Vegan Queso (Without Cashews)
This vegan queso is a dairy and nut-free alternative that tastes like the real deal! It’s veggie-packed and perfect for dipping with chips.
Queso is one of those things that everyone loves! Well… everyone who eats dairy. If you don’t eat dairy and you have to be around some chips and queso, you’ll probably feel pretty sad.
I decided it was finally time to make this dairy-free queso dip free of cheese, nuts, and nightshades! So grab some game day food like honey garlic chicken wings, and apple bacon guacamole and enjoy the comforting vibes.
It’s made with vegetables, nutritional yeast, and more to create a thick, creamy, and cheesey-tasting dish that you will love dunking chips into!
Table of contents
Why you’ll love this vegan queso
- It’s cashew-free. Most dairy free cheese alternatives have cashews, which is complicated if you’re both nut-free and dairy free. This version is veggie based instead of cashew based!
- It’s nightshade-free. Queso is almost always going to have some kind of nightshade spice or vegetable (check out this nightshade food list if you’re unfamiliar with nightshades), and being nightshade free, I knew I had to make my own recipe nightshade intolerance friendly!
- Veggie packed. This queso is packed with veggies instead of nuts!
Recipe Ingredients
- Sweet potato. I prefer to use a white sweet potato like Japanese sweet potato because they’re less starchy, and less sweet than orange sweet potato. If you can’t find white sweet potato, orange will also work, but the queso will be sweeter.
- Butternut squash
- Broth & coconut milk. Canned coconut milk in particular has the creamy texture needed for this recipe!
Substitutions & Modifications
- Broth. If you’re only dairy-free and not vegan, you can use chicken broth instead of veggie broth!
- Oat milk. Oat milk is the next best option if you can tolerate grains but not coconut.
- Nutritional yeast. Nutritional yeast is a key ingredient in giving that cheesy flavor. You technically can leave it out, but keep in mind that it will taste less cheesy.
- Chili powder or jalapeno. I’m nightshade-free and avoid these ingredients and decided to make this recipe AIP as well (check my AIP diet food list), but my husband loves adding chili powder to this recipe to give it a kick! You can also add diced jalapeno on top or canned jalapeno to the actual base of the recipe.
How to make Vegan Queso
Here are the simple steps, with photos, to make this recipe. Find full instructions in the recipe card.
Step one. Saute the veggies until tender.
Step two. Add the liquids and nutritional yeast. Bring to a boil and reduce to a simmer.
Step three. Allow to simmer until tender. Add arrowroot starch slurry to thicken.
Step four. Allow to cool slightly before blending until smooth!
Tips & Tricks
- Use a high-speed blender. You technically can use a hand immersion blender, but a high-speed blender will yield a much creamier final product.
- Season to taste. Every broth will have it’s own flavor profile and be more or less salty, so be sure you taste your queso and salt further if needed!
Storage & reheating instructions
Store this vegan queso in the fridge in a glass container for 3-4 days, and reheat it on the stove. You can also freeze the queso for 1-2 months.
Recipe FAQS
Canned full fat coconut milk is by far the best option in my opinion as it’s super thick and creamy! Oat milk would be another good option.
I alway suggest adding nutritional yeast to vegan cheeses for that cheesy flavor. However, you can leave it out if needed. Just be aware that it will miss that cheesy flavor.
Other dairy-free cheese recipes…
If you tried this Vegan Queso without cashews or any other recipe on my blog please leave a 🌟 star rating and let me know how it went in the 📝 comments below. Thanks for visiting!
Vegan Queso (Without Cashews)
Ingredients
- 2 tbsp avocado oil
- ½ yellow onion, diced
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 cup sweet potato, chopped (see notes for sweet potato varieties)
- 1 ¼ cup butternut squash, cubed
- 1 cup broth
- ½ cup coconut milk
- 3 tbsp nutritional yeast
- 1 tsp sea salt
- ⅓ tsp black pepper, omit for AIP
- ¼ tsp turmeric
- 2 tsp arrowroot starch
For topping
- ½ red onion, diced
- 2 tbsp cilantro
Instructions
- Using a medium-sized pot, heat the avocado oil over medium heat.
