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    Home / Vegan Cheese Recipes

    Chickpea Cheese Sauce

    Last updated: Jul 11, 2019 · Published: Apr 22, 2019 by Elizabeth Shah. This page may contain affiliate links.

    40879 shares
    Jump to Recipe

    When I published my popular Easy Cheezy Sauce and Vegan Cheddar Cheese Sauce recipes, I immediately got requests for nut-free versions. It seems quite a few of you have allergies or want a lower fat recipe. I’ve been playing around with a bunch of ingredients, but this Chickpea Cheese Sauce has stolen my heart.

    Chickpea Cheese Sauce in a white bowl on a white plate with a spoon

    How to Make this Easy Vegan Cheese Sauce with Chickpeas

    Just like my Eazy Cheezy Sauce, this chickpea cheese sauce is incredibly simple to make. You’ve got just seven required ingredients in this recipe. You simply dump everything together in a blender and process for a half a minute or so.

    Then, I like to cook this sauce gently for a few minutes to marry the flavors. Most dishes you’ll probably make this sauce for—pasta, baked potatoes, a cheese dip—all taste better with a warmed sauce anyway.

    That’s it—instant, easy, cheesy done! And probably one of the healthiest ‘cheese’ sauces you can put in your mouth.

    Chickpea Cheese Sauce ingredients on a cutting board: chickpeas, veggie broth, miso paste, nutritional yeast, seasonings.

    Why I Love This Nut-Free Chickpea 'Cheese' Sauce

    This chickpea cheese sauce has so much going for it. Let’s break down the healthy, whole food plant-based goodness:

    First, it makes the BEST low fat, high fiber nut free vegan mac and cheese! I never expected this recipe to become a Shah family favorite, but indeed it has. I mean, it’s got some pretty stiff competition with the other cheese sauces in our repertoire. 🙂 But this chickpea cheese sauce is so darn tasty and satisfying, we keep coming back to it again and again.

    Second, it’s low in fat and high in fiber thanks to the chickpeas. In fact, it has about half the fat as a nut-based cheese sauce. And of course, it’s oil free. Third, it’s budget friendly. Let’s face it, chickpeas are way cheaper than cashews. At least where I live.

    Fourth, it’s full of beans! (Or legumes, in this case.)  According to Dr. Greger’s recommended Daily Dozen, we should all get about three servings of beans and legumes a day. What a tasty, creamy, satisfying way to fit more in. Fourth, if you have nut allergies, or your kid does, or your co-workers—no worries here. This one is nut allergen free.

    How to Make the BEST Nut Free Vegan Mac and Cheese

    This cheese sauce is great on baked potatoes, nachos--wherever you want to add creamy cheesiness. But we love in as a healthy mac and cheese sauce.

    I like to use a whole food, plant-based compliant pasta, like a brown rice pasta or even a chickpea pasta. And while it's great with just the sauce, I love adding extra flavors like:

    • fresh parsley (so simple, and my favorite)
    • crushed red pepper flakes
    • diced sun-dried tomatoes (rehydrated)
    • fresh basil
    • Italian seasonings
    • and if you don't mind a small amount of nuts, a sprinkle of vegan parmesan cheese

    With this simple sauce and a pot of pasta, you can have dinner on the table in 15 minutes!

    If you like this whole food plant-based recipe, you might also like:

    • 5-Minute Vegan Chickpea Alfredo Sauce
    • Vegan Easy Cheezy Sauce
    • Vegan Cheddar Cheese Sauce
    • Easy Vegan Oil Free Pesto Sauce
    • Vegan Oil Free Mayonnaise

    📖 Recipe

    close up dish of sauce and spoon.

    Chickpea Cheese Sauce

    A low fat, high fiber, nut-free Chickpea Cheese Sauce that's great on pasta, potatoes--or any dish that tastes better with cheese! Vegan, WFPB, GF.
    4.64 from 99 votes
    Print SaveSaved! Pin Rate
    Course: Main Course
    Cuisine: American
    Prep Time: 3 minutes minutes
    Cook Time: 2 minutes minutes
    Total Time: 5 minutes minutes
    Servings: 8
    Calories: 91kcal
    Author: Elizabeth Shah

    Equipment

    Blender
    Prevent your screen from going dark

    Ingredients

    • 2 cups cooked chickpeas or 1 15-ounce can, LIQUID RESERVED
    • ¼-3/4 cups low sodium vegetable broth adjust for desired thickness
    • ½ cup nutritional yeast
    • ¼ cup lemon juice about 1 large lemon
    • 2 tablespoons white miso paste (see notes for substition and info about miso + sodium)
    • ½  teaspoons  garlic powder
    • ½  teaspoons  onion powder
    • Sea salt to taste
    • Optional: ½ teaspoon turmeric for color

    For Nut Free Vegan Mac and Cheese, serve over macaroni or pasta shells

    Instructions

    • Place all ingredients in a high speed blender and process on high speed until thoroughly blended, about 20-30 seconds. Add a little of the reserved chickpea liquid ('aquafaba') to thin the sauce if needed. Taste and adjust seasoning as desired.
    • For the best results, gently cook the sauce for 2-3 minutes to combine the flavors.

