You’re going to love this easy 10-minute delicious Vegan Bechamel Sauce Recipe! The secret to a dairy-free white sauce with all the rich umami flavor satisfaction is miso! This delicious sauce is super thick and creamy, ideal for a veggie lasagna or a pot pie when dairy-free is a must! I use this vegan white sauce as a substitution in any pasta dish that calls for a classic white sauce.
Ingredient Notes
- Milk: I used cashew milk (see recipe card for an easy recipe). Soy milk, oat milk and almond milk will also work.
- Miso paste: Light miso will add a depth of flavor to make up for the lack of butter. You can use classic miso made from soybeans, or choose a rice miso or chickpea miso to match your dietary needs.
- Olive oil: For an oil-free sauce, mix 1 tablespoon drippy tahini with 3 tablespoons veggie broth. Whisk until uniform in texture. Use in place of the olive oil.
- Flour: Cassava flour is a good gluten-free/grain-free flour and I use it often with great results.
How to make it
Bring your patience and attention. It will take about 10 minutes total to make this white sauce and you’ll be whisking most of the time….which is the best method to avoid lumps.
Heat olive oil over medium-low heat and then sprinkle in the flour.
Whisk constantly as you cook off the raw flavor in the flour and a thick paste is created. This is a classic roux (flour + fat).
Pour in a couple tablespoons of the plant milk and whisk until a uniform, thick texture is achieved. Raise the heat to medium and continue to to add the liquid slowly, a few tablespoons at a time, whisking between additions.
The sauce should be thickening up each time. If it’s not, you may need to turn the heat up just a bit. Avoid burning by continuously whisking. Keep adding small amounts of the milk until ¼ cup is left.
When down to the last ¼ cup of milk, use a fork to thoroughly mix the miso into the milk. Then pour the miso mixture into the sauce and keep whisking until the last addition thickens up the sauce.
Turn off heat. Stir in the salt, pepper and nutmeg. Stir occasionally while sauce cools, so a film does not form on the top.
Finished bechamel sauce will be thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.
Debra’s Pro Tips
- Get all ingredients ready and near the stove. You’ll be whisking almost constantly during the process of making this white sauce without time to look for what you need.
- Whisk, whisk, whisk some more to keep lumps from forming.
- Using cold milk increases the chances of lumps forming, so it’s best to use room temperature or slightly heated milk.
- Not only is this a fantastic white sauce for lasagna or pasta, but it’s divine poured onto roasted veggies too!
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📖 Recipe
Vegan Bechamel Sauce
Ingredients
- ¼ cup olive oil
- ¼ cup cassava flour
- 2 cups cashew milk
- ½ teaspoon sea salt
- ⅛ teaspoon white pepper
- pinch nutmeg
- 1 tablespoon light miso
Instructions
- Heat small saucepan over medium-low heat. Pour in olive oil and leave for 30 seconds to warm.
- Sprinkle in flour and whisk constantly. This is the part that's called a roux. You want to cook off the raw flavor, but don't cook it long enough for it to turn brown. It will turn quick thick and pasty at this point. It's OK if it mostly gets stuck in the whisk.
- Whisk in 2 tablespoons of the milk. The mixture may even get thicker. Pour in another few tablespoons of milk and keep whisking. Continue to add a few tablespoons of milk at a time, stirring in between until the liquid has been evenly dispersed into the sauce. Use all but ¼ cup of the milk.
- Be prepared for the sauce to go back and forth from being too thick and super pasty, to smooth and creamy. As the new addition of milk heats up, the sauce will thicken…and as you continue to whisk and that addition is absorbed into the flour, the sauce will thin out. Over and over again, with each new addition.
- When you get to the last ¼ cup of milk, add the miso paste and use a fork until it's diluted completely into the milk. Then, add it to the sauce, and whisk until fully incorporated. Turn off heat and stir in salt, pepper and nutmeg.
- Stir a few times as the sauce cools. Transfer to an airtight container and store in the refrigerator for up to a week or in the freezer for 3 months.
Notes
Storage
- Cool sauce completely before storing in airtight containers.
- Use mason jars to store in the fridge or freezer. Leave a couple inches space at the top to allow for expansion when freezing.
- Vegan bechamel will stay good in the refrigerator for a week or in the freezer for 3 months. This applies to the recipe being made with homemade cashew milk. With store bought plant milk, that is made with preservatives, the bechamel sauce will last longer in the fridge.
- You can use super cubes to freeze in ½ cup, cup or 2 cup amounts. Once frozen, you can pop them into freezer safe zip top bags. They’ll be conveniently ready for whatever amount you most often use in recipes.
Nutrition
Note
The nutrition calculations were done using online tools. To obtain the most accurate representation of the nutritional information in any given recipe, you should calculate the nutritional information with the actual ingredients you used. You are ultimately responsible for ensuring that any nutritional information is accurate, complete and useful.
Sandy
Hi,this sounds like the best Bechamel ever and can’t wait to try it.
Could you confirm if it keeps 2 weeks in the fridge or 1 week as written at end of recipe please – wouldn’t want to waste any.
Many thanks for your lovely recipes.
Debra Klein
Thanks for catching that inconsistency….I fixed it in the directions. If you have made homemade cashew milk, without preservatives, the bechamel will last just one week. With store bought plant milk, you could get two weeks in the fridge without spoilage. I’ve updated all the wording to say 1 week in the fridge.