Instant Pot: Vegan Queso with Cauliflower

Name: Instant Pot: Vegan Queso with Cauliflower
Prep time: 2019-01-17T00:00:00+00:00
Total time: 2019-01-17T00:00:00+00:00
Yield: about 8 cups
Ingredients: 4 cups cauliflower florets (1 small head of cauliflower); 2 cups water; 1 1/2 cups thick cut carrot coins (3 small carrots); 1/2 cup raw cashews; 1/2 cup nutritional yeast; liquid drained from 2 cans (10 ounce/283 g) RO*TEL diced tomatoes and green chilies; 1 teaspoon smoked paprika; 1 teaspoon salt (or to taste); 1/2 teaspoon chili powder; 1/2 teaspoon jalapeno powder, optional; 1/4 teaspoon mustard powder; veggies from 2 cans (10 ounce/283 g) RO*TEL diced tomatoes and green chilies; 1 cup chopped bell peppers, optional; 1/4 cup minced red onions, optional; 1/2 cup minced cilantro

January 12, 2016 by Kathy Hester 33 Comments

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This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions and the recipe are mine alone. #YesYouCAN #CollectiveBias

I have the perfect game day appetizer for you today. Your friends and family will be excited to eat their fill of this homemade vegan queso. You will be thrilled because they are actually digging into a big bowl of creamy veggies!

Cauliflower is the surprise main ingredient along with carrots, cashews, and nutritional yeast. The cashews are what make this queso as creamy as the non-vegan version.

If you’re looking for a fancier vegan queso be sure to take a look at my Vegan Torchy’s Queso Copycat Made with Potato and Homemade Rojo Sauce!

The main ingredients of this queso are cauliflower, carrots, cashews, RO*TEL Diced Tomatoes and Green Chilies, and nutritional yeast. Pretty healthy, right?

I did my cooking in my Instant Pot, but you could also cook the cauliflower, water, carrots and cashews together on the stove. Just cook until the veggies are tender, then pour into a strainer over the sink to drain the extra water. Mostly you are softening the cashews and veggies so they will blend smooth and creamy.

Put the drained mixture along with the liquid drained from the canned tomatoes, nutritional yeast, and spices into your blender.

It will blend into a smooth and creamy dip that no one will guess is mostly veggies. From here, stir in the drained RO*TEL Diced Tomatoes and Green Chilies plus fresh chopped bell peppers and onions if you want to use them. My favorite mix-in is minced cilantro.

To make clean-up easier and chopping speedier, use your small food processor to do all the work on the fresh peppers and onions. Just pulse until everything is minced up the way you like it. Be sure to pay attention though or you’ll end up with veggie puree!

4.9 from 12 reviews

Vegan Queso with a Surprise Healthy Ingredient

Author: Kathy Hester

Recipe type: Appetizer

Serves: about 8 cups

Ingredients

For cooking:

4 cups cauliflower florets (1 small head of cauliflower)
2 cups water
1½ cups thick cut carrot coins (3 small carrots)
½ cup raw cashews

For Blending:

½ cup nutritional yeast
liquid drained from 2 cans (10 ounce/283 g) RO*TEL diced tomatoes and green chilies
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 teaspoon salt (or to taste)
½ teaspoon chili powder
½ teaspoon jalapeno powder, optional
¼ teaspoon mustard powder

Mix-ins:

veggies from 2 cans (10 ounce/283 g) RO*TEL diced tomatoes and green chilies
1 cup chopped bell peppers, optional
¼ cup minced red onions, optional
½ cup minced cilantro

Instructions

Add the cauliflower, water, carrots and cashews to your Instant Pot and cook on high pressure for 5 minutes, then carefully do a quick pressure release by moving the valve to release the pressure. Or add to a large saucepan and cook on the stove over medium heat until you can pierce the carrots easily with a fork.
Pour the cooked mixture into a strainer over the sink and drain the extra water.
Put the drained mixture along with the nutritional yeast, liquid drained from the canned tomatoes, smoked paprika, salt, chili powder, jalapeno powder, and mustard powder into your blender.
Scrape out the blender contents into mixing bowl and stir in the tomatoes and green chilis and any other veggies you're adding in.
You can serve it room temperature or keep it warm in a slow cooker

Vegan Queso with a Surprise Healthy Ingredient #YesYouCAN

27 reviews