Vegan Sour Cream

Add a dollop of dairy-free sour cream to Mexican and Midwestern dishes, such as tacos, nachos, corn tortillas, black bean soup, lentil chili, to baked potatoes and soup recipes.

You can even use it as a salad dressing (it’s a must-try on our black bean salad) or as a dip.

It’s excellent for all eaters as the recipe is gluten-free, vegan, dairy-free, and soy-free.

The taste is slightly nutty, almost cheesy, but neutral overall, making it an excellent condiment for most dishes.

The tanginess comes from lemon and vinegar since we don’t use lactic acid.

To achieve the creamiest, silkiest texture, you have two options.

Either use a high-speed blender like a Vitamix or soak the cashew nuts in hot water for about 1 to 2 hours before blending them.

Ingredients

Cashew nuts

Cashew nuts are our ingredient of choice in making this vegan sour cream.

We’ve tried silken tofu, coconut cream, and coconut milk but were not impressed by their flavor, so we recommend sticking with cashew nuts.

With cashew nuts, you can make sour cream with a creamy texture comparable, if not better, to Kite Hill and Tofutti sour creams.

Water

Water is used twice in this recipe. First, we use hot water to soak the cashews (this step is not required if you have a high-speed blender like Vitamix).

Then we rinse the soaked nuts and blend them with cold tap water.

You can add more or less water based on how thin or thick you want your sour cream to be.

Lemon juice

Lemon juice adds that sour, tangy feeling, but make sure you don’t blend any lemon seeds. It happened once to us, and they made our recipe super bitter.

Apple cider vinegar

Like the lemon, apple cider vinegar adds acidity and a slightly sour taste.

Salt

We recommend sea salt or kosher salt.

Chives

We love to sprinkle some finely chopped fresh chives on this cream. Substitute with fresh dill.

How to make vegan sour cream

Soaking is required if you are using a regular blender or food processor. It’s not required but recommended if you have a high-speed blender like Vitamix.

Soak the cashews with hot water for about 1 hour.

Drain and rinse the soaked nuts and add them to the blender with water, lemon juice, apple cider vinegar, and salt.

Blend at high speed until silky smooth. It might take from 3 to 7 minutes. Add more water if you want thinner sour cream.

Serving suggestions

This vegan sour cream is versatile, and thanks to its neutral flavor and creamy texture, it elevates many vegetarian dishes:

• As a sour cream substitute: add it on top of Mexican food with a spoonful of guacamole and pico de gallo. Sour cream pairs well with sweet potato chili, breakfast burrito, Mexican rice and refried beans.
  
• To replace cheese and butter: you can use it to substitute cheese on pizza and pasta bakes. Add a few tablespoons on top of the pizza after baking.
  
  You can make pasta recipes and risotto creamy with sour cream instead of melty cheese or butter. Add a dollop of vegan sour cream to the pasta or risotto towards the end before serving.
  
• To drizzle on veggies: it’s perfectly paired with baked potato, baked sweet potatoes, grilled eggplant, roasted zucchini, and stuffed bell peppers.
  
• As a cream substitute in soups: in mushroom soup, potato leek soup, or add a dollop of cream on top of zucchini soup.

One-pot Meals

Sweet Potato Chili

Mains

Stuffed Bell Peppers

Starters

Guacamole

Dips and Spreads

Pico de Gallo