Vegan Green Chili Mac ‘n’ Cheese

This was delicious! I just gave it a try about an hour ago. No changes necessary; delicious as-is. This was my first attempt at mac-n-“cheese” since going vegan and it was a simple, quick recipe that turned out fantastic. The added bonus is that I don’t have the after dinner sweats, which used to be a given with homemade mac-n-cheese. It’s so clean! Thank you

Mine came out very liquidity and not creamy at all and I followed each step to the t. I’m so confused. ?

Wow! I just made this pasta recipe and love it. The creaminess is so much better than even I was expecting. Plus, it was SO SIMPLE and easy to whip together! I added roasted broccoli and brussels sprouts. As a college student, this is definitely going to become a staple recipe, since I almost always have all of the ingredients on hand anyway. Thank you!

Just thought I’d let you know that I tried this and loved it! Great job :)

This was so delicious!

I have a bunch of hatch chiles in my fridge that I’m dying to use. Any ideas on how to use them instead of the canned chiles without setting my mouth on fire? I can’t do anything beyond your typical medium salsa spiciness level, and I don’t have a scale, so volume measurements would be great!!

Welp, the family has asked for this AND your vegan dinner rolls(AHMAZINGGGG) for the second night in a row. Probably because they hate it…

Thanks so much lady!!!! You’re behind the majority of our meals here in my home :)

Having never eaten real american mac n cheese, I can’t compare this to the “real stuff”, but Oh My how creamy and delicious! We don’t have canned chilies here, at least not in my regular grocery store, so I used fresh ones. Yummy!

I’m severely allergic to nuts and I really want to try this. What can I replace the cashews with?

This recipe is so creamy, tasty, and filling. I don’t usually feel like that after eating mac and cheese. I was def worried eating a vegan mac and cheese for a meal but this was well worth it.

Umm, WOAH. Let me preface this by saying I am not vegan. I LOVE MEAT. (I love vegan recipes because of the amazing creativity& added health benefits) By unfortunate luck, my mom doesn’t like cheese & my boyfriend is lactose (woe is me, I know). I tested this out on my mom tonight and she & I LOVED it. So much flavor!!! I subbed roasted yellow & red peppers since I forgot chile’s, loved the flavor it added. Putting it in regular rotation. Thank you! (I also made your black bean brownies the other day and cannot stop eating them)

OMG love this idea- will be making a giant pot tonight

You’re killing me with your spelling of Green Chile though :( The New Mexican in me is cringing!!!

This was amazing. For the sake of actual minimalism, I didn’t use the omniprocessed corn starch, I replaced it with arrowroot powder. I didn’t have chiles, so I just sauteed some fresh habaneros with the garlic and onion. I tossed a few green onions in while I was heating up the “cheese” sauce too. Very happy with this!!!

Hi!
I don’t have canned chillis. I do have some fresh Serrano chillis. How many of those should I use? Earlier you mentioned that roasting them would improve the flavour so how long and at what temperature should they be roasted!
Thanks for your help!

This curled my toes! I loved this recipe and made it for myself for my day after bday celebration! Sooo delicious! You guys are great! Thank you!!!

I made this tonight. Really good!!! I especially loved the added crunch from the Tortillas.

What happens if you use roasted (unsalted) cashews instead of raw?

I was so very skeptical that this would be good. Mostly because a week earlier I had tried a vegan Fettuccine Alfredo recipe (source shall go unnamed) that wasn’t the least bit convincing. You could have sealed drywall cracks with it.

Oh me of little faith! Tested this out for some vegan-ish friends last night and was stupefied by the results. Tried it right out of the blender. Absolutely delicious. I took a few detours with the seasonings (I added garlic powder, half a chipotle pepper, some oregano and added some creamy refried pinto beans for a next level thickness and body) but I remained loyal to the rest and the final product was a showstopper. Not only did my friends enjoy it with gusto, but when my discerning meat-devouring fiancée returned home after work, tired and famished, he had one bite and could not stop until the rest was devoured. He had THIRDS. If there was any more remaining, he wouldn’t have stopped.

