The Stretchy Vegan Mozzarella Cheese of your dreams, made with just 5 ingredients and in 15 minutes! Perfect for grilled cheese, lasagna, pizza and more!
Meet the vegan mozzarella cheese of your dreams! Stretchy, tangy and oh-so-delicious. I love using this mozzarella on pizza and my new favorite place for it is on top of Vegan Lasagna. Oh my goodness, it takes the lasagna to a whole new level of amazing!
This cheese also makes a mouthwatering vegan grilled cheese sandwich, which I love alongside tomato soup. Talk about an easy meal that kids and grown-ups will love!
I’m sure you could use this vegan mozzarella in many more ways that I haven’t even discovered yet. I’m thinking french onion soup, eggplant parmesan, quesadillas, dips… The possibilities are endless.
How do you make Vegan Mozzarella?
It’s very easy. First, you soak your cashews in hot water for 5 minutes (or up to an hour). Drain them, and add to a high powered blender with all the other ingredients. Blend; the mixture will be very watery.
Add to a small saucepan and stir constantly over medium heat. After a few minutes, it will start to get clumpy. Keep stirring. And then all of a sudden it magically turns into smooth, stretchy vegan mozzarella! That’s it, it’s ready to use.
How to brown vegan mozzarella in the oven:
I’ve discovered something new lately about this cheese. It will totally brown and bubble in the oven, like real mozzarella would! Simply spray the cheese with a little oil (I used olive oil spray), and broil for 5-10 minutes in the oven. I spread some cheese on sourdough bread and broiled it, and wow, it was incredible cheesy bread. I think this would work on top of casseroles (like lasagna), pizza and more.
What is tapioca starch and where can I find it?
Tapioca flour is a starch extracted from cassava. Tapioca starch and flour are usually the same thing, but not always.
It’s a white powder and works similarly to cornstarch as a thickener. The difference is it’s the key to making cheeses like this stretchy instead of just thickened. It’s absolutely necessary and perfect for making this vegan mozzarella.
How to use vegan mozzarella:
- Grilled Cheese – Spoon the cheese between two slices of (vegan) buttered bread and grill for a fantastic grilled cheese.
- Pizza – Spoon dollops of cheese on top of pizza crust along with other toppings of choice and cook as you normally would. You can also try to spread it all over the pizza (this works best when the mozzarella is very fresh).
- Lasagna – Spoon the cheese all over the top of the lasagna in the last 20 minutes of baking in the oven. Bake uncovered with the cheese, and broil if desired to brown in spots.
- Anywhere else you’d like! Dip chips into it, make quesadillas, in enchiladas, etc.
Recipe adapted from Minimalist Baker.
EASY Stretchy Vegan Mozzarella Cheese
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup raw cashews, soaked
- 1 1/3 cups water
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice, fresh from about 1/2 lemon
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 4 tablespoons tapioca starch
Instructions
- Boil 2 cups of water (I just heat up water in my tea kettle). Pour the water over the cashews and let soak for 5 minutes and up to an hour.
- Drain the cashews, and add them to a blender along with 1 1/3 cups fresh water (not the water you soaked the cashews in), lemon juice, apple cider vinegar, salt and tapioca starch. Blend until very smooth, scraping down the sides of the blender as needed. It will be very watery at this point.
- Now pour the watery mixture into a small saucepan and bring the heat to medium. Begin to stir with a spatula or spoon.
- After a few minutes, it will begin to get clumpy. Keep stirring, constantly until suddenly it will become super gooey, stretchy, thick and smooth. It will become one big mass of stretchy vegan cheese. Remove from heat as soon as this happens.
- Use immediately, or store in a covered container in the refrigerator. It is easiest to use immediately, because it will thicken up more in the fridge and be less stretchy. So if possible, especially for using on pizza or lasagna, make right before using.
- For pizza, drop 1-2 tablespoon sized balls onto the crust and pat down a little bit. Or spread it all over. It will brown in the oven. For lasagna, drop dollops of the cheese all over the top towards the end of cooking time. Or place between bread and grill for grilled cheese.
Video
Notes
- Tapioca starch/flour is essential in this recipe, cornstarch will not create the same "stretchy" quality.
- I've never tried it with another nut, but I suspect raw slivered almonds could work.