- Add the onion and garlic and saute for 4-5 minutes or until the onion is translucent. Add in the sweet potato and butternut squash and saute for another 5 minutes or until lightly fork tender.
- Pour in the broth, coconut milk, nutritional yeast, turmeric, salt, and pepper, and stir well to combine. Bring to a low simmer and reduce the heat to medium-low. Cover the pot and allow to simmer for 15 minutes. The vegetables should be fork-tender. Reduce the heat.
- Add the arrowroot starch with about 1 tbsp of water or broth to the pot. Stir well to lightly thicken the broth before removing from the heat.
- Allow the mixture to cool slightly before blending in a blender until creamy.
- Serve the queso topped with optional toppings and with chips like plantain chips.
Can you use Japanese white sweet potato in place of Hannah? I can’t find at my store. Will it change the flavor much? Thank you! Being from Texas as well I really miss my QUESO!
It’ll be a bit sweeter, but you can try to offset it by seasoning with more garlic or nutritional yeast to taste 🙂 Enjoy!
I’m bummed. This doesn’t taste like queso at all for me. I wonder what I did wrong? I used the white sweet potato as suggested. It taste like it could be a good soup base maybe but not cheese 🙁
Sorry it didn’t turn out, Heather! The cheesy flavor comes from the nutritional yeast, so adding more of that to your own taste can help for sure.
Sorry about my last question about reheating. I just saw you already answered it!! 🙂
This is fantastic! Can it be frozen?
I haven’t tried, but let me know if you do 🙂
Looking to make this for a taco party this weekend. I’m on an elimination diet for Hoshimoto’s and a lot of my guests have allergies—hoping this will be a great addition to the menu! I was wondering if this could be made in advance and warmed up before serving?
You can probably do that! I would keep all of the topping separate and warm it on the stove 🙂
I haven’t eaten any dairy in over 2 years and this recipe was everything I could have ever hoped for! So delicious. I like to serve with taco meat, red onions and cilantro with Siete grain free chips or plantain chips!
This recipe is SO GOOD! I don’t remember the last time I had cheese or queso and this was just like old times!!! I love that it is made without nuts! The only ingredient I excluded was the nutritional yeast. I made it yesterday and brought it up to the mountains for a yummy fall family treat Thank you!!!!
Thank you so much Katie!! So glad you liked it!
I have never seen a dairy free quest before, this looks awesome.
Where do you find white sweet potatoes? None of my local grocery stores up in New England seem to have them
I find them at Whole Foods, but they can be hard to find sometimes. Orange works, it’s just sweeter…
I can find them only in the organic section of my grocery store. You can look for Japanese Sweet Potatoes; they are more of a purple hue on the outside.
Can this recipe be refrigerated and reheated? Thanks!!
Thanks for sharing! I wouldn’t have thought to blend the butternut squash and nutritional yeast flavors!
This looks so good! What a yummy healthy alternative to offer guests!
Aaaammmmaaazzzing! So delicious! I have been dairy-free a lot longer than I’ve been AIP and used to make a version with cashews and all the night shades. I thought I would never have a cheese-like dip again. I was wrong. Thank you Michelle!
I just made this and was surprised how much like cheese sauce it takes. I had roasted sweet potato and roasted butternut squash from my latest batch cook so I just added the rest of the ingredients and blended. Yum. I’ll make again for sure.
Yay!! So glad you liked it 🙂
Delicious! I didn’t have any chicken broth or coconut milk on hand, so I substituted water instead. Mine didn’t thicken like yours because I left out the arrowroot (intolerant :/), but the flavor is so good! I could totally use this as a cheesy soup base or just eat it by the spoonfuls like I have been doing ha! Thank you so much for a great recipe! This is a keeper. Just what I have been looking for 🙂
Saving!!! This Texan is super psyched.