This is the most amazing Vegan Queso Blanco! It’s cheesy, spicy, and goes well with just about everything. Easy to make with simple ingredients in only 20 minutes.
Hello to my fellow diehard vegan cheese sauce lovers! Make sure you check out my Vegan Cheese Sauce (Nut Free!), Easy Vegan Nacho Cheese Sauce, and Vegan Beer Cheese recipes while you’re here.
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“Omg Nora!! This cheese dip is the bomb and easier than all other cheese recipes you have. It’s great on top of my rice bowls, tacos, dipping with chips, etc… love love love it! Thank you” – Eleisha
My Vegan Queso Blanco never lasts long in my house. Just like my 5 Ingredient Vegan Queso, it’s the kind of cheesy, creamy, spicy-ish dip that’s great with everything. It’s one of my Cinco de Mayo staples but also comes in handy for game days, parties, and late-night snacking.
Queso blanco, or white cheese dip, is usually made with some sort of dairy cheese, but I used a mix of raw cashews and potatoes for the base. The cashews make it rich and cheesy, while the potatoes give it a stretchiness you’ll love. Don’t worry, you can’t taste the potato!
It’s naturally cheesy-tasting (even without any nutritional yeast or store-bought vegan cheese) and has a nice kick of heat from diced green chiles. One taste and you’ll be hooked!
Why you’ll love this vegan queso blanco
- Crowd-pleaser – I make this vegan white cheese dip every chance I get—for parties with friends, dinner on Cinco de Mayo, and snacking at home. It’s a hit with everyone I serve it to, vegan or not.
- So easy – It’s no surprise that vegan queso dip is the perfect party snack, especially when you learn that it only takes 20 minutes to make.
- Great with everything – You’re going to want to eat this vegan cheese dip with everything! Drizzle it on potatoes, put it in tacos or burritos, dip tortilla chips in it (of course!), and more.
How to make vegan queso
Find the complete recipe with measurements in the recipe card below.
Add the cashews and diced potatoes to a small pot, cover with water, and heat to a boil. Cook until the potatoes are fork tender.
Drain the cashews and potatoes, then add them to a blender along with the rest of the ingredients. Blend until smooth.
Use a high-powered blender
I highly recommend blending the queso mixture with a high-powered blender, like a Vitamix. The blender actually heats up the dip, so you can serve it as soon as it’s done blending! If you only have a regular blender, soak the cashews overnight and blend the mixture longer.
Warm up the queso in a saucepan on the stove or serve it as-is in a bowl with diced peppers, chopped tomatoes, Vegan Chorizo, or fresh cilantro on top. Enjoy!
Serving suggestions
This is the best part! There’s really no wrong way to serve white queso, but here are a few ideas that my readers and I seem to love most:
- Scoop it up with tortilla chips (the easiest game day snack)
- Drizzle it over vegan tacos
- Serve it as a cheesy dip with vegan burritos and quesadillas
- Stir it into pasta or vegan mac and cheese
- Drizzle it over roasted potatoes
- Served over vegan nachos (instead of nacho cheese sauce)
- Pour it over a loaded baked potato with broccoli
- Spread on veggie burgers
- Drizzle it over a vegan burrito bowl
Frequently asked questions
An equal amount of slivered raw almonds will work in place of the cashews here. Sunflower seeds might work as well.
I haven’t tested a completely nut-free version, but a block or two of silken tofu might work as a substitute for the cashews/slivered raw almonds. I haven’t tried it with white beans, but they may work okay in place of any nuts/seeds.
Classic queso blanco has a smidge of heat from chile peppers. You could easily get away with making this only with canned green chiles for a milder version, but the pickled jalapeno slices add that extra kick that really makes this the best vegan queso dip.
Of course! A bunch of my readers have tried blending anywhere from 1 to 3 tablespoons of nutritional yeast into the queso mixture for some extra cheesiness.
If you’re lucky enough to end up with leftovers (I never do!), pack them into an airtight container and refrigerate them for 4 to 5 days. The dip tastes great straight out of the fridge or warmed up in the microwave (in 30-second increments).
You could try it, but the texture might not be as thick or creamy after thawing.
