The Best Vegan Alfredo Sauce

This vegan Alfredo sauce is the perfect cashew-based, dairy-free alternative to keep in your back pocket. It’s incredibly rich, super creamy, and tastes just like the real thing (if not better). Whether you’re vegan or not, you’re going to love it!

A jar of vegan alfredo sauce. — *Photo: Gayle McLeod*

Why You’ll Love This Vegan Alfredo Sauce

It’s safe to say this is the most delicious dairy-free Alfredo sauce dupe out there. And even though I’m not vegan or dairy-free, I find myself making this sauce often—tossed with zucchini noodles, drizzled over chicken, and so much more. It’s my favorite way to elevate a simple dinner without heavy dairy ingredients. Here’s what else you’ll love about it:

The flavor is incredible. It’s rich, savory, tangy, and cheesy-tasting—everything alfredo sauce should be!
The texture is ultra-creamy. Blended cashews are a magical ingredient that create an irresistibly smooth base, whether it’s in vegan cheesecake, vegan tzatziki, vegan ricotta cheese, or this vegan Alfredo sauce.
It’s easy and stores well. I’m all for easy recipes, and this sauce just needs a few pantry items and a blender. Plus, you can store it in the fridge or freezer for later use (I have notes in the recipe card).

Vegan Alfredo Sauce Ingredients

Raw Cashews: Make sure to use raw cashews and not salted or roasted as we’ll add flavors to this sauce.
Fresh Aromatics: A mix of fresh garlic, lemon juice, and onion adds a fresh, savory, and tangy touch.
Seasonings: The nutritional yeast is my secret ingredient for that deliciously cheesy undertone, accompanied by dried rosemary, salt, and black pepper for depth of flavor.

Find the printable recipe with measurements below.

How to Make Vegan Alfredo Sauce

Soak the cashews overnight and store them in the fridge or at room temperature. This breaks down the cashews’ structure, making them soft and easier to blend, while removing phytic acid, which can interfere with digestion and nutrient absorption.

Blend the sauce. Add the drained cashews to a high-powered blender along with garlic, lemon juice, onion, nutritional yeast, dried herbs, salt, and black pepper. Blend everything on high until creamy, and you’re done!

More Vegan Sauces

If you make this vegan alfredo sauce recipe, I’d love to hear how it turned out in the comment box below! Your review will help other readers in the community. And if you’re hungry for more healthy food inspiration and exclusive content, join my free newsletter here.

Description

This vegan alfredo sauce is the perfect cashew-based, dairy-free alternative to use in a variety of meals. It’s rich, creamy, and so delicious!

Vitamix Blender The one kitchen tool I can’t live without for blended recipes!

Soak the cashews. Add the cashews to a bowl and cover by about 2 inches of cold water. Soak overnight (or at least 6 hours), then drain and rinse them.
Blend together. Add the cashews, fresh water, garlic, lemon juice, onion, nutritional yeast, salt, rosemary, and pepper to a high-powered blend, and blend until smooth.
Use or store. Use this vegan Alfredo sauce immediately (see ideas in the post above!) or store in a sealed container in the fridge or freezer.

The water used to soak the cashews is separate from the water used in blending. You’ll discard the water you use for soaking.
The recipe makes approximately 1 cup of sauce.
If you’ve never cooked with nutritional yeast before, it’s small little flakes (about the size of large sea salt flakes) of deactivated yeast that provide a nutty, cheese-like flavor.
To store in the fridge: You can store this sauce in the fridge for up to 5 days in a sealed container. Just keep in mind that the sauce will thicken up as it sits in the fridge and sometimes while you’re cooking with it. If that happens and you want a thinner sauce, just add more water.
To freeze for later: I recommend freezing it in a silicone ice cube tray, so you can easily thaw individual portions as needed.

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This recipe was originally posted July 2017, but recently updated to include new photos and information for your benefit!