Cozy and delicious, chunks of gorgeous cauliflower, smothered in cheese sauce and topped with cheesy crunchy breadcrumbs. What could be nicer than a big dish of vegan cauliflower cheese!
Everyone needs to know how to make Vegan Cauliflower Cheese! It has all the flavours of the original, but vegan! I also have a great trick to ensure that your cauliflower cheese is never watery or sloppy. In fact, my husband recently said that my version of cauliflower cheese is better than any he has ever had, vegan or not. High praise indeed.
Cauliflower cheese is an essential part of any traditional Sunday Lunch or Roast dinner, so be sure to include this vegan version every time. It goes particularly well with my favourite Roast Potatoes and Vegan Onion and Red Wine Gravy. If you're looking for an excellent vegan main dish for a veggie roast dinner or even Christmas, why not try this Chickpea and Sage Stuffed Butternut Squash or my favourite Vegan Lentil and Seed Roast.
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📜Key Ingredients
Now, don't panic. Just because this is a vegan cauliflower cheese dish, doesn't mean that it has loads of expensive ingredients in it. In fact, it's based on a simple roux (white sauce or bechamel sauce), just with those two vegan staples added to it for the cheesy taste: Miso and Nutritional Yeast. These two wonder ingredients (without which my kitchen would be very much bereft) together somehow form the perfect 'cheesy' taste. Add a little mustard and no one will know that the cauliflower cheese you have just served up is vegan!!
- Cauliflower: You can use any caulifower you like with this recipe. The classic white version, or for fun, a Romanesco cauliflower.
- Bechamel or White Sauce: The classic white sauce (bechamel sauce) is so easy to make vegan. Just use olive oil or vegan butter and swap the milk for oat milk or your favourite milk.
- Nutritional Yeast: This gives a lovely cheesy flavour to the whole dish, which is after all, the point of cauliflower cheese!
- Miso paste: this adds to that cheezy and savoury flavour. It's also a healthy and fermented product!
- A little Dijon Mustard: Adds to the overall cheesy flavour.
- Plant milk - unsweetened oat or soya are my favourite.
- Plain (All Purpose) flour: this forms the base of the roux. You can choose to use gluten free flour if you like.
Optional: a crispy crunchy topping. (I say it's optional, but really it's so good, you should absolutely have it.)
- Panko Breadcrumbs- Crunchy and perfect for topping the bechamel sauce.
- A little olive oil- scrunch a little oil into the breadcrumbs for a lovely golden effect.
- Seasonings - eg nutritional yeast, chilli flakes, herbs and salt
- Vegan cheese. - optional, but great if you want an extra cheesy taste.
👩🍳How To
For the full recipe and ingredient quantities, please see the recipe card below, but here's a step-by-step with images for you.
1.Chop up the cauliflower florets into bite size pieces and air fry or wok fry them until a little charred and softened.
2. Make the bechamel. First toast the flour in the oil or melted vegan butter until it gets a little golden.
3. Bit by bit add the plant milk. Whisk continuously until smooth, thickened and creamy. Add the nutritional yeast, miso and mustard. Whisk again to incorporate.
4. Arrange the cauliflower florets in an oven proof dish. Pour over the bechamel sauce.
5. Make the crunchy topping by mixing a little olive oil with panko and some seasonings.
6. Sprinkle the crunchy topping over the cauliflower cheese. Add extra vegan cheese if you like. Bake in the oven or under a hot grill until bubbly and golden.
❗Top Tip
Avoid soggy cauliflower cheese by air-frying or dry wok-frying your cauliflower. You can also oven-bake it too, but this takes longer. Steamed or boiled cauliflower is too wet and makes the whole thing unappetizing.
- To Air fry- simply pop in the air fryer for 5 minutes. See this method for full details.
- To Wok-fry- Heat the wok, pop the cauliflower florets into the wok and put a lid on. This will char the outer edges while ensuring that the cauliflower cooks through.
🥦Variations & Substitutions
The great thing about mastering this vegan cauliflower cheese, is it makes a good base recipe for fancier versions:
- Gluten Free- swap out the flour in the bechamel for gluten free flour and use gluten free panko breadcrumbs
- Spicy- add in some gochujang sauce when adding in the miso for a spicy take on the classic cheese sauce.
- Curry- Add a teaspoon of garam masala for a subtle but fun curried cauliflower cheese.
- Broccoli or Romanesco Cheese- Choose green broccoli or those fun Romanesco cauliflowers. The Romanesco cauliflowers look like little pine trees, perfect for Christmas Dinner!
- Extra Cheesy: Add vegan cheese into the the bechamel sauce for extra cheesy flavour.
- Different crunchy toppings: Choose baharat spice, smoked paprika or oregano to add different spices to the crunchy panko topping.
