You need to meet my new favorite sauce that I’ve been mixing into pasta, drizzling over my quinoa and tacos, smearing over rice cakes, dipping quesadillas and chips into it and even putting on my BLTs as a dairy free mayo alternative.
It’s my jalapeno cashew cream sauce and I promise, you’re going to LOVE it.
You won’t believe how creamy, smooth, flavorful with a hint of heat that this sauce is. Trust your girl and make this recipe ASAP. You can keep it in the fridge for a week, freeze it, or make my yummy pasta salad recipe with it (coming soon!).
Ingredients in cashew cream sauce
This easy vegan cashew cream sauce recipe has just five core ingredients that create a luscious, flavor sauce that tastes even better than the bottled alfredo or spicy ranch. Here’s what you’ll need:
- Raw cashews: raw cashews are the base of this vegan cashew sauce recipe, and when soaked and blended with a little water or milk they create a super creamy & nutritious cashew sauce full of fiber, protein and healthy fats. You’ll need to soak them for at least 2 hours, but I’ve also added a way to speed up the process to only 20-30 minutes in the instructions of this recipe.
- Lemon juice: this helps to brighten the sauce up. Make sure to use FRESH squeezed lemon juice. If you’re out of lemon juice, feel free to sub fresh squeezed lime juice.
- Garlic: for a little boost of flavor.
- Spices: we’re just using a bit of onion powder, salt & pepper.
- Jalapeño: we’re adding a whole, seeded jalapeño for a wonderful kick of heat! Feel free to omit if you’re serving kids or are sensitive to spice.
How to make vegan cashew cream sauce
- First, soak the cashews in 2 cups of warm water for at least 2 hours; otherwise I’ve found that you can easily speed up the process by adding the raw cashews to a pot with water and placing over high heat. Bring water to a boil, then immediately turn off the heat; let the cashews sit for about 30 minutes in the hot water, then drain.
- Once the cashews have finished soaking you’ll be ready to make the sauce: add drained cashews, fresh water, jalapeno, garlic, fresh lemon juice, salt, onion powder and black pepper to a blender. Blend on high until sauce comes together.
- If you want a bit of a thinner sauce, add 1-2 tablespoons more water. Makes roughly 1 cup sauce.
Customize your cashew cream sauce
If you want to have a little fun, feel free to add in mix-ins to adapt this sauce for unique flavors. Leave out the jalapeno, or keep it in and try adding in any of the following:
- cilantro
- parsley
- a touch of dijon mustard for a little tang
- curry powder
- fresh ginger to drizzle over things like rice & quinoa bowls
- turmeric for brightness + earthy flavor (would be great paired with a little ginger!)
How to store and reheat vegan cream sauce
In the refrigerator: this delicious vegan cashew cream sauce recipe will stay good in your fridge for up to 5 days in an airtight container. To reheat, simply pour it into a microwave-safe container and reheat it in the microwave until nice and warm. You may need to add a tablespoon or two of water (or pasta water if adding to pasta right away) if it’s become too thick.
In the freezer: you can also easily freeze this recipe! Simply add the cashew cream sauce to a freezer-safe container or bag and place it in your freezer. When you’re ready to us it, let the cream sauce thaw in the fridge before using it. You may need to blend it with a bit more water if you’re finding that it’s too thick.
Amazing recipes to use this cashew cream sauce
Besides sneaking little spoonfuls of it, try this easy cashew cream sauce tossed with your favorite pasta dishes, drizzled over roasted veggies or grain bowls, poured over tacos and enchiladas and more. Here are some great recipes to try it with:
Street Corn Pasta Salad with Cilantro Pesto + Goat Cheese
Jalapeño Sweet Potato Black Bean Tacos with Avocado-Lime Crema
Vegan Sweet Potato Buddha Bowl
Date Night In Cilantro Pistachio Pesto Shrimp Pasta
Sweet Potato Black Bean Enchiladas with Avocado Lime Crema
I hope you love this delicious jalapeño cashew cream sauce! If you make this recipe, please leave a comment and rate the recipe below. We appreciate it. xo!
Ambitious Kitchen
Cookbook
125 Ridiculously Good For You, Sometimes Indulgent, and Absolutely Never Boring Recipes for Every Meal of the Day
Jalapeño Cashew Cream Sauce
Ingredients
- ¾ cup raw cashews*
- 1/3 cup water, plus 2 tablespoons more if necessary
- 1 medium jalapeno, seeded
- 1 clove garlic
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- Freshly ground back pepper
Instructions
- Soak the cashews in 2 cups of warm water for at least 2 hours; otherwise I've found that you can easily speed up the process by adding the raw cashews to a pot with water and placing over high heat. Bring water to a boil, then immediately turn off the heat; let the cashews sit for about 30 minutes in the hot water, then drain.