So thank you, truly, for a spectacular recipe – one that will go into heavy rotation for many meals to come!

Does it say somewhere how to make cashew cheese? Or could you tell me how long you soak it, and how to make it?

This was great! I mixed it with frozen hash brown potatoes and baked it into a green chili has brown casserole. I too love Isa’s recipe and ended up adding a little bit of white miso for some tangy goodness. Thanks for a new family favorite!

another question…. What is “1 4-ounce can diced chills”?
14 ounce? 1.4 ounce? 1-1/4 ounce?

“1 1/2 cups vegetable broth”
Do I need to make it before? I’m clueless again…

but what about the cashews? there’s no instructions about them. and I am clueless and clumsy in the kitchen…

Is it just me or do those pasta shapes seem tortured? Recipe looks great but I do not want to inflict danger on innocent pasta!

Thanks for the recipe. Made it this week for work lunches and it was delicious!! I’ve never attempted a vegan cheese sauce but I’m very impressed with the flavor!
I added some blanched slivered almonds for the crunchy topping (Since I didn’t have chips).
I think next time I’ll add Some jalapeno for an extra kick and chipotle pepper!

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Just made this for lunch & loved it. Lots of flavour & as well as nice & creamy. Have tried lots of different recipes that have ranged from “yuck’ to “its not to bad”.
Only made half a batch in case I didnt like it. Will definitely be making a full batch next time.

Hi there.
Thank you for this great recipe.
I’ve been vegan for 5 months now and I absolutely love it. I have never made anything like vegan mac and cheese before, but it turned out great. The recipe was super easy and delicious.
Both my non-vegan brother and mother loved it. I will definitely make this again :)
Thank you!!

Best wishes from Germany ;)

What kind of blender do you use? I used my Cuisinart food processor and had the same problem as a few others. Thanks!

Just a nitpick, but having lived in New Mexico for 20+ years…where the chile is the state vegetable. It’s green chile, not chilie or chili. Plural would be chiles. Chili is your classic Texas bean-and-meat stew (chili con carne).

I really want to make this, but we just found out our daughter is allergic to nuts (Especially cashews. I know, I’m devastated). Do you think sunflower seeds could work in place of the cashews?

Looking forward to making this tomorrow.
I’m curious though, why did you leave out the miso paste used in isachandras?
I find that it has a really cheasy flavor on it’s own (tastes like fondue) and the recipe could propably benefit from it.
Just asking if there is a specific reason why I should avoid it?

And for us New Englanders, it’s okay to leave out the chilis and just use salt and pepper, yes? ;-)

Love this recipe. I was just thinking of making it again.

I’m an enormous Minimalist Baker AND vegan mac fan, but this was just a big thumbs down. It was the kind of recipe where I blended everything and then kept returning to the recipe to see what I must have left out ’cause it had to be missing something to be as bland as it was. I’ve had enormous luck with mac recipes from The PPK and Isa Does It, so I’ll probably stick to those in order to save my cash in cashews.

I have fresh green chillies, how many should I put in?

This was delicious! Every single recipe I have ever made from your site has been incredible! My Pinterest board is filled with your recipes. Every time I pin one, I laugh and think, “Of course it’s from Minimalist Baker!” The photos and the food — so darn fabulous!!

This looks amazing! When you say canned chilis, are they in water or pickled?

I am wondering if you need the nutritional yeast as I avoid yeast? Otherwise this looks like a wonderful recipe!

I loved this recipe. I’ve made it several times already, by far the best vegan mac and cheese! =)

Could I omit the green chiles? I know my fiancé won’t even try it if there is anything green! Can I add something else to still give it a spice/kick!?

I was wondering why none of the vegan mac and cheese recipes I’ve tried had the right texture…it’s all about soaking the cashews! GENIUS.
and the texture of this sauce is PERFECT.

I made this today, and good lord was it wonderful! My non-vegan family ate it and all went back for seconds. I added the tortilla chips on top, and that combined with the green chilis had my sister calling it a “vegan Mexican bake” (I didn’t bother to tell her that it wasn’t actually baked; I’ll let her think I worked harder than I did). Definitely a winner, thank you!