    Notes

    • Nutritional information shown is for sauce only
    • Sodium: the sodium in this recipe may seem high, but is primarily from the miso paste, which is a healthy "green light salt" according to Dr. Greger. You can read more about miso here.
    • I use mellow white miso paste for this recipe. If you can't find it or are allergic to soy, you can substitute 1 tablespoon tahini + 1-2 teaspoons of low sodium soy sauce, tamari or Bragg's aminos.
    • If the sauce gets too thick (especially after refrigerating), thin it out with a little reserved chickpea liquid, how pasta water or hot tap water
    • To add extra flavor to your mac and cheese, add:
      • fresh parsley (so simple, and my favorite)
      • crushed red pepper flakes
      • diced sun-dried tomatoes (rehydrated)
      • fresh basil
      • Italian seasonings
      • and if you don't mind a small amount of nuts, a sprinkle of vegan parmesan cheese

    Nutrition (approximate)

    Calories: 91kcal | Carbohydrates: 14g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 1g | Sodium: 186mg | Potassium: 191mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 10IU | Vitamin C: 3.5mg | Calcium: 23mg | Iron: 1.5mg
    Tried this Recipe? Please share it!Mention @HealthyMidwesternGirl or tag #HealthyMidwesternGirl!

    More Vegan Cheese Recipes

    • Vegan Cheddar Cheese Sauce
    • Dairy Free Parmesan Cheese
    • Easiest Vegan Cashew Cheese Sauce
    • almond ricotta in ramekin with crusty bread on the side.
      Almond Ricotta Cheese
    40879 shares

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Laurie

      November 27, 2024 at 7:32 pm

      5 stars
      Gurl! I’m a cheesehead. This is the best cheese sauce I’ve ever tasted. It has the sharp cheddar taste/ bite . I didn’t have white miso, but your substitution is on point! Absolutely delicious!

      Reply
    2. Rachel

      August 13, 2024 at 5:11 pm

      5 stars
      Wow, these ingredients have no businesses blitzing up into something this dang good! I was honestly shocked- but this will now be my go-to vegan queso.
      Our daughter has to be dairy free, and so a lot of times I will make her the same thing her dad and I are having, but swap in a vegan dairy replacement when needed. After I made this, I used it on everyone's nachos even tho I had bought regular queso, because it was that good. (Disclaimer to say that we all like vegan queso, and this is definitely exactly the same as a dairy queso, but we enjoy the nooch flavor)

      Anywwu, a true keeper!!!!

      Reply
      • Elizabeth Shah

        August 13, 2024 at 5:38 pm

        Love it! Thanks for the review.

        Reply
    3. Laura

      March 23, 2024 at 4:45 pm

      5 stars
      This is a really good recipe! I'm making it for the second time and using it on pizza -- again. I've never found a vegan cheese (store bought) that I like. This hits the spot. Last time I spread it on with some garlic and olive oil, fresh green onions after it came out of the oven. Today I'm topping it with roasted tomatoes, and fresh arugula. Although a sauce pizza can be really good, this makes me extra happy to eat pizza again. Glad to have found your recipe!

      Reply
      • Elizabeth Shah

        March 24, 2024 at 2:40 pm

        Love this! Enjoy.

        Reply
    4. Danny

      February 17, 2024 at 4:35 pm

      4 stars
      Hey great recipe! I’ll be honest and say I sub a lot of the ingredients 😆. It turned out well though… I used white beans( sub for chickpeas), rice vinegar(sub for lemon ), and a vegan chicken bouillon cube (sub for veggie broth). I also didn’t have miso but I added some mushroom broth powder and some vegan cashew yogurt. It turned out well but a little grainy. I think it could be fixed with a little more liquid and maybe some EVOO. Thank you for a good base recipe!!!

      Reply
    5. Sammy

      October 17, 2023 at 9:05 am

      4 stars
      While I do prefer my cashew cheese recipe, I have been trying to reduce/cut out unnecessary fat from my diet, so I just made this sauce. I haven't put it onto anything yet as it's not even noon yet, but will be using it over broccoli and potatoes this evening. The flavour is great, a bit strong on the lemon juice but completely acceptable as a lower fat, higher fiber/protein alternative, it's the best of everything!!! Thank you so much for sharing this recipe as I know i will be making this often!!!

