This Vegan Mozzarella Cheese is creamy, plus it slices, shreds, and melts!
It takes only a few minutes and a blender to make this dairy-free mozzarella - no actual cooking involved! Everyone loves this amazing vegan cheese. You simply must try it!
Melty-stretchy gooey mozzarella cheese is something that I think all of us vegans dream of. Except now you don't have to just dream about it!
You can make it in your kitchen in about 5 minutes with just a handful of ingredients!
This Vegan Mozzarella Cheese...
- Is deliciously creamy
- Slices
- Shreds
- Melts - this is an amazing vegan cheese for pizza
- Is quick to make
- Healthy, thanks to a couple of nutrient-loaded ingredients, such as cashews and nutritional yeast flakes
I am excited for your try this stuff!
Shred this mozzarella and use it in my vegan manicotti or vegan stuffed shells stuffing, add it to pizza, serve it as part of a vegan charcuterie board, or simply snack on it! It's also amazing shredded on top of vegan stuffed Portobello mushrooms before baking, so it gets nice and melty.
What does Vegan Mozzarella taste like?
This Vegan Mozzarella is very mild and neutral flavored. It is rich and creamy, and has bit of that satisfying cheesy 'chew'.
I think it tastes a lot like string cheese actually.
It makes the perfect vegan pizza cheese, and I truly believe it is the best vegan mozzarella recipe.
What is Vegan Mozzarella made of?
- Refined Coconut Oil - Please don't miss the word refined. It doesn't taste like coconut but it still turns solid at cooler temps and just has that wonderful richness.
- Tapioca Flour This helps solidify the cheese, and also adds a 'stretchiness' to the texture.
- Kappa Carrageenan - This ingredient is what makes the cheese able to go from liquid to solid and back to melted state. It's a wonder ingredient and not widely sold. (find it on Amazon.
- Raw cashew pieces - These make the cheese creamy in texture and add lots magnesium, potassium, iron, and healthy fats to this vegan cheese
- Nutritional yeast flakes - Nutritional yeast is loaded with nutrients like niacin, Vitamins B1, B2, B6, B9, and B12, and it gives vegan cheese a wonderful realistic cheesy flavor
The one challenge of making this cheese is that it takes a few unusual ingredients that not everyone has on hand. But please believe me, it's SO worth it! (See all the rest of the ingredients in the photo below!)
How to make Vegan Mozzarella:
Assemble all your ingredients (Photo 1). Rinse Cashews under hot running water for several minutes. (Photo 2) Put all ingredients in the blender except for the water. (Photo 3)
Carefully! Add HOT (just boiled!) water to blender and blend until smooth, stopping to scrape down sides of blender with spatula once if needed. The water must be JUST BOILED. I mean, HOT! (Photo 4)
Pour immediately into heat-safe dish (this will be your mold - no need to oil the mold) and place in the fridge for 4 hours or overnight. (Photo 5)
Slice, grate and enjoy!
Expert cooking tip for making cashew cheese:
Don't skip rinsing the cashews! (If you don't want run water over them for several minutes, soak them in super hot water for about 5 minutes and then rinse again.) This step really helps to decrease the 'cashew' flavor in the recipe, while still using the wonderful creaminess of the cashew!
What kind of mold to use to make vegan mozzarella?
Any small heat-safe container will do, but I like making mozzarella into a round shape so it resembles a mozzarella bowl. The 2-cup container from this set of Pyrex containers is perfect!
How long does vegan mozzarella last in the fridge?
This cheese will last about 4-5 days in the refrigerator... if it makes it that long. 😉
Can you freeze Vegan Mozzarella?
Sure! It does get a little softer in texture after thawing, but if you think you can't eat it all, by all means freeze it! (Most people have trouble making it last that long though! Check out the comments below! )
Does Vegan Mozzarella Melt?
Yes! This vegan mozzarella does melt at higher temps, so if you're baking a pizza you're in for a melty treat! It also works great melted in quesadillas, shredded over lasagna, and breaded and fried as vegan mozzarella sticks!!
