Simple Homemade Vegan Parmesan

This tangy cashew-based vegan parmesan is made from 5 ingredients and is perfect for sprinkling over salads or pasta!

I should put “parmesan” in quotation marks here, because this vegan version is definitely not cheese. And yet it tastes very similar to the original - nutty, savoury and salty! I love this vegan parmesan on spaghetti Bolognese, on salads and, of course,in my favorite eggplant parmesan.

Jump to:

• The Ingredients
• How to Make Vegan Cashew Parmesan?
• Variation: Vegan Parmesan with Rosemary
• Recipe
• Comments

This cashew parmesan is similar to the recipes for vegan parmesan cheese that you can find all over the internet. However, I have added one ingredient - the secret ingredient, so to speak: apple cider vinegar! Real parmesan has that certain mildly tangy flavour and you achieve that in the vegan version by adding a little apple cider vinegar into the mix.

The Ingredients

Speaking of the mix: To make the best plant-based parmesan substitute, you need the following 5 ingredients, which are certainly already waiting for you in your kitchen cupboard:

• CASHEW NUTS: I've tried several other nuts and cashews are my favorite, followed by almonds and walnuts. For a nut-free version, you can use a mixture of pumpkin seeds and shelled hemp seeds.
  
• NUTRITIONAL YEAST: Nutritional yeast is simple deactivated yeast. It has this cheesy taste and is therefore particularly suitable as a base for vegan cheese alternatives. It is also extremely nutritious!
  
• GARLIC POWDER: Also known as garlic granules - adds depth and extra flavor to vegan parmesan.
  
• SALT: Parmesan is salty, so salt is a must.
  
• APPLE VINEGAR: As already mentioned, the vinegar gives the recipe the mild tanginess that we know from cheese. Alternatively, the recipe also works with white vinegar.

How to Make Vegan Cashew Parmesan?

It's really easy and really quick: put all the ingredients in a small food processor and grind until the desired consistency is achieved. I always make my parmesan cheese in my manual veggie chopper, so an electric food processor is not necessary.

Personally, I like mine to be a little coarser, i.e. not quite so finely ground, so it retains the crunchines from the nuts.

Variation: Vegan Parmesan with Rosemary

Add 1 teaspoon of dried rosemary to the ingredients before grinding. This herby parmesan variation is simply brilliant and adds an extra dash of flavour to your dishes.

I hope you’ll give this recipe a try. If you love this recipe, be sure to leave a comment, rate the recipe and tag me on instagram (#veggiejam) with your recreation.

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