This is a recipe for a quick and easy homemade vegan Cheese Sauce. Give this Nooch Cheese Sauce (made with Nutritional Yeast) a try because it’s perfect for lasagne, pizza, mac & cheese or as a dip for tortilla chips! It’s also nut-free and you don’t need a blender!
This is a recipe for a basic Nooch Cheese Sauce. I make this cheese sauce quite often and use it mostly for lasagne, pizza, as a dip for tortilla chips or for mac and cheese.
It’s really simple to make and it comes together quite fast – it will only take about 10 to 15 minutes. Then get your tortilla chips ready because it’s dipping time!
I love this cheese sauce because it’s
- vegan (and therefore dairy-free and lactose-free)
- without nuts (my wallet says thanks!)
- super quick to make
- made with only a handful of ingredients (I always have these at home!)
- so versatile! Lasagna, pizza, mac & cheese, or as a dip are my favorite uses for the sauce!
- ooey-gooey and stretchy
When I started following a vegan diet in 2012 supermarkets didn’t offer any vegan cheeses. So making vegan cheese at home was the only way to go. I have been making this cheese sauce countless times!
Now, there all kinds of vegan cheeses in the stores and I really enjoy trying these new products, however, I still make this cheese sauce a lot because it’s my favorite for pizza and lasagna – I love it!
But wait… What is Nooch?
Nooch is short for nutritional yeast. Nutritional yeast is deactivated yeast and can be bought in the form of powder or flakes.
It is often used for vegan sauces because of its super cheesy taste. Nutritional yeast is something that should not be missed in a vegan household. It’s one of my secret (but not so secret) ingredients for vegan cooking.
How to make Vegan Cheese Sauce with Nutritional Yeast (Nooch)
The Ingredients for the Nooch Cheese Sauce
The ingredients you’ll need are rather basic. You probably have them at home already!
- coconut oil or vegan butter – both will work just fine
- all-purpose flour – makes the cheese stretchy
- spices – I used salt, paprika powder, curry powder, ground pepper, and garlic powder (but feel free to experiment with different spices!)
- nutritional yeast flakes – adds the cheesy flavor!
- water
Most vegan cheese recipes use nuts (oftentimes cashews or almonds). This one doesn’t. So if you’re allergic to nuts (or you don’t want to spend all that $$ on expensive nuts), this sauce is for you!
Step by Step Instructions
This is the process of making the cheese sauce! Basically, it’s like you would make a Bechamel Sauce – but with a cheesy twist!
Step 1: Melt the vegan butter or coconut oil in a pot. Add the spices. Whisk.
Step 2: Add the flour. Whisk.
Step 3: Add the nutritional yeast. Whisk.
Step 4: Add the water. Stir until smooth and creamy.
Tip: If you don’t use the sauce immediately, it will thicken up quite a bit. Add a bit more water and whisk again. Then it’s good as new!
This vegan cheese sauce is ooey gooey and stretchy. Perfect!
My favorite uses for this vegan Cheese Sauce
More Vegan Cheese Recipes
I hope you love this ‘cheesy’ sauce as much as I do! Let me know if you give it a try!
Cheers, Bianca
Nooch Cheese Sauce
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil or vegan butter e.g. EarthBalance, Alsan,...
- 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon curry powder
- 1/4 teaspoon paprika powder
- ground pepper
- 1 pinch garlic powder
- 1/3 cup nutritional yeast
- 1/2 cup water
Instructions
- Heat the coconut oil or butter in a small pot on low heat.
- Add the salt, pepper, paprika powder, curry powder & garlic powder.
- Add in the flour and whisk.
- Add nutritional yeast, whisk again until clumpy.
- Add the water and whisk on low heat for a few minutes. If it gets too thick you can add a little bit more water and whisk again.
- Use it as a dip, pour it over some lasagne or pizza or whatever you like. Enjoy!
Video
Notes
Nutrition
This post was first published in July 2017. Updated in February 2019.
Melissa
Friday 18th of September 2020
This was great to use as a base recipe! I swapped oat milk for the water and added 1 tbsp of marmite to add depth and it was absolutely delicious.
Cedar
Tuesday 28th of July 2020
I've been making this recipe for years and I've used it for many different things. Mine never looks like the texture of the original but that isn't that big of a deal for me. Great recipe and has saved the day when I have nothing else in the fridge. Recently made some bulgur cheesesteak filled buns with this and it turned out great, love this recipe and is a staple in my house!!!!!
Judy
Wednesday 10th of June 2020
An experience with freezing this?
Teresa
Sunday 26th of April 2020
I've stopped eating dairy about 6 months ago and desperately miss cheese. I stumbled across your recipe this afternoon and decided to try it. I didn't have curry, but made it anyway. It is delicious and soothed my cheese craving. Thank you!
leigha
Friday 24th of April 2020
Really good if you like the taste of flour.