Cheesy vegan scalloped potatoes (Dairy-free comfort food)

These cheesy scalloped potatoes are wonderfully rich and creamy. You’d never guess that there’s not a lick of dairy. And while many of us grew up making scalloped potatoes from a box, they simply can’t compare to homemade.

For this recipe, tender potatoes are enveloped in a custardy cashew cheese sauce for maximum comfort and decadence.

Thanks to a final few minutes under the broiler, the sauce covered potatoes get beautiful burnt bits on top that play against the soft and creamy interior.

Although there is a lengthy cooking time, most of it is hands-off while the potatoes bake until tender.

This homey side dish goes well with a simple salad for dinner. Or serve it at your next holiday gathering, like Thanksgiving, Christmas, or Easter.

It’s sure to elicit some ooh’s and aah’s from your dinner guests!

In this post:

Here are the ingredients you will need to make this recipe.

Potatoes: Choose small to medium-sized thin-skinned potatoes. Yellow, red, or Yukon Gold potatoes are fine.

You can either peel the potatoes or leave the peels on. Your choice. (If you decide to peel them, turn the peels into crispy air fryer potato peels!)

Raw cashews: Raw cashews are what make this recipe so magical. They create the rich and luxurious sauce. To help your wallet, I recommend using cashew pieces, because they are usually cheaper.

Better Than Bouillon: Use the vegetarian variety, no chicken base flavor.

Nutritional yeast flakes: This inactive yeast adds a cheesy flavor and umami. Look for it in the health food section or near the flours. It’s sold at Trader Joe’s, natural grocery stores, some big box stores like Walmart, and online.

(For more information, check out this helpful post about nutritional yeast.)

White miso paste: This fermented soybean paste adds salt and richness. Look for it in the refrigerated section of the grocery store. It’s often sold near the tofu. (If necessary, it can be omitted.)

Seasonings: Salt, granulated onion, and turmeric. (The turmeric is just for color.)

Avocado oil: Any neutral-flavored cooking oil will work here.

Shallots and garlic: Shallots are milder than onion but with a similar flavor profile. Depending on the size of your shallots, you’ll likely need either one very large shallot or two smaller ones.

All-purpose flour: If you need a gluten-free option, see the “make it your own” section below.

Non-dairy butter: Use whatever brand you prefer.

For this potato casserole recipe, the following cooking equipment is necessary or helpful.

Food processor or mandolin slicer: For the potatoes to soften properly, they need to be cut in thin, even slices. I recommend using the slicing function on a food processor or a mandoline.

High-speed blender: Raw cashews blend easiest in a high-speed blender like a Vitamix. However, if you don’t have one, I give workarounds for standard blenders in the notes section of the recipe card.

Garlic press or grater zester: If you’re not a fan of mincing, a garlic press or zester style grater comes in very handy.

Spatula and whisk: A flat whisk works especially nicely for getting any lumps out of the sauce.

Casserole dish: Use a 9 x 13 size dish, like you’d use on a lasagna. If you have a dish with a heat-safe fitted lid, that works especially well here. If not, you can use aluminum foil to cover before baking.

This section shows how to make this recipe at a glance with process photos of the steps. For complete ingredient amounts & instructions, keep scrolling to the recipe card below.

1. Use a food processor or mandoline to slice small to medium-sized potatoes (peeled or unpeeled) in ⅛-inch slices.

(I use the medium slicing blade on my food processor.)

2. Put the sliced potatoes into a bowl and cover with water, so that they keep their yellow color while you make the rest of the recipe.

3. Make the cashew cheese sauce by adding the following to a high-speed blender:

• Raw cashew pieces
• Water
• Better Than Bouillon, no chicken base
• Nutritional yeast flakes
• White miso paste
• Salt
• Granulated onion
• Turmeric

Blend until completely smooth.

(If you don’t have a high-speed blender, you’ll need to soak the raw cashews ahead of time or use one of my other workarounds. See the “standard blender instructions” in the notes section of the recipe card.)

4. Add thinly sliced shallots to an oiled skillet and saute. During the last minute of cooking, add minced garlic. Cook until fragrant and softened. Then move them to a separate plate. (It’s a little easier to get all of the lumps out of the sauce first without the shallots.)

5. Melt vegan butter in the skillet over medium heat. Then slowly add flour, incorporating it with the melted butter, and stirring constantly. Cook about two minutes until toasty brown.

