Frederic Melton
Vegan pizza is a delicious and environmentally-friendly alternative to traditional pizza. It is made without any animal products, including milk, which is used to make cheese. There are several options for vegan cheese on pizza, including store-bought options like Miyoko's cashew-based mozzarella and Daiya's dairy-free mozzarella, or homemade versions made with cashews, white beans, nutritional yeast, garlic, lemon juice, white miso paste, salt, and arrowroot powder. These vegan cheeses can be used to create pizzas with various toppings, such as vegetables, vegan pepperoni, or plant-based meat alternatives.
| Characteristics | Values |
|---|---|
| Base ingredients | Cashews, white beans, chickpeas, rice starch, macadamia nuts, coconut oil, tapioca starch, arrowroot powder, potato starch |
| Texture | Stretchy, bubbly, light, thin, wetter consistency, more or less dense |
| Taste | Mild, nutty, cardboard-y, sweet |
| Colour | Greyish white |
| Feel | Like real cheese |
| Melting point | Melts at 550°F (290°C) |
| Baking time | 60-90 seconds |
| Baking temperature | 800°F (425°C) |
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What You'll Learn
Making your own vegan cheese
Ingredients
Start by gathering your ingredients. For a cashew-based cheese, you'll need raw cashews, water, nutritional yeast, garlic, lemon juice, white miso paste, salt, and a thickening agent like arrowroot powder or tapioca starch. If you prefer a nut-free option, you can substitute white beans for cashews. Additionally, you can include optional ingredients like agar for a firmer texture or dried herbs for added flavour.
Soaking and Blending
Begin by soaking your cashews in hot water for about 5 minutes to an hour. This softening process will make blending easier. After soaking, drain the cashews and add them to a high-powered blender. For a basic cashew cheese, blend the cashews with water, lemon juice, salt, and your chosen thickening agent. You can adjust the amounts of these ingredients to fine-tune the creaminess and flavour of your cheese. For added flavour, include nutritional yeast, garlic, and white miso paste.
Cooking
Transfer your blended mixture to a small saucepan and stir constantly over medium heat. As the mixture heats up, it will gradually thicken. Be patient, as this process can take some time. Keep whisking to ensure even thickening. If you want a firmer cheese that can be grated or shredded, continue cooking until it reaches your desired consistency.
Cooling and Refrigerating
Once your cheese has thickened, remove it from the heat and let it cool to room temperature. At this point, you can use the cheese immediately by dolloping it onto your pizza. However, if you prefer a firmer texture, transfer the cheese to a container and refrigerate it. Refrigeration will cause the cheese to harden further. If you want a shreddable or sliceable cheese, you may need to make some adjustments to the recipe or include ingredients like agar.
Using Your Vegan Cheese
When you're ready to make your pizza, roll out your dough and place it on a pizza stone or pan. Spread your sauce evenly over the dough, then top with your homemade vegan cheese. Feel free to add your favourite vegetables or other toppings. If you want your cheese to brown and bubble, spray it lightly with oil before baking. Bake your pizza at a high temperature, around 550°F (290°C), for about 7 minutes, keeping a close eye on it to avoid overcooking.
Remember, making vegan cheese is a creative process, and you can adjust the ingredients and techniques to suit your tastes. Enjoy experimenting, and bon appétit!
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Store-bought vegan cheese options
There are a variety of store-bought vegan cheese options available for pizza. These are typically made from soy, cashews, or macadamia nuts, vegetable oils, such as coconut oil, and a thickening agent, such as tapioca starch or arrowroot powder. Local grocers like Whole Foods sell arrowroot powder in the baking section of the grocery store. Bob Red Mill's brand is a popular choice.
Some popular store-bought vegan cheese options include Follow Your Heart's Dairy-Free Parmesan, which is a great neutral-tasting, pre-shredded option that melts well in the oven. It can be used in baked pasta recipes, sprinkled over pizza, or added to pesto. Violife's Just Like Feta is another excellent choice, sold in blocks with a salty and briny taste, reminiscent of a mix of goat cheese and feta. For those who prefer pre-crumbled cheese, Follow Your Heart's Feta Crumbles is a tangy and sharp option that melts well.
