You only need four ingredients and less than 30 minutes to make this amazing, creamy vegan cacio e pepe!
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This cacio e pepe doesn't use any butter or oil. Instead, you make the sauce in your blender using cashews!
Traditional cacio e pepe -- aka cacio e pepe -- uses butter and/or olive oil to make the salt and pepper sauce, then you add cheese to make it creamy. This oil-free vegan cacio e pepe recipe skips all of the stovetop stuff in favor of salt and pepper cashew cream that you make right in your blender!
It may not be an exactly authentic recipe, but it hits those same notes of zesty salt and flowery black pepper in a creamy sauce with less work.
Ingredients and substitutions
- cashews - You can use raw or roasted, salted or unsalted. Just make sure you soak them in hot water for 15 minutes!
- lemon juice - Traditional cacio e pepe includes Pecorino Romano cheese. Lemon juice approximates the tangy element of that cheese flavor.
- nutritional yeast - A little bit of nooch gives even more of a cheesy flavor to the sauce.
- salt and pepper - The name of the game!
- pasta - You can use any pasta you like, but I prefer a long, skinny noodle. You can also use spiralized zucchini instead of pasta, if you prefer.
How to make vegan cacio e pepe
Pour enough boiling water over the cashews to cover, and let them sit for 15 minutes. Drain.
While the cashews soak, cook your pasta according to package directions or spiralize your zucchini, whichever you're doing!
Throw the cashews, water, lemon, nutritional yeast, pepper, and salt into your blender, and puree until very smooth. Just keep blending, scraping down the sides of the blender as needed, until you get a smooth salt and pepper cashew cream. Taste and adjust seasoning, blending between additions.
Toss the sauce with the noodles or zoodles, coating evenly. Taste, and add more salt and pepper, if you like. Serve immediately.
Helpful tips
- You don't need raw cashews to make a great cashew cream. Soaking in hot water for 15 to 20 minutes softens them up perfectly. Even salted cashews will work fine, because you'll soak off most of the salt.
- Save time by making the pasta while the cashews soak. If you do that, you can really get this on the table in 15 to 20 minutes rather than 25.
- Make sure that you blend your sauce until it's completely smooth, stopping every 45 seconds or so to give your blender's motor a rest. You don't want a gritty sauce!
Serving and storage directions
Leftovers will keep for three to five days in the refrigerator. Reheat in the microwave.
More vegan pasta recipes
📖 Recipe
Vegan Cacio e Pepe
Ingredients
- ½ cup cashews
- ⅓ cup water
- 4 to 5 teaspoons lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
- 1 teaspoon black pepper
- ¾ teaspoon sea salt
- 8 ounces spaghetti or long, skinny pasta of choice, or use zoodles
Instructions
- Pour enough boiling water over the cashews to cover, and let them sit for 15 minutes. Drain.
- While the cashews soak, cook your pasta according to package directions or spiralize your zucchini, whichever you're doing!
- Throw the cashews, water, lemon, nutritional yeast, pepper, and salt into your blender, and puree until very smooth. Just keep blending, scraping down the sides of the blender as needed, until you get a smooth salt and pepper cashew cream. Taste and adjust seasoning, blending between additions.
- Toss the sauce with the noodles or zoodles, coating evenly. Taste, and add more salt and pepper, if you like. Serve immediately.
Vegan Heaven
I love zoodles and this sauce looks so good and easy, Becky!! Perfect for quick weeknight dinners. :-)
Becky Striepe
Thank you!
Ceara @ Ceara's Kitchen
This sauce sounds so simple and lovely. And I love the zoodles too!
Becky Striepe
Thank you, Ceara!
Linda @ Veganosity
Oh, I so agree with you about salt and pepper. Unless someone has health issues, I'll never understand why they don't use salt to season their food. This looks fantastic, Becky! I love that you used zoodles in place of pasta.
Becky Striepe
Thank you, Linda!
Sophia, Veggies Don't Bite
Looks so creamy and delicious!!! You can never have enough pasta sauce!!
Becky Striepe
Thank you, Sophia!
Alisa @ Go Dairy Free
I'd never actually heard of salt and pepper pasta -with noodles or zoodles! It looks and sounds delicious.
Becky Striepe
Thank you! My sister is obsessed right now. I'm glad she mentioned it!
Kristina
Jason has a pepper grinder collection, so always fresh here! :) I love the sound of this - pinning to try soon!
Becky Striepe
Ooh, I am so curious about his collection! We have a really creaky hand grinder, so I have made this recipes both ways, depending on how much punishment I feel like giving to my wrist!
Mel @ avirtualvegan.com
Time to dust off my spiralizer. I don't use it nearly enough. And i totally agree with you about salt & pepper. They are fantastic ingredients and don't get enough credit.
Becky Striepe
I feel the same way every time I use my spiralizer. I promised myself that this time I wouldn't let it gather dust in a drawer!
Jenn
And once again, I find myself needing a spiralizer. It's been on my wish list for, like, forever. This recipe sounds delicious! Simple, yet perfect. It would make a lovely light summer supper.
Becky Striepe
Ooh get yourself one! Mine was around $10 and gets the job done.
Becky Striepe
Oh! And thank you! :D
Andrea
Time to bust out my spiralizer! I haven't spiralized anything in ages. Your recipe sounds delicious, and I know just what you mean about making a small amount of sauce in a blender. Sometimes I'm lazy and I just use tahini or cashew butter.
Becky Striepe
Ooh I think a tahini or cashew butter sauce would work great in this!
Natalie | Feasting on Fruit
This is such a simple delicious raw meal! I like the simplicity of just salt and pepper to season, no fancy spices and seasonings needed to make me happy :)
Becky Striepe
Thank you! I'm glad salt and pepper are getting their minute in the spotlight.
Aimee / Wallflower Kitchen
I love any excuse to use my spiralizer at the moment :-) Sounds gorgeous!
Becky Striepe
Thank you, Aimee!