Easy Vegan Queso
Make this incredible vegan queso in 5 minutes flat, no cashew-soaking or even a stove top required! It’s creamy and flavorful and just perfect for pouring (slow-mo-style) over all your nachos, tacos, and basically your entire life.
When it comes to dipping, are you a salsa or a queso?
In my experience, people are either one or the other. And while my dear T is most definitely the former, I have always been a queso kinda girl!
Queso was basically a food group for me when I was a teenager. Loved. the. stuff. That’s why, when I went vegan (almost FIVE years ago now; wow time flies!), I knew I had to find a vegan queso recipe I would enjoy every bit as much.
Now, this was back at the beginning of my cooking journey – waaaay before we had two fancy schmancy Vitamixes gracing our kitchen counter.
No, I was working with a super old, super slow blender at the time that would start smoking whenever I tried to make anything cashew-based. And unfortunately, the only vegan queso recipes I was finding involved some type of nut cream base. These were dark queso-less times in our home, friends.
But then, I discovered a simpler option that would provide the creamy canvas upon which I would build my queso masterpiece: silken tofu. Immediately, I got to work.
The minute I tasted the first batch, I legit lept for joy. The spicy cheesy flavor POW, the creamy luscious texture, it was all there. It was easily one of the best moments of my vegan life.
Do you think my feelings for vegan queso are a little much? Perhaps. But either way, I think you’re gonna LOVE this vegan queso recipe.
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How to Make Vegan Queso Without Cashews
When I say you can make this vegan queso in under five minutes, I’m not being hyperbolic. Literally from start to finish, this silken tofu queso comes together like a dream.
You’ll throw all your ingredients in a food processor or blender (remember, you don’t need a fancy high-powered blender for this!) and blend until smooth and creamy-dreamy. That’s IT!
From there, you can heat it a bit on the stove if that’s your thing, but I’ve always been a straight-outta-the-jar kinda queso eater which is the way I love to serve this stuff. Get in there with your chips and DIP, sister!
How to Serve Silken Tofu Queso
If you’re a queso-fiend like me, you have GOT to make this vegan queso for your next party or boring Saturday afternoon when you’re hankerin’ for a snack.
It would be perfect for your upcoming Super Bowl parties and is a downright lovely addition to your weekly Taco Tuesday festivities (especially when served with our spicy walnut beef).
And if you’re looking for something besides tortilla chips to dip into this glorious silken tofu queso, try our homemade pretzel bites!
More Silken Tofu Recipes
Ordered silken tofu in bulk? We’ve got you covered with these top ideas:
And if you’re a true silken tofu fiend like us, check out our full collection of silken tofu recipes that we add to regularly!
When you do try this vegan queso recipe, we’d love to hear how it went and do a little dance around the kitchen to help you celebrate! You can rate the recipe and leave a comment below or snap a photo (you know, before you inhale the whole thing) and tag us on Instagram! If you’re not already following along there, we’re @theplantpowercouple with the “the”.
We hope this wonderful vegan queso makes alllll your queso dreams come true. Happy cooking!
Easy Vegan Queso
Equipment
- 1 small food processor or blender
Ingredients
- 14 oz silken tofu
- 1/2 cup nutritional yeast
- 2 chipotle peppers from a can*
- 2 large cloves garlic
- 2 Tbsp lemon juice
- 2 tsp sea salt
- 1 tsp onion powder
Instructions
- Add all ingredients to a blender or food processor and blend until smooth and creamy. If you're looking for a thinner queso texture, feel free to add some veg broth until it reaches your desired texture. For full flavor yumminess, make the broth with our vegan chicken bouillon powder**.
- We like to serve this cold, but if you like your queso warmed, you can do so on the stove. If you're warming it, I definitely suggest adding a little of the aforementioned broth first. Serve with chips as a dip or poured over tacos. Enjoy!
Can this be made using chipotle powder, rather than actual chipotle peppers?
Hi, Sue. It can, but I haven’t tried it yet. I’d probably start with 1/2 – 1 Tbsp of powder and adjust from there. Hope this helps!
Any chance this can be frozen for later use?
Hi, Marilyn. It cannot, sorry. Freezing the silken tofu drastically changes the texture…and definitely not for the better.
I would love to try this recipe. What type of silken tofu do you use?
Soft, Firm or Extra Firm?
You can use extra firm silken tofu or soft tofu!
I made this queso and used it as the sauce for mac n’ cheeze with steamed broccoli. Insane!!
That sounds absolutely delicious!
This was so easy and we really enjoyed it over pasta with broccoli! I’m always looking for ways to increase my tofu intake because it’s one of my main sources of calcium, being a vegetarian with food allergies, thank you for this! I added a few tablespoons of plain almond milk to get the consistency I like and look forward to playing with the spicing of it to create additional flavor profiles.
Ooooh, that sounds delicious! We have tons more silken tofu recipes on this site. Hope you find more fun ways to sneak it into your diet. If you’re ever looking for something specific, don’t hesitate to reach out!
This was delicious! We are drifting towards eating plant based, our biggest hang up if finding tasty substitutes for some of our favorite dairy based products.
So happy we could help! Thank you, Pat!