6. Slowly whisk in the sauce from the blender, stirring constantly. Make sure to get everything on the bottom of the skillet while you cook and break up all the lumps.

7. Increase the heat to medium-high, and cook until the sauce is thick and bubbly, about 5 minutes. Add the cooked shallots and garlic back to the sauce. Then remove the skillet from the heat.

8. Now it’s time to put together the scalloped potatoes in the casserole dish. There will be three even layers of potatoes and sauce. Drain the potatoes and add the first layer to an oiled casserole dish. Don’t worry about being super orderly.

9. Top the potatoes with about a third of the cheese sauce.

10. Add another layer of potatoes. Then pour or ladle on more cheese sauce.

11. Add one final layer of potatoes, and cover it with the remaining cheese sauce.

12. Cover the casserole dish with a fitted lid or aluminum foil, and bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.

Remove lid or foil and bake 35 more minutes. (You’ll know it’s done when the potatoes are fork tender, and the creamy sauce is bubbling.) 

Finish by broiling for about 4 minutes to brown the top.

13. Remove the dairy-free scalloped potatoes from the oven. Allow them to cool for about 5 minutes, and serve.

You can make this tantalizing side dish your own by varying the ingredients.

• Peel the potatoes or leave them unpeeled
• Omit the bouillon and replace some of the water with vegetable broth
• Replace all-purpose flour with an equal amount of a gluten-free flour blend, or ½ cup oat flour plus 2 Tablespoons chickpea flour
• Replace non-dairy butter with avocado oil (Butter is salty, so you may want to add more salt to the dish to compensate.)
• Add a pinch of cayenne to the cheese sauce mixture for heat
• Omit fresh garlic and add ½ teaspoon granulated garlic to the cashew cheese sauce mixture
• Replace avocado oil with any neutral-flavored cooking oil or non-dairy butter
• Replace shallots with yellow onion
• Add browned vegan ham, bacon, or sausage with the layers of potatoes
• Finish the scalloped potatoes with a sprinkling of paprika, berbere, or breadcrumbs before baking
• After cooking, garnish with chopped chives, parsley, or other fresh herbs

This comforting, dairy-free side dish is ideal for a cozy fall dinner or winter celebration.

Serve it with any of these main courses or sides:

• Vegan schnitzel
• Vegan turkey roast
• Stuffed acorn squash with vegan sausage and apple
• Vegan fried chicken drumsticks
• Black-eyed peas & collard greens
• Grilled portobello mushrooms
• Green bean casserole (vegan)
• Vegan chef salad
• Asparagus fries
• Roasted Brussels sprouts with apples & caramelized onions
• Broccolini with garlic & kale

Store leftovers in a covered container in the refrigerator. It will keep for 4 to 5 days.

They also freeze well in an airtight, freezer-safe container for up to 2 months. If you’re reheating from frozen, move the scalloped potatoes to the refrigerator to thaw before reheating, or use the defrost function on the microwave.

To reheat, bake at 350 degrees for 30 to 40 minutes, until warmed through. Or reheat individual servings in the microwave.

📖 Recipe

Cheesy vegan scalloped potatoes

Author: Cadry Nelson

5 from 1 vote

Side dishes don't get more comforting than these decadent, cheesy potatoes. Sliced potatoes are enveloped in a custard-like cashew cream and cooked until tender. Serve this delicious and cozy dish for Sunday dinner or your next holiday gathering.

Print Pin Rate

Prep Time: 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour hour 35 minutes minutes

Total Time: 1 hour hour 45 minutes minutes

Servings: 8 people

Course: Side Dish

Cuisine: American, Vegan

Keyword: casserole, holiday food, thanksgiving recipe

Ingredients

• ▢ 2 pounds potatoes thin-skinned, small to medium sized (about 7 smallish potatoes)
• ▢ 1 cup raw cashew pieces soaked if necessary
• ▢ 4 cups water plus more for soaking potatoes
• ▢ 1 teaspoon Better Than Bouillon no chicken base
• ▢ ¾ cup nutritional yeast flakes
• ▢ 1 teaspoon white miso paste
• ▢ 1 teaspoon salt
• ▢ 1 teaspoon granulated onion
• ▢ ⅛ teaspoon turmeric
• ▢ 1 teaspoon avocado oil plus more for oiling baking dish
• ▢ ½ heaping cup thinly sliced shallots
• ▢ 3 cloves garlic minced
• ▢ 3 Tablespoons non-dairy butter
• ▢ ½ cup all-purpose flour