- Once the cashews have finished soaking you'll be ready to make the sauce: add drained cashews, fresh water, jalapeno, garlic, fresh lemon juice, salt, onion powder and black pepper to a blender. Blend on high until sauce comes together. If you want a bit of a thinner sauce, add 1-2 tablespoons more water. Makes roughly 1 cup sauce. Serves 4.
Nutrition
Recipe by: Monique Volz // Ambitious Kitchen | Photography by: Eat Love Eats
just wondering if I can substitute white beans as allergic to ALL nuts and seeds:(
I haven’t tried it but I don’t see why not! The flavor will likely be different and you might need to add more or less water to blend!
Monique! This recipe was insanely delicious! I replicated the pasta salad, too. My mom and I both made this recipe and the pasta salad this evening over FaceTime in different cities – we haven’t seen each other since Feb. cause ‘rona so in an attempt to have together time we decided to pick a recipe and cook it together virtually 🙂 Everyone was obsessed and stuffed (she cooked for my dad, brother, and his girl … I cooked for my hubs). What a fresh, creamy and satisfying sauce – ahhhh! Cilantro was a welcome add-in. Thanks!!
Amazing! So glad you were able to share with your mom 🙂 love that!
All I have to say is, this will be my go to dressing. I’m obsessed! Followed the recipe- no mods: Enjoyed it with a chicken/black bean quinoa bowl and it was so good! Thank you!
So happy to hear that!
Just made it and it tastes like garlic mayo with a hint of spiciness. Absolutely love it! I don’t have onion powder and used pickled jalapenos but I don’t think anything went wrong ☺
Isn’t the flavor amazing? Pickled jalapeño sounds delicious, too 🙂
oh wow, I love adding jalapenos to my dressings, sauces and smoothies but somehow I’ve yet to mix cashews and jalapenos together 😍 I’ll give this a try, thanks!
Love that! Hope you like this one, too 🙂
Delicious. I made it 2 different times- once soaking the cashews for 2 hours and once doing it the quick way by boiling water. Both turned out great!
Perfect! Love it!
LOVE THIS RECIPE! I use it generally as a dairy-free creamy salad dressing to pair with a taco salad. Sometimes I will throw in some Greek yogurt to give it a little tang and make it even creamier.
So good!! Great idea to add some greek yogurt, too 🙂
Another great (and easy) recipe of yours that I’ve made. Thanks! I tried to find a cashew cream at the store for a dressing and couldn’t find one. This is great – used it in a salad with black rice, avocado, mango salsa, and some chicken. So good!
Made with cilantro and have been using on bowls and a dip for sweet potato fries! It’s so delicious I can eat it by the spoonful
Love it! Great idea 🙂
Super deeeelicious!!!
This is amazing. I make it once a week and we eat it with almost everything!!
Ahh I love that! It seriously goes with just about everything 😍
This is delicious! I made the BLT salad which includes this dressing. I kept the seeds in and we added a little sriracha. Will absolutely have again and will give to my dairy-free friends.
Nice!! So happy you tried and loved it. Good call to amp up the spice!
Is there nutrition facts for this? I sm interested in trying. Will a regular blender be okay ?
This was a huge hit!!!! So so good!!!! Made on the thicker side—-no leftovers!!!
Yay! I am excited this recipe is a hit 🙂
I followed the recipe exactly, and the sauce came out tasting soooo good. I had to go dairy free for my breastfed baby, and this is the creamiest thing I’ve had in months!! I’m making the BLT pasta salad and adding this to it but now I’m soaking cashews for a second batch of sauce to use during the week. You never miss with your recipes!
Amazing! Love this sauce so much, glad it turned out great for you 🙂
I am going to make this with roasted salted cashews…will it still work??
Yes it will!
I will be making this sauce soon
Hope you love it!
Is this with a food processor? Or reg blender? How do you get the garlic and jalapeños ground down? Or is it clumpy?
About to make it just curious
I use a blender and it should all turn out creamy!
I’ve made this twice now and really enjoyed it! I used it in a pasta salad and chicken tacos (both AK recipes) and it was great, and I get to feel good about what’s in it. The first time I made it, it was a little too gritty for my taste. I wasn’t sure if I didn’t soak the cashews long enough, my food processor wasn’t the right tool for it, or didn’t add enough water (probably all three). The second time I made it I used my high quality blender and continued to add more water until it was a consistency I preferred. I also love making this ahead of time so it’s one less thing to do later.
Love that! And yes, the sauce goes with SO many things so it’s great to have on hand.
Delicious! I made the recipe as written and to save on time, I made the cashew cream sauce and the spice mixture 2 days ahead of time. Don’t skip the cashew cream sauce; it’s such a great addition. We’ll definitely be making this again!
Great tip for saving time! Glad you enjoyed 🙂