I just finished making this and it’s really great! Good flavor and texture. My 4 year old (who’s pretty picky) ate it up. Fantastic! Thanks so much for a delicious recipe!

Okay, this looks AMAZING and I want to try it immediately! Only, I have a problem.

I want to make this for me and the bf, but I hate cashews and he can’t eat them. Is there another nut that could be substituted? Or maybe a mix of sometimes like another nut and mashed potato or something? I’d really love to make this.

Thanks!

Hi, do you think it would also work with cashew meal instead of whole cashews (I have cashew meal already in the cupboard)? When making cheese sauces I usually have a hard time getting the cashew meal to smooth out and it ends up somewhat gritty which I don’t like, the taste is there just not the texture, although I haven’t tried blending it. What do you think? This recipe will be my next attempt by the way :)

My first foray into vegan mac n cheese and this is SO GOOD!

I’ve been cooking more lately instead of just eating frozen meals. I wanted to try this out, but was unsure about my cooking abilities (and my itty bitty old blender). But I just made this, and it turned out fabulously tasty! And now I’m excited to find more recipes that use cashews as a substitute. Thanks y’all!

Love love this recipe! So simple, so cheesy, so good!! We’re making it again tonight….husband requested, so I know it’s just that good. Thanks Dana. I truly have a healthy obsession with your blog. ; )

Is there any way to use cashew butter instead of soaking cashews over night? Don’t have a blender :(

I made this today, and it is amazing! Didn’t add the tortilla chips, though, which may be why I had to add quite a bit of salt to taste. I also served it wtih sriracha for some extra heat. Thank you for the awesome recipe!!

I’m allergic to yeast… are there any alternatives to the nutritional yeast that I can use? I saw that people have suggested using miso in other recipes, but I’m allergic to soy as well.

What are diced chills?

I have a dairy intolerance, and have been “cheese-free” for over a year now. I just wanted to say “thank you” – Thank you from the bottom of my heart for sharing this recipe because – OMG – it totally satisfied that cheese craving I have had for the past year! I ate two huge plates of it – I was so full, I thought I would have to roll myself away from the table. It is honestly one of the best dishes – ever! I can’t stop talking about it. I even shared it on Facebook! The only thing is, I soaked too many cashews, so I am hoping I can save them for another recipe – and I also used too much pasta (12 oz instead of 10 oz) so it wasn’t as creamy looking as in your photos. But still – even my boyfriend who had been poo-pooing the recipe for a week (took me that long to convince him to let me make it) ate 3 plates and deemed it a winner. Thanks again!

This looks fantastic-hopefully I’ll get a chance to test it out soon. :) Have you ever tried adding sweet potato/squash/pumpkin? I wonder if that would work, also.

I swapped the veggie stock with a Thai culinary stock sold at Wegmans, and was out of cumin and subbed in curry powder. added salt to taste and it was amazing.

Made this last night (it was my first time using cashews as a substitute) and LOVED it. It reheated well for lunch too! Thanks for giving me the push to try to get some vegan and GF recipes in my diet!

Do you drain the cashews before blending? I’ve never tried cashew sauces before, but this looks divine.

I just made this and it is deeeeeeeelish. However, grainy like texture from the cashews even though it blended forever. They soaked for 8 hrs. I guess next time I will soak for a day.

I had to come back to tell you something. I made this. It was the bomb! Well, we didn’t have green chiles, but otherwise followed it as written…which is really not like me at all. But there’s a first time for everything. Loved, loved, loved this. I should also tell you that I decided to make this in honor of a friend. She used to tell me stories about Mac & Cheese from her childhood days…and I would laugh. She was the coolest. Now I can’t have Mac & Cheese without thinking about her. She died recently and all of us who knew her are saddened by the loss. And I’m finding that when a friend dies it’s comforting to think about them. So we will be having a lot of Mac & Cheese for awhile. See? Sometimes it’s not just a recipe…it can be so much more.

Hi,

This looks absolutely delicious. What can we use to substitute cashews?