- If you want the cheese to brown in the oven (like it looks on the bread in the post above), simply spray with a little oil and broil for 5-10 minutes, watching carefully. This is wonderful for lasagna, pizza, or just atop bread for cheesy bread.
- I have frozen this and while it is still edible, it definitely tastes best fresh. It will keep in the refrigerator for 4-5 days. But again, it will be the most stretchy and easy to work with immediately.
Your recipe and instructions are great! My wife liked this more than I did as I thought it was bland. I am going to try to make it again tonight with more salt, which is what I think it lacks. Thank you so much for this!
You bet, Jordan! I sure appreciate your feedback on the recipe and instructions! It’s great to know the instructions are clear! Totally add salt to your liking! Thank you for sharing! Happy cooking!
Hello Nora,
I made this last night for a pizza, and we enjoyed it. I loved the chemistry as it thickened up (so fun). What other flavorings might you try to make more salty/sweet cheesiness?
Hi Nora,
Thank you very, very much for this recipe: I was very impressed with how simple it is to make and yet how well the stretch, consistency, and appearance turned out! I’m afraid however that my cheese didn’t really taste of all that much, and most of what I could taste was the apple cider vinegar and lemon juice. Do you have any recommendations about how I can make the cheese taste less sour, more flavoursome, and closer to mozzarella cheese?
Many thanks.
Norah, there are only 2 eaters at our house so can I mix up the cheese “batter”, use half to make cheese now and save the other half to make cheese later, say tomorrow or the next day? Or does it need to be made all at once?
Sure, I think that would work. It would probably keep in the fridge for 3 days and then you just heat it up. Thanks!
I made this tonight for pizza and was not disappointed! The flavor was spot on and the texture was better than any store bought vegan mozzarella I’ve tried (and I’ve tried them all!). I had enough left over that I’m planning to make grilled cheese with it for lunch tomorrow. I’ll be making this regularly now- thanks so much for sharing this simple and wonderful recipe!!!
You are welcome, Sharon! Isn’t this cheese fun and delicious!? I’m thrilled you loved it! I appreciate you taking time to share your cooking experience and positive feedback! Happy cooking!
MAKE IT!!! You’ll never look back! Seriously good recipe. Great texture and Great flavor! This is so good you won’t miss mozzarella! I am diary intolerant and have missed soft cheeses. This recipe is going to be made on the regular now. I made one substitution and that was rice vinegar because I didn’t have apple cider vinegar but other than that it’s the same.
This is not really stretchy. Ok I am not criticising you don’t get me wrong. The reason I am here is very strange. I at a vegan pizza with vegan mozarella cheese. It was stretchy just like dairy mozzarella. How Dairy cheese stretches like gum and it is shiny and it is like melted soft plastic. This also stretches just like that. I had a leftover slice today and This is exactly like dairy cheese.
I am not the only one who has doubts that these cheese is not vegan. A few other vegans also just can’t believe it.
The owner is a vegan for many years & he assured us its vegan and its a trade secret.
So I started to google to see if anyone else has made such cheese.
And most vegan mozzarelle I have eaten are just like yours. It more of stretchy sauce rather than like Dairy which has the proteins in it that stretches and becomes like plasticky.
I really don’t mind cheese like the one you make. I think Stretchy cheese is overated and even as a non-vegan I was like why would anyone stretch the cheese and then it like eating streched gum.
So the search continues. I hope it is possible to make such cheese I don’t know what I would do that guy if he was serving us dairy cheese instead of vegan.
Let me preface this review by saying I am not a vegan. I do, however, have a husband who is severely lactose intolerant so, I am constantly looking for dairy alternatives meals. The first time I made this cheese was, I think, for Nora’s manicotti. One taste, I knew it was something I would try again. Fast forward to a night the hubby wanted tomato soup & grilled cheese sandwiches. I immediately came back here & made the instant pot tomato soup (5-star soup btw) and this cheese for BOTH of our sandwiches. It’s a must try & super easy!
Hello again, Michelle! Your feedback is so fun and encouraging! Thank you for taking time to share your fantastic review and feedback! I love hearing how my recipes allow people to enjoy delicious food! I appreciate you, and wish you LOTS of happy cooking!
Question: Hi Nora, thanks for the recipe. Could I substitute the Apple cider vinegar for regular distilled white vinegar?
Yes, you can sub white vinegar. Thanks!