This easy cashew cream recipe is a healthy cook’s secret weapon for creating rich and creamy textures in vegan dishes.
Cashew Cream makes just about any sauce or soup velvety smooth—without any cream or dairy.
My cashew cream recipe and variations are perfect for anyone who is trying to consume less dairy or anyone trying to eat more vegan dishes.
There are many variations of a basic cashew cream recipe, and you can make modifications depending on how you plan to use it. You can adjust the thickness and consistency by adding more or less water. You can also flavor your cashew cream any way you want. The plain version is super versatile, but feel free to add 2 cloves of sauteed garlic for a garlic cashew cream, or a combo of sauteed garlic, mushrooms, and shallots for a delicious savory cream sauce.
Compared to other nut-milks/creams, one of the best things about cashew cream is that you don’t need to strain it, making it even easier to prepare.
Cashew cream has an extremely mild flavor, which makes it perfect to add to just about any type of cuisine. Be sure to buy raw cashews (unsalted and not roasted) to yield the best flavor. You can find raw cashews in the bulk aisle of most grocery stores or online.
Cashew Cream Recipe Uses:
- Creamy Soup: blend 1/2 cup to 1 cup into any soup for a rich and velvety texture
- Creamy Mushroom Sauce: add 1 cup chopped sauteed mushrooms (plus an additional 1/4 cup water) to make a mushroom cream and toss with green beans (see below in recipe card)
- Coffee Creamer: add more water and a little natural sweetener to make my healthy homemade coffee creamer (see recipe here)
- Creamy “Pink” Pasta Sauce: use your cashew cream recipe to make a quick & easy creamy pasta “fake-out” with cashew cream mixed with marinara or any red sauce (see recipe here)
- Cashew Milk: use cashew milk as a substitute for regular milk (see recipe here)
- Zesty Taco Cashew Cream: mix in some taco seasoning for an amazing creamy dip alone or to add to vegan 7-layer dip
To ensure your cashew cream recipe turns out perfectly, be sure that your cashews are soft by soaking them at room temperature overnight, or for 20-60 minutes in hot water.
Plain Cashew Cream Recipe
- 1 cup raw cashews, soaked and rinsed, blended with 3/4 cup filtered water and a heavy pinch of sea salt.
Garlic Cashew Cream Recipe
- Add in with the cashews: 2-3 garlic cloves, finely chopped, sauteed in 3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil over medium-low heat for 10-15 minutes.
Savory Mushroom Cashew Cream Recipe
- Add in with the cashews: Saute 2-3 garlic cloves, finely chopped, and 1 shallot, finely chopped in 6 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil over medium-low heat for 5 minutes. Add 1 cup chopped mushrooms (cremini or button varieties, that’s about 8-10 mushrooms) and saute another 10 minutes, until the mushrooms are very soft. (This sauce is perfect over sauteed green beans.)
I encourage you to get creative with your cashew cream recipe! I love to have plain cashew cream in the fridge to quickly thicken a sauce or soup. I also like to add different flavors depending on how I plan to use it.
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Cashew Cream Recipe (3 Variations)
- Prep Time: 20 minutes to 4 hours
- Total Time: Varies
- Yield: 1 cup 1x
- Category: Sauce
- Method: Blend
- Cuisine: American
Description
This easy cashew cream recipe is your secret weapon to make creamy dishes without dairy. We love it in just about everything! See the ideas above for creative ways to use your cashew cream. This recipe can easily be halved, doubled or even tripled depending on how much you need. If you love it, please leave a star rating in the comments below.
Ingredients
- 1 cup raw cashews (unsalted and not roasted), soaked overnight or “quick-soaked”
- 3/4 cup filtered water plus more for soaking, and more or less for adjusted thickness
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
Instructions
Method:
To make sure your cashew cream recipe turns out, the cashews must be soaked until soft before blending. Blend soaked cashews and water in a high-speed blender until smooth. I like to add the salt to give it more flavor, but that is optional.
Here are the more detailed instructions:
- Soak the cashews in filtered water for at least 4 hours and up to 12. To soak, just place the cashews in a bowl and cover with water by an inch, then cover and soak at room temp up to 4 hours, and put in the refrigerator if soaking overnight. If you’re in a hurry you can soak them for 15 minutes in very hot but not boiling water. To use the hot water method, boil water then remove it from the heat for two minutes, then pour over the cashews. After soaking, discard the soaking liquid and rinse the cashews thoroughly.
- Place the cup of soaked cashews, 3/4 cup filtered water and sea salt into a high-speed blender, like a Vitamix or Blend-Tec. Starting on low, blend the cashews as you increase the speed to high (about 10 seconds to increase from low to high). Blend for 2-3 minutes on high until very silky and smooth. Add more water if needed to adjust the consistency if desired. Always start with less water than you think you need and increase as needed.
- Store in an airtight glass container in the refrigerator up to a week. This cashew cream recipe freezes well up to 3 months, however, it takes just as long to thaw as it does to make so I usually make it fresh. Freeze any leftovers that aren’t used within the week.
Notes
Garlic Cashew Cream Recipe:
Saute 2-3 garlic cloves, finely chopped, in 3 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil over medium-low heat for 10-15 minutes. Add to the blender with the cashews and blend as instructed above.
Savory Mushroom Cashew Cream Recipe:
Add in with the cashews: Saute 2-3 garlic cloves, finely chopped, and 1 shallot, finely chopped in 6 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil over medium-low heat for 5 minutes. Add 1 cup chopped mushrooms (cremini or button varieties, that’s about 8-10 mushrooms) and saute another 10 minutes, until the mushrooms are very soft.
Fantastic! This is the easiest and best recipe I’ve tried. I just finished making 3 cups of this cashew cream, with plans to use it to make Keylime pie and an herb dip. Although, it is delicious as is! Thanks