Vegan Queso Blanco
Ingredients
- 1 cup raw cashews
- 1 cup peeled and chopped yellow or white potato (1-2 potatoes)
- 8 ounces canned green chiles, mild or medium
- 2 tablespoons pickled jalapeños
- 2 tablespoons pickled jalapeño juice from the jar
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice (about 1 lemon squeezed)
- 1 cup water
- 1 teaspoon salt
- optional: finely diced tomatoes and jalapeños, for topping
Instructions
- In a small pot, add the cashews and diced potatoes, then cover with water. Bring to a boil and cook for about 10 minutes, until the potatoes are fork tender.
- Drain the cashews and potatoes and add to a blender along with the remaining ingredients. Blend until smooth and creamy. If you have a Vitamix or similar blender, you can simply blend it until hot, without needing to warm it in a pot.
- If you have a regular blender or prefer to warm it on the stovetop, pour the mixture into a small/medium pot and stir frequently over medium heat until hot. It will thicken as it heats up, so add more water as desired to thin the cheese sauce.
- Top with optional diced tomatoes and jalapeños. Serve with tortilla chips, in tacos, burritos, bowls or with any other Mexican-inspired meal. Enjoy!
Video
Notes
- Cashew allergy? Substitute raw slivered almonds instead. I haven’t tried a nut free version of this, but silken tofu or white beans may work in place of the nuts.
- To store: Vegan Queso Blanco will keep in a covered container in the refrigerator for about 5 days. It can also be frozen.
I think I ended up using a little bit too much lemon juice. I juiced 1 lemon straight into the blender so I didnt measure 😅😅 I also ended up adding some nutritional yeast and turmeric (for color) but I LOVED this! It tasted very similar to real queso
I’ve made ALL the vegan quesos – ALL of them: cashew, potato carrot, just thickened with flour or starch and nooch…I even made this one side by side for a taste test with two other cashew based ones. Hands down this one is the winner for taste and texture. I had some frozen hot green chiles and they are super spicy so I did about 1/3 cup chiles and 2/3 cup roasted red peppers. From the red peppers: no longer blanco but looks like velveeta now! Seriously so good, this is my GO TO recipe from now on.
I found this recipe about 2 months ago and I’ve made it every other week since then! It is outstanding as written. So FAST! Don’t make my mistake (one time) and use roasted cashews. That got weird. Also, this does not freeze (also get’s weird, lumpy, not ok) so just plow through it on everything and ENJOY! I even put it on toast or roasted veggies. So versatile!
Hi Sandy, I’m glad you’ve discovered the queso blanco recipe, and that you are loving it! Thank you for sharing your recipe experiences, as well as your glowing review and comments! Wishing you lots of happy cooking!
I’ve frozen it! It is OK – just stir really well when warmed on the stove or in microwave and it’s good, still not perfectly smooth but tasty and fine for me. You could also toss it back in a blender.
I wonder. For the sake of time, could pre-made mashed potates be used instead of starting from scratch? Cheat code?
I’ve never tried it, but it probably will work fine. Enjoy!
Hi Nora, I love your recipes! I’d love to try this one but tinned chillies are impossible to find where I live (Tasmania), I can get the pickled jalapenos but do you know what I could use as a substitute for the chillies?
Thank you! Trish
Do you have fresh jalapeños or anything like it? Fresh peppers would work as well in place of the canned green chiles. You can even leave them out if needed, it will still be good. Thanks!
Yay! Great vegan queso. We love it. And a perfect day for it as we pre-game prep. Go Hawks!!
Yay! Go Hawks! My husband was THERE! 🙂 Glad you enjoyed the queso!
THIS RECIPE IS EVERYTHING!!! I make this multiple times a month! Thank you so much Nora!!!
You are welcome, Ariel! I am thrilled that you are loving the recipe! It is so great to use in so many different things, isn’t it! Thank you for your glowing review and comments! Wishing you lots of happy cooking!
I make this whenever we have nachos and its always a hit.
So easy and soooo delicious!
Wow! This was the best vegan queso sauce! Queso sauce is a staple in Texas and I’ve really missed it. Every vegan recipe I’ve tried before was pretty “meh!” We like ours extra hot, so I replaced the canned green chilis with 4 extra tablespoons of jalapeños and it was perfection. Thank you!