Nutritional Yeast Is Your Secret For A 'Cheesy' Vegan Pasta

One of the only downsides to leading a plant-based lifestyle is that, although the vegan market is growing, it's still significantly smaller than the established animal nutrition market, which can limit access to vegan food items like plant-based cheese. Even if you find a vegan cheese you enjoy for dishes like pasta, it can be unsustainably expensive, which is just one reason why nutritional yeast is the secret to ultra-cheesy pasta sans dairy.

Nutritional yeast flaunts a naturally savory, nutty, umami-dense flavor that resembles the decadent richness of cheese derived from dairy. But it's not just the flavor that mimics cheese. Nooch, as the cool kids call it, is flaky like finely grated parmesan and yellow like cheddar, making it a visually accurate, deceptively cheesy dairy substitute for pasta-craving vegans. It can be dusted atop a pasta dish or blended with other ingredients to create a silky-smooth, undeniably creamy cheese sauce for your favorite pasta noodles.

Beyond its cheesy taste and appearance, nutritional yeast lives up to its name when it comes to nutritive value. Nooch is a protein, vitamin, and mineral-rich food high in B vitamins and trace minerals like zinc, selenium, and manganese. 

Among vegans, nutritional yeast has long been regarded as a cheese dupe. But what exactly is nooch? And why is it so cheesy? After all, isn't yeast something used to brew beer and make bread?

Yeast is a living, single-celled fungi found everywhere in nature. In fact, there's probably yeast in the air around you right now. Like other fungi such as mushrooms, yeast comes in different shapes and sizes, and each has its own purpose. Some are best for making alcohol, while others are best for making bread or cooking with — nutritional yeast is the latter. More specifically, nooch is made from saccharomyces cerevisiae yeast, which is typically fermented with carbohydrates that facilitate its growth before being deactivated via pasteurization. During this process, the yeast's cell walls decompose and release glutamic acid — an amino acid responsible for the umami flavor profile. Before it's pulverized into a flaky powder, it's toasted to develop a nutty flavor that complements its savory bravado, leading to an ultra-cheesy taste.

Though it can be eaten right out of the jar in its solid state, nutritional yeast is water soluble, which means it dissolves in liquids. When it's combined with other liquids, nooch disappears, but its flavors remain, making it ideal for dairy-free pasta sauce.

Sprinkling nutritional yeast over your noodles is an easy way to introduce bold, savory, and cheesy flavors into plant-based pasta dishes. However, you can also blend nooch with other vegan ingredients to create something ultra creamy and akin to Alfredo sauce. In many non-vegan pasta sauces, heavy cream is the secret weapon for developing that luscious consistency. However, heavy cream isn't plant-based, so you should reach for a fatty, plant-based creamer or milk instead. Oat milk or creamer is a mild-flavored, ultra-creamy dairy alternative that's high in fat, making it an ideal substitute for heavy cream. When oat milk isn't available, almond, hemp, cashew, and soy milk or creamer are other great options.

Don't just blend vegan milk with nooch — introduce cashews to the mix. Because they're high in fat and surprisingly creamy, soaked cashews can bolster the lush consistency of the milk, while adding a nutty flavor that's found in many cheeses.

Although it might sound strange, regular or Dijon mustard is another ingredient that can zhuzh up vegan cheese. Mustard acts as an emulsifier while adding a dash of tanginess that mirrors the complexity of dairy cheese. And don't forget seasonings to round things out. Garlic and onion powder will add a satisfying allium flair while paprika adds a smoky dimension and a pinch of salt will enhance all of the little details of your nooch pasta sauce. Oh, and one last thing – make sure your pasta noodles are vegan-friendly!