Basic Vegan Cashew Cheese
Mastering basic cashew cheese is an important step for those looking to expand their vegan cheese repertoire. It is tasty in its own right, so feel free to stop here after making it.
Lengthening or shortening the curing time affects the overall sharpness and texture of the cheese. Young cheese that is cultured quickly is mild and creamy. Allowing the cheese to culture for several weeks creates a firmer texture, interesting skin and sharper flavors.
Difficulty: simple
Yield: about 500 grams (one pound)
Ingredients
300 grams (2 cups) of raw cashew nuts
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
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Mastering basic cashew cheese is an important step for those looking to expand their vegan cheese repertoire. It is tasty in its own right, so feel free to stop here after making it.
Lengthening or shortening the curing time affects the overall sharpness and texture of the cheese. Young cheese that is cultured quickly is mild and creamy. Allowing the cheese to culture for several weeks creates a firmer texture, interesting skin and sharper flavors.
Difficulty: simple
Yield: about 500 grams (one pound)
Ingredients
300 grams (2 cups) of raw cashew nuts
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
120 ml (1/2 cup) Rejuvelac
Method
- Soak the cashew nuts in 1 liter (1 quart) water for 4-8 hours. Longer soaks create a softer cashew nut and result in fine-textured cheese.
- Place the cashews, salt and nutritional yeast in a high-speed blender. Turn on the blender and add the Rejuvelac slowly through the cap opening to process the cashews. Continue to process until the mixture is smooth and creamy. Be sure to scrape the sides often.
- Pour the mixture into a clean glass bowl or container, cover with plastic wrap and keep at room temperature for 8-36 hours, depending on how sharp of a flavor you want to develop (culturing proceeds quicker at warmer temperatures – so adjust the timing depending on the time of year). The cheese thickens and cracks as it cultures.
- At this point, the cheese can be covered and stored in the refrigerator for 2-4 weeks. You can also divide the cheese into individual molds to create smaller portions that ripen faster.