Thanks

This looks amazing. I love the idea of adding green chilies – I’m not vegan so I’m often a bit meh on vegan cheese sauce but I think the spice in this would be so good.

This was awesome!! Kids (age 4 &6) gobbled it up. Great flavour! Will be adding this to our recipe collection for sure. My son can’t have wheat or dairy, and of course misses Mac and cheese. Thanks! Looking forward to trying your other recipes. :)
Jennifer

I´m wondering what exactly canned chili is? Is is just a plain diced jalapeño can? or is it something less spicy? I´m curious because I´m from Mexico, and that´s the only kind of chili you can find in a can, but I dont know if it sometimes tend to be too spicy.

Dana, Do you have any suggestion on what you can replace the cashews with because of a nut allergy. Do you think sunflower or pumpkin seeds would work? This looks amazing! Thanks Laura

It’s been done. This graced our table last night it and it was fantastic! I felt my sauce colour was not as beautiful as yours though ~ not sure what I need to do to up the umph?

I have tried butternut squash and pumpkin sauces but the sweetness changes things. Liquid smoke can help cut the sweetness and bring another level of flavour in case you want to try it!

Thank you SO MUCH for this recipe it will definitely be made again and again…

I can’t wait to try this!!! I’ve never used yeast before though. Where can I get nutritional yeast?

OH MY GOD. THIS LOOKS AMAZING. I’m literally so hungry and I made the mistake of going through my blog reader around dinner time. I love how creamy that looks, and the addition of chilis makes my heart sing. I’m definitely going to have to try this. Great photos as usual!

Green chili mac and cheese?! OMG! You’re a genius. I’ve done cashew versions and sweet potato and butternut squash versions of mac and cheese. Have you tried the other two and if so, which is yours? I prefer the sweet potato version! :)

i am so excited to try this! i tried out a sweet potato vegan mac’n’cheeze (not fantastic) + another recipe ohdeardrea’s blog that i loved but this looks amazing too! thanks for sharing :)

Mac and cheese is my weakness and favorite comfort food! This dairy free version couldn’t have come sooner; every grocery trip I pass by the boxes of shells and cheese and will myself not to pick any up; this will be the perfect replacement!

Awesome! I will cook this for sure! It looks amazing!
Three questions tho. I’ve never heard of nutritional yeast. Do I really need it?
What kind of broth do you use? Just some “powder” ? By soaking you mean just putting them in water? :D

Keep up the good stuff :)

Must make this soon. Thursday. Will make this Thursday. Woo hoo ~ it will be awesome. I know it.

This recipe look beyond good. I can’t wait to give it a try. ;-)

By the looks of it, I’d never be able to tell that it’s vegan. I love putting spicy things in anything (including chocolate) so loving the green chiles in it. Maybe some breadcrumbs on top to finish it off?

Well, this is now officially what I want to eat for lunch today. :) There definitely haven’t been enough green chile and creamy sauces on my plate!

Made this last night and it was delicious!!! I definitely don’t think I could pass it off as real cheese to a non-vegan, but it was amazing nonetheless. It was more of a creamy alfredo, in my opinion. I ended up making my veggie broth more concentrated, to add more flavor (Orrington Farms broth base). Also added some frozen peas for some sweetness + an extra protein punch. Next time, we may even top it with a teaspoon of salsa. Great recipe, thank you!

Have your photos always been on the site? I love that you added them/I found them! Prompted me to click and read more about you and I love how genuine your story is. I also am so encouraged to find others who try to live out what’s important in life, all the while being laid back and chill about it. So many people make assumptions about anyone who’s different these days.

And thanks for always tackling these intimidating vegan recipes! I have never been disappointed and this mac looks awesome! The chili’s are a nice touch :) Can’t wait to try it!

Wow, girl. Wow, wow, WOW. Everything about this is stunning!

this is absolutely amazing! Love this idea!

Yummm! One of my favorite recipes is for “mac’n’squash,” which uses a sauce from cashews, butternut squash, nooch, and seasonings, tossed with pasta and baked. Now I am sure I need to try this one!!! However, I like to call it something other than “mac’n’cheese” so non-vegans will recognize its true deliciousness instead of being stuck on the fact that it doesn’t taste exactly like cheese.

