Learn how to make absolutely #1 The Best Vegan Garlic Alfredo Sauce as rated by readers! So easy, dairy-free, oil-free, just 6 ingredients (+salt & pepper) and so incredibly creamy and full of flavor!
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VEGAN GARLIC ALFREDO SAUCE
One of most people’s indulgent comfort foods is alfredo sauce. I admit, I used to love it too, but I didn’t love how after just a few bites, I felt sick. There is such a thing as foods being too rich. Feeling nauseated and in a nasty food coma for hours after eating something isn’t really worth it to me. Enter the best Vegan Garlic Alfredo Sauce you’ll ever have.
HOW DO YOU MAKE VEGAN ALFREDO SAUCE?
Easy, you just need 6 simple ingredients:
- raw cashews
- onion
- garlic
- lemon juice
- nutritional yeast
- low sodium vegetable broth
First, you will cook your onions low and slow until really tender.
Add the garlic and cook until soft. Add the onion and garlic to a blender with the remaining ingredients. Blend until completely smooth.
Serve over pasta and enjoy the decadent, but healthy, vegan alfredo sauce!
No need to try any further anymore. This one is dairy-free and oil-free. Most vegan versions contain vegan butter or oil, not healthy. This one is made from cashews which make it exceptionally creamy. I wanted a whole food version and oil-free.
WHY VEGAN ALFREDO IS BETTER THAN TRADITIONAL
Traditional garlic alfredo sauce has butter, milk, cream, parmesan cheese (or other cheeses) and garlic in it. Major dairy overload! Bloated, icky feeling. It also does not have onion in it. However, I wanted to give my alfredo sauce that slightly, sweet richness typically reached by cream and butter, so I added cooked onions, lots of them.
Here’s a little side by side nutrition for my alfredo sauce in comparison to Olive Garden’s version:
Mine per 1/2 cup serving which is a hefty serving:
125.2 calories, 7 g fat, 5.6 g protein, 11.3 carbs
and Olive Garden’s: (they use heavy cream, milk, lots of cheese and 6 egg yolks, see here)
460 calories, 43 g fat!!, 9 carbs, 8 grams protein
Wow, what a difference! Hey, so it has a hair less carbs, but who cares when all of my ingredients are quality ingredients and not heavy on the heart. Nothing wrong with indulging occasionally, but you could eat my alfredo sauce weekly with much less guilt.
DOES IT REALLY TASTE LIKE ALFREDO?
I know what you are thinking….does it really taste like garlic alfredo sauce?? Well, my hubby said, “spot on” and then “it really tastes exactly like garlic alfredo sauce”. I was shocked. I’ll let you be the judge. I’d say it is pretty darn close, especially considering it doesn’t have any of the typical ingredients!
Regardless, it is delicious and very creamy and you can eat this alfredo sauce without tons of guilt.
Other Vegan Alfredo Recipes to try:
Sadly, this recipe is my MOST popular weekly and is continuing to be stolen and copied and posted by other sites/blogs without ANY credit. It is very upsetting, so please know that I worked hard to create this recipe years back and it is my original creation. If you like this recipe, please give credit where credit is due.
the Best Vegan Garlic Alfredo Sauce
Ingredients
- 1 medium white onion, diced (200g) (MAKE SURE to measure out 1 1/2 cups b/c this is where lots of flavor comes)
- 1-2 cups (240-480g) low sodium vegetable broth, divided
- 1/2-3/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4-1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
- 4 x-large (15g) minced garlic cloves
- 1/2 heaping cup (75g) raw unsalted cashews (see NOTE)
- 1/2-1 tablespoon lemon juice (start with just 1/2 and taste after blended!)
- 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast (I highly recommend this Sari brand, it is non-fortified with much better taste.)
NOTE
- It is not recommended to sub or eliminate any of these ingredients, as I cannot vouch for the results if any are changed. The lemon juice is crucial, as it eliminates any cashew flavor.
