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close-up of vegan cheddar cheese with crackers and grapes
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Vegan Cheddar Cheese Recipe

How to make vegan cheddar cheese in under 20 minutes (not including chill time) with no nuts. It’s creamy, rich, salty, savory, tangy, sharp, and cheesy, and you can slice and shred it!
Course Appetizer, cheese
Cuisine England
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 5 minutes
Total Time 20 minutes
Servings 8

Ingredients

Instructions

  • You can watch the video in the post for visual instructions.
    Grease the inside of a small/medium bowl or container of choice (mine measures 5.5 x 3 inches / 14 x 7.5 cm) with a neutral oil and set aside.
  • Add all ingredients (except the olive brine and tapioca flour) to a blender and blend until completely smooth.
  • Transfer the mixture to a saucepan and bring it to a simmer over medium heat, stirring frequently. Once it simmers, set your timer to 4 minutes. Let it simmer over low heat and stir occasionally as it gets pretty thick.
  • In a small bowl, mix the olive brine with tapioca flour. It's important that the juice is not cold (otherwise, it will make the cheese sauce set partially). Add the mixture to the saucepan and stir with a whisk.
  • Continue to simmer for 1 minute, it will thicken even more, so I recommend stirring frequently. Then immediately pour the cheese sauce into the prepared bowl (it hardens fast, so try to be quick) and press it down with a spatula.
  • Let it cool until the bowl is just slightly warm, not hot, then refrigerate for at least 2-3 hours (or overnight) until set. Enjoy with crackers!

Notes

  • Milk: I recommend using canned coconut milk (mine has 17% fat). Shake the can and use everything (the creamy part and the water, if separated). If you are afraid of any coconut flavor (I didn't notice any), you could use a different plant-based milk and add 4 tablespoons of refined coconut oil. The refined coconut oil doesn't have any coconut flavor at all.
  • Agar powder: It's important to use 100% pure agar powder (I use the NOW Foods brand). Note: You could experiment with Kappa Carrageenan instead of agar agar. The difference will be that you need to use less (just 1 1/2 tablespoon instead of 2), plus you don't have to cook it for 5 minutes. Just heat it with all other ingredients and simmer for max. 1 minute.
  • Olive brine: It adds flavor and tang, similar to dairy-cheese. Alternatively, use other pickling brine, such as sauerkraut juice, or water combined with 2 tsp lemon juice/ apple cider vinegar.
  • Tapioca flour: You can use arrowroot flour instead. It will add a little stretch to the vegan cheese if you melt it (on pizza or toast). The vegan cheese melts just slightly. If you want it to melt more, choose Kappa Carrageenan, as it does yield a better result. Also, if you choose a brand of coconut milk with more fat, it will melt better.
  • I recommend freezing it for 10-15 minutes before you shred it.
Nutrition Facts
Vegan Cheddar Cheese Recipe
Amount per Serving
Calories
119
% Daily Value*
Fat
 
9
g
14
%
Saturated Fat
 
5
g
25
%
Sodium
 
303
mg
13
%
Potassium
 
206
mg
6
%
Carbohydrates
 
7
g
2
%
Fiber
 
2
g
8
%
Sugar
 
1
g
1
%
Protein
 
4
g
8
%
Vitamin A
 
121
IU
2
%
Vitamin C
 
3
mg
4
%
Calcium
 
16
mg
2
%
Iron
 
1
mg
6
%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.