Pizza Ovens
The Best Vegan Cheese for your Pizza
Jun
Okay, so it’s hard to get away from the fact the one of the best things about biting into a hot bubbling pizza is that “mozzarella cheese pull” that usually ends up down your chin! Needless to say, pizzas shouldn’t be one of life’s pleasures only reserved for people who can or choose to eat cheese! No, no, no, here at the Pizza Oven Shop we’re firm believers that pizza should be enjoyed by everyone, and whether you’re a vegan for health, environmental, or ethical reasons, we don’t think anyone should be subjected to pizza that is substandard because of poor quality cheese!
Going back a few years, vegan cheese had a pretty poor reputation as being substandard in terms of both taste and texture. The good news is that vegan cheese has actually come a long way on both those counts, and they’re now even more readily available on the supermarket shelves as more and more people make the switch to veganism.
The melting and stretching properties of vegan cheese has always been a bugbear. Some vegan cheeses may not melt as well or have the same stretchiness as dairy-based cheese. This can impact their performance in certain dishes like pizza, where meltability and stretch are obviously desirable qualities! However, there are a couple of vegan cheeses on the market that do achieve the coveted cheese pull which we’ll go into more detail about below. One thing we’d certainly recommend though is to try not to focus too much on texture, especially when it comes to using vegan cheese on pizza. Where vegan cheese has made massive strides in recent years is in the taste. The vast array of products on the market today are a world away from even 5 years ago. The reason why they often don’t hit the same spot in terms of texture is down to the ingredients that they’re made from.
What is vegan cheese made from?
The exact ingredients of vegan cheese can vary depending on the brand or recipe, but here are some common ingredients that are used by the key players.
1. Plant Milk: The base of vegan cheese is often plant-based milk, such as soy milk, almond milk, cashew milk, oat milk, or coconut milk. These milks provide the liquid component and help create the texture associated with cheese.
2. Plant-Based Fats: Vegan cheese requires some form of fat to replicate the richness and mouthfeel of dairy cheese. Plant-based fats like coconut oil, refined vegetable oils, or nuts and seeds (e.g., cashews or almonds) are commonly used. These fats contribute to the creaminess and meltability of vegan cheese.
3. Flavourings and Seasonings: Various flavourings and seasonings are added to give vegan cheese its characteristic taste. Nutritional yeast is a common ingredient that adds a cheesy, umami flavour. Other ingredients like garlic powder, onion powder, mustard, miso paste, herbs, or spices can be used to enhance the flavour profile.
Photo credit: Green Vie Foods
Green Vie Mozzarella
We’ll kick off with this one as it’s the best for meltability, a key characteristic of cheese for pizza! It’s also readily available, with a variety of online retailers and supermarkets stocking it.
Green Vie Mozzarella has a soft, creamy texture, with a nutty, rich and buttery taste which holds its shape when raw, but also melts well and becomes stringy when in the right temperature window. Definitely one to try if what you’re looking for is to recreate the famous mozzarella cheese pull.
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Photo credit: Kinda Co.
Kinda Co. Mozarellie
Okay, this one’s a bit of a curveball in that it comes in a jar! The producers themselves actually market this cheese as perfect for pizza, “Mild, creamy and made for melting! This cashew based mozzarella-style cheese is perfect for topping pizza”.
The taste is quite mild which complements rather than overpowers the other toppings on the pizza. It’s easy to use in that you essentially spoon it out and place it directly into the pizza, similar to the texture of hummus when cooked.
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Photo credit: I am nut ok
I Am Nut Ok: Bluffalo Notzarella
This one wins the prize for the best name! And it tastes pretty damn good as well! Mild and creamy just like real mozzarella, it has rave reviews, particularly in regard to it’s meltability.
Win! It has a distinctive smell of coconut when uncooked, which comes from the coconut oil. What’s more, in comes in a plastic-free compostable vacuum-sealed pouch, so even better for the planet!
Learn moreWe really hope you enjoyed our run through of all things vegan cheese. It’s so important to us that pizza is an all-inclusive food which brings people together and can be enjoyed by everyone, and these products certainly go a long way to making pizza a fantastic option for vegans everywhere!
Thanks for reading,
The Pizza Oven Shop