NOTE
- If you are using raw cashews and you don't have a high-powered blender, then you must soak them overnight in a bowl of water, drain and rinse. Otherwise, your result will be gritty and NOT creamy. A food processor usually works better with soaked cashews versus a blender that isn't very powerful.
Instructions
- Add the onion and ONLY 1 cup of the broth to a large pan over medium to medium-high heat. Cook for about 8 minutes until the onion is very tender. (Add a tiny bit more broth if it is cooking too fast or turn the heat down, so the onions don't burn) After 8 minutes, add the garlic and cook a couple of minutes more, stirring often. All of the broth should have evaporated by now. If not, keep letting it cook until the broth is GONE. You don't want any more liquid once it's done cooking, so the end result is thick and creamy.
- Add the cooked veggies (the onion and garlic) to a blender. Start out by adding JUST 1/2 cup more of the remaining broth and add the remaining ingredients (salt, pepper, cashews, starting with JUST 1/2 tablespoon lemon juice, nutritional yeast-starting with just 2 tablespoons yeast). Blend on high for a couple of minutes until very creamy and smooth. Add any more broth to reach desired consistency, if necessary. I did not. If you don't add more broth, you would likely not need any more yeast. Taste and add any more salt & pepper or lemon, if desired.
- Serve over preferred pasta. Note: When preparing your pasta, make sure to salt your water well, so your pasta has flavor and isn't bland, which can affect the end flavor result of the dish. I add around a tablespoon to a large pot of boiling water. Garnish with parsley, lemon zest and salt & pepper, if desired. Add any veggies you like. I like to add broccoli or even peas. Store leftovers in the fridge. The sauce will thicken up even more overnight, which you can thin out a little with a touch of broth when reheating, if necessary.
I just finished an amazing dinner of this Vegan Alfredo sauce on Spaghetti. I followed the recipe. The instructions are clear and the sauce comes out just as stated. I used my Nutri-bullet to blend the sauce. I added a couple of sprinkles of nutmeg which is often a spice added to Alfredo. I added peas to the dish which gave a bit of texture and sweetness. I loved how easy this recipe is and how delicious and satisfying it is.Thank you for sharing this amazing recipe.
The best vegan Alfredo I’ve made. Will definitely be adding this one to my rotation.
That is amazing Susan, thank you!!
This recipe is awesome! I tried with chicken broth and it is divine!
So happy you loved it Rasha!!
OMG SOOOO GOOD, WOULD ADD A LITTLE MORE LEMON THEN THE RECIPE STATES BUT IF NOT STILL 5/5 STARS AND SOOO EASY
Great and easy recipe
Very adaptable too
Love it
Absolutely amazing! Recently converted to a vegan diet and could not believe how much easier this was than traditional Alfredo sauces and how amazing it was. I used it with a chickpea gemelli pasta and some peas.
LITERALLY AMAZING OMG IT TASTE JUST ALFREDO FR!!!! Tried it for dinner added some spinach and it was sooooooo gooodd
Soooo thrilled to hear this Ruth!!
Holy smokes!!! This recipe is incredible!!! I sprinkled a little Italian seasoning on top at the end. 100% making this dish a regular in my house.
Absolutely delicious! I’m going to try adding spinach next time.
Awesome! yes spinach is so good!
Great recipe. One tip from a fellow vegan. You do not have to soak your raw cashews overnight. Just soak them in boiling water for 30-60 minutes and you are good to go. I do this even though I have a Vitamix blender.
Thank you SO much for this tip! I’ve scrolled through all the comments wondering if my oyster blender would be up to the task. I’m not sure what qualifies for a high power blender, except vitamix. I want to make this tonight, so I don’t have time to soak overnight. Will try the boiling water!
The best compliment I can offer is to tell you that hubby said I can serve this dish anytime I want to. He scraped the last bits of the sauce from the pan with a spatula. This recipe is definitely going into my weekly rotation.