Can you use Agar powder in place of the Kappa Carrageenan?
The short answer is yes. Double the amount recommended in the recipe for Kappa Carrageenan and replace with Agar Powder. Make sure to use Agar Powder, not Agar Flakes.
The long answer is also yes, but it won't have quite as firm a texture and may not be quite as melty. Which is still perfectly fine for many uses!
What I would NOT recommend substituting:
Don't replace the lemon juice with Lactic Acid. For some reason, the quick blending process used here does not work well with this substitution and your cheese may not set properly.
For a slightly drier cheese:
After your cheese block has hardened, you can wrap first in a dry paper towel, and then tightly in plastic wrap. This will remove any excess moisture.
For a softer cheese:
Decrease Kappa Carrageenan amount to 1 tbsp. This texture is ideal for making Mozzarella Balls.
Whew, reading about the ingredients is SO much harder than actually making this, I promise. I cannot wait for you to try this so you too, can successfully make and enjoy yummy, healthy, Real Vegan Mozzarella Cheese!!!
Other recipes you will love:
- Vegan nacho cheese
- Vegan feta cheese
- Best vegan egg salad
- Easy vegan buttermilk biscuits
- Vegan smoked Gouda cheese
- Vegan pepper Jack cheese
- Vegan cream cheese
- Vegan herbed cheese
- See my web story for 10 vegan cheese to try!
If you’ve tried this Vegan Mozzarella Cheese recipe or any other recipe on the blog then don’t forget to rate the recipe and let me know how you got on in the comments below, I LOVE hearing from you! You can also FOLLOW ME on FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM and PINTEREST to see more delicious food!!!
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Recipe
Real Vegan Mozzarella Cheese
Ingredients
- ½ cup Raw cashew pieces, Rinsed under hot water for several minutes
- ¼ cup Refined coconut oil
- ¼ cup Tapioca flour
- 1 tablespoon Nutritional yeast flakes
- 1 ½ tablespoon Kappa carrageenan
- 1 tablespoon Lemon juice
- 1 ¼-½ teaspoon Salt
- 1 ½ cup Boiling water
Special equipment
Instructions
- Select a heat-safe preferably glass dish that can hold approx 3C and set aside. (This is your cheese mold.)
- Rinse cashews under HOT water for several minutes.
- Put your water in a small pot on the stove to boil.
- Add all ingredients (except the water!) to the blender. Add the cashews first and then everything else on top of the cashews.
- Carefully add (so you don't burn yourself!!!) the boiling hot water into your blender. Put the blender lid on! And blend immediately until completely smooth.
- Stop blending once if need be to quickly scrape sides of blender and resume blending right after.
- Immediately transfer your cheese to your chosen dish/mold as it will start to solidify quickly as it cools.
- Place in refrigerator to chill. No need to cover yet.
- After 2-3 hours or when fully chilled, remove cheese block from dish/mold and wrap in paper towels and then tightly plastic wrap. The flavor gets better over a day or two but it’s great as soon as it’s hardened, too. Yeay! You are officially a cheese-maker!
Paula
Hi! Is it ok to use virgin coconut oil instead of refined?
Thanks!
Rebecca
Virgin coconut oil has a definite coconut taste, so I would not recommend it for this cheese. The refined coconut oil has no detectable flavor. Hope that helps!
sivan
i'm kinda scared to put boiling water in my blender.. how do i know it will take it with no dammage? if i do it with normal water and than heat it - would that work?
Rebecca
I understand! You can use normal water and then heat the mixture on the stove over low heat until bubbly and extremely thick. High/rapid heat can cause the texture to 'split'. Hope that helps!
Meztli
Can I use something else besides the coconut oil as a replacement?
Rebecca
Coconut oil hardens at cool temps, so it really works well in this recipe. Some people have substituted a part of the amount of coconut oil with another oil with success. However, complete success really depends on the coconut oil. Sorry I can't offer a good sub idea!