Just made this–love how pantry-friendly it is! I upped the spices and it is extremely creamy and delicious. Thanks for the recipe!

I just made this sauce without the green chilis because I forgot to buy them and my god, this is delicious!! I’m definitely going to be making this again.

Saw this and said to Husband, “Husband, this is what’s for dinner.”

Followed the recipe, but felt it needed a bit more oomph in the flavor department. Husband said “umame”, I felt maybe some salt, and maybe some more chili … and maybe some chopped tomato. I ended up grinding in some African Smoky Spice mix from Trader Joe’s, and the tomato. Somehow, we have no leftovers (alas!) Next time, I think I’ll salt the pasta water. The pasta diluted the sauce too much, I think. Or maybe boil the pasta in the veggie broth, and then use it to make the sauce. Yeah. Next time could be pretty soon! Thanks for this!

Well, I very much enjoyed scrolling through all the beautiful pictures! ;-)
Genius idea to make a vegan mac and cheese! So I guess it’s the nutritional yeast (UK Marmite? Australian Vegemite?) that makes it taste ‘cheesy’? Nice idea that I’d like to try!

Wow! I’m a big fan of vegan cheese sauces, I need to try this recipe! It looks soooo amazing, and I love the idea of adding tortillas to make this mac and cheese more crunchy, yum!

this is dinner tonight. thank you! this recipe looks great. and SO FAR AWAY from velvetta.

Being from Germany, I didn’t know about Mac’n’Cheese until I traveled to the US in 2006 for the first time. I don’t think I ever tried it either. But I love that there is a vegan take on it. I cannot eat dairy, so if I ever want to try Mac’n’Cheese, I’ll come back to this :)

Greetings! I just discovered your blog & it’s my new favorite! Looking over your various recipes, it’s evident that you MUST open a restaurant! I am not vegan, but I cannot tolerate dairy & there are very few good options out there. I would also like to eat less gluten & become vegan at some point. Cashews are so wonderful & in fact, I just finished eating some! Pecans are great too & blended (preferably in a Vita-Mix!) with banana, ice cubes & organic raw blue agave makes a most wonderful “ice cream”! Cheers!

So happy I have all the ingredients for this! Making it as we speak :) Love the idea of green chili in it!

Yum yum yum! I’ve been seeing vegan mac and cheese using cashews everywhere lately but I think this chilli variation might just be the one that gets me to finally give it a try! Looks incredible!

When you say “add the cashew cheese” do you mean the soaked and drained cashews?

Simple and creamy dreamy… I can’t wait to try this! :D

This sounds fantastic! I only cook for myself, so I’m wondering if you know how it reheats. Should I just cut the recipe in half instead?

Holy awesome! That sauce is totally calling my name!

What timing I am having barbequed ribs tonight & wanted to make mac-n-cheese with it! Cashews are soaking!

I’m not going to lie, I have very fond memories of macaroni and cheese from my childhood. The Velveeta kind? My favorite. I do kind of cringe when I think about the ingredients now, but man, that stuff was good. I haven’t had it in years so it probably wouldn’t taste as good as I remember it, though. Anyway, this vegan mac and cheese looks lovely. I don’t think you can have too many versions of mac and cheese (real or vegan) in your arsenal!

Just bought nutritional yeast for the first time yesterday — can’t wait to try this! Pretty sure I love cheese too much to be vegan (and I don’t have an intolerance), but maybe I can cut down with the help of sauces like this one! Thanks for sharing :)

Oh my god this sounds amazing. I want to lick the screen. You should put a warning, must not read when hungry ;)

I am sure the vegan community appreciates your vegan recipes a lot, and I do, too, with colleagues allergic to gluten and egg – however, I am wondering if you know that most kinds of cheese are naturally lactose free? So being lactose intolerant you do not have to miss out on all the dairy products. The general rule is: the more fat they have, the less lactose. Parmesan for example is naturally completely lactose free.