For those who enjoy a more indulgent, cheesy flavor, Violife's Just Like Mature Cheddar is a good option. It has a strong, funky flavor and can be enjoyed hot or cold. If you're looking for a mozzarella option, Daiya's dairy-free mozzarella is a popular choice. It is tasty, healthy, and mimics the look and feel of real cheese when cooked, stretching, bubbling, and oozing. Miyoko's Cashew Milk Mozzarella is another mozzarella variety that performs well in terms of melt and flavor, although some find that it lacks the stretch of regular cheese.
With the increasing popularity of veganism, the availability and quality of store-bought vegan cheese options have improved significantly. These cheeses can be easily incorporated into recipes and used as toppings for pizzas, grilled cheese, paninis, or cheese bread.
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The best vegan cheese for pizza
Vegan cheese has come a long way, and there are now several options for those looking for a dairy-free pizza experience.
One of the most popular options for vegan cheese is Miyoko's Creamery, which offers a cashew-based fresh "mozzarella" with a wetter consistency than most other vegan pizza cheeses. Miyoko's Creamery is unique in that it eliminates caking agents, which can negatively affect meltability, and the cheese is specifically engineered to cook up like fresh mozzarella on pizza. It has a smooth and savory flavor with slightly nutty notes and achieves a stringy, strand-like consistency similar to milk-based mozzarella. The liquid form of Miyoko's Creamery cheese is also convenient, as it can be poured directly onto the pizza, eliminating the need for shredding or melting. However, some users have noted that the liquid form of Miyoko's cheese lacks the body and density of regular cheese and has zero stretch.
Another option for vegan cheese is to make your own at home. Recipes for vegan mozzarella often include raw cashews, nutritional yeast, garlic, lemon juice, white miso paste, salt, and arrowroot powder or other thickening agents. Homemade vegan cheese can be tailored to your preferred texture and flavor and can be made with simple, whole-food ingredients. However, making your own vegan cheese requires time and patience, as the thickening process can be time-consuming, and the cheese may need to be refrigerated or left to sit overnight to achieve the desired consistency.
For those looking for a store-bought option, there are several other brands of vegan cheese available, including Follow Your Heart, which is popular among junk-food lovers, and Daiya, which is known for its wide range of diet-friendly products, including dairy-free mozzarella. Other brands to consider are Violife, Chao, and Wegmans, which offer vegan cheese options that can be used on pizza.
When making a vegan pizza, it is important to consider the cooking temperature, as this can impact the melting and browning of the cheese. A temperature of around 550°F (290°C) for 7 minutes has been found to be effective for melting vegan cheese, and a higher temperature of 800°F (425°C) for 60 to 90 seconds can also be used, similar to the cooking time for dairy cheese.
Overall, the best vegan cheese for pizza depends on your personal preferences for flavor, texture, and convenience. Miyoko's Creamery, homemade cashew mozzarella, and store-bought options like Follow Your Heart and Daiya all offer unique advantages and can enhance your vegan pizza experience.
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How to assemble a vegan pizza
There are many ways to assemble a vegan pizza, and the process is quite similar to making a regular pizza. Here is a step-by-step guide on how to do it:
Prepare the Dough
First, prepare the dough. The basic formula for pizza dough is usually just water, flour, yeast, and salt. You can also add a tablespoon of sugar to activate the yeast. If you want a gluten-free option, choose gluten-free flour and skip the vital wheat gluten. For a chewier crust, you can also try using OO flour or all-purpose flour.
Roll Out the Dough
Once your dough is ready, roll it out on a floured surface. Stretch the dough to fit your pizza pan or stone. For a medium crust, you can roll the dough to about 14 inches. If you're using a pizza stone, place the dough on top of a cornmeal-covered stone, and shape it into a perfect circle.
Add the Sauce
After shaping the dough, it's time to add the sauce. Cover the entire surface of the dough with an even layer of sauce. You can use a simple tomato sauce, or get creative with a creamy cashew sauce or pesto. Make sure to leave a margin around the edge for the crust.