❓FAQ
No this recipe is completely nut free (just ensure you use a nut free vegan milk).
Yes, make this a day or two ahead and finish off in the oven. Assemble it all, and leave it covered in the fridge. Bring to room temperature then bake as normal.
You can use romanesco cauliflower, ordinary white cauliflower, or any that you please. It also tastes great with broccoli!
We like to buy it online. It makes a great cheesy flavour.
I do this as in combination with nutritional yeast it adds a salty, cheesy flavour that reminds me of sharp cheddar.
Soggy and watery cauliflower cheese is caused by boiling or steaming the cauliflower. Wok or air fry the cauliflower first for a great vegan cauliflower cheese.
🥗Serving Ideas
Serve this yummy dish up with loads of other festive dishes like these:
Blushing Beetroot & Potato Boulangere
Vegan Lentil and Seed Nutless Roast
Mustard Roasted Parsnips and Chestnuts
The Best Crispy Roast Potatoes
And if you need some more inspiration or a lovely gift for a friend, vegan or otherwise who loves to cook, why not get our lovely Cookbook: Festive Feasts! Head to this link to buy!!
📖 Recipe
Vegan Cauliflower Cheese
Ingredients Note:
For accuracy, I measure all ingredients in metric as standard, then convert and test the recipe for American cup measurements etc.
(Heads up Aussie and UK readers- your measurements in cups are sometimes different, so please use metric or check you have the correct cup and spoon type!!)
Ingredients
- 1 head (1 ) cauliflower (or romanesco cauliflower either is fine!)
- 35 g (¼ cup) plain flour
- 60 ml (¼ cup) sunflower oil (or olive oil)
- 500 ml (2 cups) plant milk (unsweetened oat or soya is best)
- 1 tablespoon (1 tablespoon) miso
- 1 tablespoon (1 tablespoon) dijon mustard
- 1 tablespoon (1 tablespoon) nutritional yeast
- Salt and pepper to taste
For the crunchy topping
- 2 tablespoon (2 tablespoon) grated vegan cheese
- 50 g (⅔ cups) panko breadcrumbs
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon nutritional yeast
- ½ teaspoon smoked paprika- optional. (or any other spice you fancy. Chilli powder, baharat. )
Instructions
Prepare the cauliflower
- Cut the cauliflower into large florets. Trim the stalk and chop too1 head cauliflower
- Spray with a little oil and air fry at 180°C /356 °F for 5 minutes.
- ALTERNATIVELY- Heat a large wok or frying pan, add the cauliflower florets and cook until they just catch.
- Put a large lid on over the florets and let their natural water content steam them for 3-5 minutes until softened
Make the cheese sauce
- In a pan, gently heat the oil and add the flour60 ml sunflower oil, 35 g plain flour
- Stir the flour until it starts to colour a soft brown. This prevents the sauce tasting 'floury'
- Add the plant milk bit by bit, whisking all the time to prevent lumps forming500 ml plant milk
- Once a smooth sauce is achieved, whisk in the miso, nutritional yeast and mustard1 tablespoon miso, 1 tablespoon dijon mustard, 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast, Salt and pepper to taste
- Taste and add more of the flavourings if you want a stronger taste
To make the crunchy topping
- Mix together the panko, a little olive oil and seasonings. Mix to cover all the panko in a little oil. This ensures it browns nicely.2 tablespoon grated vegan cheese, 50 g panko breadcrumbs, 1 teaspoon olive oil, 1 teaspoon nutritional yeast, ½ teaspoon smoked paprika- optional.
To assemble the cauliflower cheese
- In an oven proof dish, arrange the cauliflower florets and stems. Use the stems to lift up some florets so they point up further than others for a cute 'mountain' effect
- Gently pour over the cheese sauce
- Sprinkle over the panko mixture and the vegan cheese if using.
- Bake in a moderate (180°C/Gas Mark 4/350°F) oven for 15-20 minutes until bubbling and golden.
- Serve immediately
Notes
- To Air fry- simply pop in the air fryer for 5 minutes. See this method for full details.
- To Wok-fry- Heat the wok, pop the cauliflower florets into the wok and put a lid on. This will char the outer edges while ensuring that the cauliflower cooks through.
Nutrition
Charla says
Makes a change from my usual vegan cheesy mash, thanks for sharing!
Jess says
This is the ONLY way to eat cauliflower!
Dana says
This is so so good! Nutritional yeast is magical and the addition of Dijon adds the perfect tanginess.
Tara says
Breadcrumbs, vegan cheese and cauliflower - yummm! So comforting and delicious!
Colleen says
I made this for a pot luck, and the cauliflower cheese was a huge hit. I want to try the cheese sauce for mac & cheese too, and all kinds of other dishes. Delicious!