Yuki
Hi Rebecca, do you know if Irish Moss also works ...it´s also an Carrageenan....I suppose it is not the same as Kappa Carrageenan? Did not found so much about it in the web...Thank you:-)
Rebecca
Hi, I'm sorry, I'm not familiar with Irish Moss. My guess is that it would take a little time to figure out the ratios. Perhaps first try the Kappa Carrageenan and then you'd have something to compare the Irish Moss with? Sorry I can't be more help with that!
Dell Causseaux
This is an awesome recipe!! I just made my first mozzarella cheese!! It is solid already! So firm and smooth!! Thank you so very much for sharing such a GREAT and easy recipe!! You were right...no cooking!!...and to work quickly pouring it up! Love it!! Thanks again!!
Rebecca
Comments such as yours make my day! So glad you like the recipe!
Rebecca Domovitch
If you are reading this because you're searching for a cashew mozzarella recipe to satisfy omnivores, you have found the correct recipe. I fed a small piece to my omni partner without telling him what it was and he said "Is this cheese? Is this VEGAN cheese?! Did you make this?!"
Also, the recipe is quick and doesn't result in a ton of mess to clean up afterwards.
Definitely my new go-to cashew mozzarella recipe!
Rebecca
Thanks SO much for your comment! Def made me want to do the happy dance! 😉 Glad you and the found something you both love!
Sheralee
I tested my first batch last night for supper. I grated the whole block, and it grated beautifully. I will be putting most in the freezer to use when needed. (and to keep fresh) I made a portabello pizza last night. I put some cheese on the bottom of the portabello, then my toppings, and more cheese on the top. It melted just fine. The taste was mild, just like mozzarello should be. Make sure you stick to the recipe EXACTLY, and do not eyeball the ingredients. YAY no more Daiya funk in this household !!!!! My to-go mozzarella non-dairy cheese brand is Trader Joes. So this recipe had a lot to live up to !!! Great Recipe - I am overjoyed !!!!
Sheralee
Just made the first batch... When she says use boiling water, USE IT!!! There is a reason for the boiling water. The batter gels up really fast. The batter must stay as hot as you can get it, and while working with it to retain the smooth consistency. It solidified like mozzarella, It looks like mozzarella, and when I scrapped down the blender and spoon it had the texture of mozzarella. It is currently in the fridge chilling down. Will try on pizza tonight. p.s. I used Kappa Carrageenan from Druids Grove, and Bobs Red Mill Tapioca Flour.
Rebecca
Thanks so much for the comment! Love your description of the texture etc! So glad you like it!
gritsintn
I love everything about this recipe, except that even though I followed the instructions exactly, the cheese didn’t melt very well (pizza) and still looked like individual shreds. Any suggestions?
Rebecca
Glad you like the recipe! This cheese takes a little while and fairly high heat to melt. Drizzling a little olive oil over the top can help it melt and keep it from drying out before it has a chance! Hope that helps!
Sheralee
Hi Gritsintn ... Even when you buy store brought cheese, it always still has that stringy look when on pizza etc... But the cheese is melted when you bite into it... I am testing the cheese tonight on pizza as well !!! I am not worried if it has the stringy look, so long as its melted and tastes GOOD !!!
Manuel Palacio
Its my second time trying this recipe. Here in Aruba i don't find kappa so i got agar agar but the cheese is totally soft (i made as you told, double the spoons if agar agar) but stills liquid
I don't know where is the problem.,. If a heat it on the stove a little bit its amazing but if not is totally liquid!
What can i do?
Rebecca
Making this cheese with Agar is definitely more challenging and it doesn't get quite as hard, but should still be firm! Here are a few tips: #1) Check that you are using agar powder, not flakes. Flakes will work, but the ratio is different. #2) If #1 is correct then you can try one of two other methods - you can blend everything together with room temp water and then cook the mixture on the stove over low heat stirring constantly until quite thick, then chill. OR, you can activate the agar in the water on the stove, boiling for at least a couple minutes, then adding to the blender (you will probably need quite a bit less agar with this method so that the agar mixture is still thin enough to blend with the other cheese ingredients). Hope this helps!