipe serves 4. Nutrition facts are for one serving. Calculated with "Udi's GF Sandwich Bread" and my vegan cheese sauce.
Nutrition information is an estimate and has been calculated automatically
Just finished eating this!!!! The title for this recipe is perfect! It absolutely is the best grilled cheese sandwich!! I added kale and mushrooms instead! The cheese sauce was amazing! I usually use cashew milk, but the fatty coconut milk really made it creamy and savoury! Thank you so much for sharing your delicious food! Absolutely love your recipes! 💚
Aww, thank you, Kira. I am so glad you like my recipes. 🙂
Can you use extra creamy oat milk? Coconut allergy
You can try, but I would rather recommend creamy cashew milk.
OMG!!! I was looking for some hot vegan sandwitch recipe so I could make some nice food for my trip to Sweden. Found this recipe and decided to give it a try.
On the day of my flight I woke up at around 5am and started making the sandwitches. It took around one hour to prepare everything and I was thinking… fuuuuck… it’s taking so long… hope it’s gonna be at least fine… half asleep I was rushing to make it on time for my flight.
When I tasted the sandwiches later that day it just blew my mind!!! The best sandwiches ever!!! It was worth the time ???????????? Niammmyyy…
Aww, I am so glad you loved them, Jolita! Thanks for your feedback. 🙂
LOVE, LOVE, LOVE your recipes!!!! Was wondering for this recipe…….can you substitute Roasted Red Peppers for the carrots?? If so…….would you cook them with the Spinach/Onion mixture?? (They are already roasted/cooked) Thanks in advance for the help!! 🙂
Hello! I am so glad you like my recipes. Yes, I bet it would taste amazing. And I would cook them with the Spinach/Onion mixture. 🙂
Enjoy!
Hi!! I just want to know if you have a récipe book? I would buy It!!!
Hi Maria! Not yet but I am working on it. Thanks for your support. 🙂
Aww amazing!!! I’ve loved following your blog – your amazing recipes (many of which I’ve tried and loved!), beautiful photos and refreshing writing! I’m looking forward to your new cookbook – what an awesome work! Congratulations!
Such a great Recipe! Looks so delicious ?
Thank you, Bianca! I am glad you like it. 🙂
How do you make the cheese? How much of the ingredients do you use?
Hi Greg! This is the recipe: https://elavegan.com/easy-vegan-cheese-sauce-recipe/
Ela! Your instruction videos are so very helpful! And the flavors are wonderful, love how you use vegetable broth. Take care, Dee xx
Thanks so much, Dee! So happy you find the instruction photos helpful. It always takes very long to make them but if it’s helpful I will continue doing it. 🙂