Instructions

• ▢
  Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly oil a 9 x 13 baking dish and set aside.
• ▢
  If you like, peel the potatoes. Then cut the potatoes into ⅛-inch slices. For the best thin slices, I recommend using the slice function on your food processor or a mandoline. (I use the medium slicing blade on my food processor.)
• ▢
  Put the sliced potatoes into a bowl and cover with water, so that they don't brown while you make the rest of the recipe. Set aside while you cook.
• ▢
  Add the following to a high-speed blender: raw cashew pieces, 4 cups water, bouillon, nutritional yeast flakes, white miso paste, salt, granulated onion, and turmeric. Blend until completely smooth. (You'll know it's done when you don't hear any crunching sounds in the blender from the cashews breaking up.)

  Don't have a high-speed blender? Standard blenders struggle to break up cashews completely without some help. Follow the workarounds in the notes section of the recipe card.
• ▢
  Bring a skillet to a medium heat and add avocado oil. Add thinly sliced shallots and saute about 5 minutes. During the last minute of cooking, add minced garlic. Once the shallots and garlic have softened and are fragrant, use a spatula to move them to a plate and set aside.

  (If you'd prefer, you can keep the shallots and garlic in the skillet, but it's a little easier to get all the lumps out of the sauce without them.)
• ▢
  Add non-dairy butter to the skillet and melt it. Slowly add flour, incorporating it with the melted butter and stirring constantly. Cook for about 2 minutes as the flour becomes toasty brown.
• ▢
  Slowly whisk in the sauce from the blender, stirring constantly, and making sure to get everything on the bottom of the skillet while you cook. Increase the heat to medium-high, and cook until the sauce is thick and bubbly, about 5 minutes. Stir in the sauteed shallots and garlic. Then remove the sauce from heat.
• ▢
  Drain the sliced potatoes.
• ▢
  Now it's time to put together the scalloped potatoes with three layers of potatoes and sauce.

  Start by putting the first shallow layer of potato slices into the oiled casserole dish. (Use about a third of the potatoes.) Don't worry about being super orderly. Then evenly cover the potato slices with about a third of the cheese sauce.
• ▢
  Add another layer of potatoes and cover it with more cheese sauce.
• ▢
  Add one final layer of potatoes, and cover it with the remaining cheese sauce.
• ▢
  Cover the casserole dish with a fitted lid or aluminum foil. Put it into the oven and bake for 45 minutes. Remove lid or foil and bake for 35 more minutes. (You'll know it's done when the potatoes are tender and the liquid is bubbly.)
• ▢
  Finish by broiling for about 4 minutes to brown the top of the potatoes. (Broilers vary by oven. Keep an eye on it, so that they don't get overly done.)
• ▢
  Remove from oven, and allow to cool for about 5 minutes. Then serve.

Notes

Standard blender instructions

If you’re using a high-speed blender, you don’t need to soak the raw cashews before blending. However, if you’re using a standard blender, you’ll need to help the blender to break down the raw cashews fully.

Choose one of these 4 options to soften the cashews. #1 is my preferred option. 

1. Grind the dry raw cashews in a coffee grinder until they have the consistency of flour. (Because of the large amount of cashews, you’ll likely need to grind them in batches.) Then add the ground cashews to the blender with the other cashew cheese sauce ingredients. 
2. Put raw cashews in a bowl, cover them in water, and allow them to soak for a few hours to soften them. Then drain the cashews and add them to the blender with the other ingredients.
3. Boil the raw cashews in water for 15 minutes. Then drain & add to the blender.
4. Microwave raw cashews in water for 2 minutes. Then drain & add to the blender.

Storage instructions

Store leftovers in a covered container in the refrigerator. They will keep for 4 to 5 days. They also freeze well.

If you’re reheating from frozen, move the scalloped potatoes to the refrigerator to thaw, or use the defrost function on the microwave.

Reheating instructions

Leftovers can be reheated at 35o degrees for 30 to 40 minutes, or until warmed through. Or individual servings can be reheated in the microwave until warm.

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Nutrition

Calories: 267kcal | Carbohydrates: 33g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 12g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 6g | Trans Fat: 1g | Sodium: 371mg | Potassium: 685mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 4IU | Vitamin C: 23mg | Calcium: 28mg | Iron: 3mg