So happy to hear that!
Love love love this recipe! My husband and I tried it years ago when I was testing out dairy free, my husband is sensitive to dairy too so usually can’t do regular Alfredo. We both loved it and talk about how surprising it is that there’s no dairy in it! Now a few years later I have to be dairy free for medical reasons (I’m so sad bc I love cheese). this is a comfort food I know, love, and trust!
I’m very curious, Brandi, have you experimented with other nuts or seeds here? My sister is dairy free and allergic to cashews but I’m dying to make this for her! Maybe hemp or almonds? I have no idea. What do you think?
So sorry for the delay! You could try sunflower seeds, but it will change the flavor to more bitter.
Ok so after some research and playing around with the recipe tonight I got something a really liked. I need to try it again to nail it all down. But here’s what I did: Instead of cashews … half canallini beans, half pine nuts (a few sources said that they were the closest in flavor to cashews). And instead of lemon juice I did honey to taste. Turned out great!
I have been making this recipe for at least 3 years and I always come back to it. It is so unbelievably good, I’ve tweaked it in various ways but its one of my favorite sauces of all time. Over almost almond ricotta tortellini or ravioli, in a lasagna, over stuffed shells, even just spread on toast or poured over steamed veggies. One of my favorite additions is a glug of truffle oil or a spoonful of truffle seasoning. And if Ive got Miyokos vegan mozzarella in the fridge ill toss a chunk of that in there and it really adds something special. Thanks for this great recipe, its my go to for potlucks and its always a hit!
OH wow that all sounds amazing!!
This stuff is amazing! I’ve been making this on a regular basis.
Loved the end results! Delicious. I did struggle with the execution of the recipe. I found that the weighted measurements did not equal the measurements by volume. I check the measuring cup/spoon against the weight for recipes that list both. I am known to mess up a recipe. AND I’m using a brand new electronic food scale. All of this to say, the first attempt was frustrating but the next attempt was much better.
Delicious! Have not found a better recipe, vegan or not!
Wow! Other than soaking my cashews overnight, I made this recipe as written. At the end I folded in some spicy plant based chick’n and sautéed mushrooms. This recipe is fantastic! Thank you so much. One of the first vegan meals that I have had that truly taste like “normal” food.
This recipe turned out great. Will be making it again! This coming from an Olive Garden Alfredo fan.
I think this sauce would be great dip or even base for a white pizza or garlic bread. Look forward to experimenting more use cases.
I used combination of shallots + white onion. Otherwise followed the recipe as is.
i can’t have dairy at all, so this recipe was a GODSEND!!! it is RIDICULOUSLY so good. i used peas and asparagus as my vegetables for the rest of my pasta, and added some crushed red pepper as well! thank you so much for this recipe!
I have made this alfredo recipe 3 times as written. Its delicious and I like it way better than dairy alfredo.
That is amazing to hear Monica!
So good! A hit for my whole family. I have a very picky eater who doesn’t like any sauce except tomato and she loved this so much she had two helpings!!! I am amazed. This one will definitely be added to the weekly dinner rotation 🙂
Hi Brandi!
Your recipe sounds amazing!!!
I don’t usually use cashew nuts so was wondering if there was a replacement that would work almost as well 🤔…? Or would it be possible for edam to use 50% cashew and 50% cauliflower? I’d be grateful for your thoughts! Thanks in advance.
Hi! You can use half cashews and half white beans, not all white beans though or it will ruin the texture!
The cashew provides fat and richness which substitute for the cream and butter. It will be the most yummy with the high fat content of cashews.
My family loves this recipe. We make it for all our non vegan friends and it’s a staple!
Love the hear that Beverly!
Made this tonight and everyone loved it! Perfect, thank you!
I LOVE this recipe! We have been making it for years, it has become one of our family favorites. Thank you for sharing! Much love and Aloha to you and your Ohana : )