Choose Your Cheese
Now, it's time for the cheese. There are many options for vegan cheese, and the one you choose can make or break your pizza. You can go for store-bought options, like Daiya's dairy-free mozzarella, or Violife's vegan cheese, which are widely available. If you want to make your own, you can try a cashew-based cheese, a bean-based cheese, or even a liquid cheese. When using liquid cheese, remember to keep the layer thin so it can solidify in the oven.
Toppings Time
After the cheese, add your desired toppings. You can go for a classic combination of vegetables like broccoli, tomatoes, bell peppers, and onions. You can also add some spice with jalapeños and crushed red pepper flakes. If you want a meat-free meat option, try Impossible's meatless products, or UNCUT's plant-based Italian sausage.
Bake Your Pizza
Finally, it's time to bake. Preheat your oven to around 425-450°F (218-230°C). Place your pizza in the oven, and bake for about 15-20 minutes, or until the crust is golden and the toppings are cooked.
And there you have it! A delicious, vegan pizza, assembled and ready to be enjoyed. Feel free to experiment with different sauces, cheeses, and toppings to find your perfect combination.
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The difference between vegan and vegetarian pizza
Vegan and vegetarian diets have some similarities, but there is a distinct difference between vegan and vegetarian pizza. While a vegetarian pizza can include dairy cheese, a vegan pizza cannot include any animal products, including dairy.
Vegetarian pizza is a pizza that does not include meat. It can, however, include dairy products and eggs. This means that a classic cheese pizza can be considered vegetarian. For those who are vegetarian, there are many options for pizza toppings, including vegetables, spinach, and tomato sauce.
Vegan pizza, on the other hand, cannot include any animal products, including dairy. This means that vegans cannot eat dairy cheese, and must opt for dairy-free cheese alternatives. Some popular options for vegan cheese include cashew milk mozzarella, cashew mozzarella, and store-bought vegan cheese made from soy, cashews, or macadamia nuts. There are also recipes for homemade vegan cheese made from white beans, nutritional yeast, garlic, lemon juice, white miso paste, salt, and arrowroot powder. When making a pizza with vegan cheese, it is important to note that the cheese may not melt and stretch in the same way as dairy cheese. Some vegan cheeses perform better than others in this regard, and baking the pizza at a high temperature can help the cheese melt.
Both vegans and vegetarians can enjoy pizza by choosing animal-free toppings. In addition to cheese, vegetarians can opt for dairy-free cheese, and both groups can choose from a variety of vegetable toppings, such as mushrooms, olives, green peppers, spinach, and tomatoes. There are also vegan alternatives to meat toppings, such as vegan pepperoni and vegan "chicken" tenders.
In summary, the main difference between vegan and vegetarian pizza is that vegan pizza cannot include any animal products, including dairy, while vegetarian pizza can include dairy products and eggs. Both vegans and vegetarians can enjoy pizza by choosing animal-free toppings and sauces, and there are many options available to create delicious pizzas that meet these dietary requirements.
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Frequently asked questions
Vegan cheese can be made from a variety of plant-based ingredients, including soy, cashews, macadamia nuts, coconut oil, and thickening agents like tapioca starch or arrowroot powder.
The taste of vegan cheese on pizza can vary depending on the brand and type of cheese used. Some people find that certain vegan cheeses have a mild, unobtrusive cheesy flavor that complements the other ingredients on the pizza. Others may find that the cheese has a sweeter or nuttier taste.
When baked at high temperatures, such as 425°C (800°F) or 290°C (550°F), most vegan cheeses melt nicely and have a similar performance to regular cheese. However, some types of vegan cheese, like Miyoko's liquid mozzarella, coagulate into a solid form instead of melting, resulting in a lack of stretchiness.
Popular brands of vegan cheese for pizza include Miyoko's Creamery, which offers cashew-based mozzarella, and Daiya, known for its dairy-free mozzarella that stretches, bubbles, and oozes like real cheese. Other options include Parmela Creamery Plant-Based Mozzarella and 365 Whole Foods Plant-Based Mozzarella-Style Shreds.