      Reply
    6. Allanah

      November 24, 2022 at 2:33 pm

      I just made this with the slight adjustment of adding a little cathedral city vegan cheese and it is honestly the best vegan cheese sauce I've ever had! I had kind of given up on trying to recreate cheese sauce as there's nothing quite like the real thing and alot of vegan cheese sauces make me feel sick, but I had the ingredients so thought I'd give it 1 last go and I was blown away! Amazing! Thank you

      Reply
      • Elizabeth Shah

        November 25, 2022 at 10:44 am

        Hi Allanah! So happy to hear you finally found a cheese sauce that you love. Life does seem better with good vegan cheese, doesn't it? :)))

        Reply
      • Saundra

        February 28, 2023 at 8:34 pm

        Hi

        How long does this last and can it be frozen?

        Reply
        • Elizabeth Shah

          March 04, 2023 at 7:25 pm

          It lasts 3-4 days in the refrigerator, and can be frozen for about 3 months.

          Reply
    7. Brenda

      November 09, 2022 at 4:45 pm

      4 stars
      Hi, I just made your sauce, and it has a strong sour taste. I'm not sure if I did something wrong for if my lemon was really strong. Does yours come out sour? any suggestions? Thank you

      Reply
      • Elizabeth Shah

        November 10, 2022 at 8:50 am

        Hi Brenda, No, this should not taste sour. My guesses are perhaps the lemon as you suggest, or the nutritional yeast brand or miso paste. Some nutritional yeast has a bit of an off taste (I use Bob's Red Mill) and some miso is pretty strong. I used Miso Masters Mellow White Miso. Hope this helps.

        Reply
    8. Rebecca

      July 27, 2022 at 2:12 pm

      5 stars
      Looking forward to trying this recipe. Wondering if anyone has ever used marmite instead of miso?

      Reply
    9. osei

      June 02, 2022 at 7:21 pm

      5 stars
      wow, so simple, so easy, so fast, so delicious, this is to good to be true

      Reply
      • Elizabeth Shah

        July 21, 2022 at 1:13 pm

        Isn't it?!

        Reply
    10. Robyn

      April 19, 2022 at 12:20 pm

      4 stars
      This exceeded my expectations. I didn't have miso so I subbed a teaspoon of soy sauce.

      After blending, I put it in the microwave for 1 minute which was perfect.

      This is definitely added to my rotation.

      Reply
    11. Alexandra

      April 05, 2022 at 3:57 pm

      5 stars
      Delicious and Easy, and no unusual ingredients.

      Reply
      • Elizabeth Shah

        April 20, 2022 at 1:10 pm

        Thanks!

        Reply
    12. Kimberley

      January 30, 2022 at 2:26 pm

      5 stars
      I've been having the worst acid reflux symptoms and needed to cut out a lot of foods from my diet but trying to figure out what to eat that I enjoyed was a task! When I came across this recipe I knew I just had to try it. Unlike many vegan sauces, this one doesn't contain cashews so it doesn't turn acid in my stomach. It was the one thing that I was able to digest easily with some quinoa pasta. Love this!

      Reply
      • Elizabeth Shah

        February 03, 2022 at 7:04 pm

        Hi Kimberly, While I love a cashew sauce, I realize they don't work for everyone. So glad this one is a good fit for your diet.

        Reply
    13. Jackson

      January 23, 2022 at 5:07 am

      5 stars
      An excellent recipe I can't wait to try it. Thank you

      Reply
      • Elizabeth Shah

        January 27, 2022 at 10:47 am

        Thanks so much. Enjoy!

        Reply
    14. Molly

      November 21, 2021 at 5:42 pm

      I'm going to make this with my bags of yellow split peas😊😊😊💛

      Reply
      • Elizabeth Shah

        November 22, 2021 at 10:08 am

        Wow, I'd love to hear how that goes!

        Reply
    15. Tracy

      September 30, 2021 at 10:45 pm

      If you made this thicker, then refrigerated it, would it become a block you could shred?

      Reply
      • Elizabeth Shah

        October 01, 2021 at 2:43 pm

        Nope, I don't believe that would work.

        Reply
    16. Tahira Akhtar

      September 26, 2021 at 7:35 am

      Was wondering could you use chickpea flour instead of chickpeas?

      Reply
      • Elizabeth Shah

        September 29, 2021 at 6:05 pm

        Hmm, I honestly don't know! I think the texture wouldn't be quite the same, but I'd love to hear how it works if you give it a try!

        Reply
    17. Jo

      August 10, 2021 at 5:40 am

      I can't find your note about a miso substitute for lower sodium, but you really should add too the main recipe that miso is not vegan unless it is specifically labeled as such. Miso contains tuna flakes

      Reply
      • Elizabeth Shah

        August 15, 2021 at 6:47 pm

        The substitutions for miso paste are at the bottom of the recipe. Miso paste does not contain tuna flakes--at least I've never found any that does. You might be thinking of miso soup or dashing--the Japanese broth made with bonito flakes.

        Reply
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    4.64 from 99 votes (67 ratings without comment)

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    My husband calls me his "healthy Midwestern girl," because I LOVE TO EAT! Fortunately, I also love to cook. I'm so excited to share my 100% vegan, whole food, plant-based, no oil recipes with you! MORE...

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