This vegan cream recipe is the recipe for sour cream. This cashew sour cream is very easy to make and is perfect for finishing savory and sweet dishes or cooking with it.

Ingredients
- Cashews (affiliate link). Look for raw cashews (affiliate link), unroasted and unseasoned. You could use slivered almonds (affiliate link) or even macadamias if you don’t find raw cashews.
- Lemon juice
- Apple cider vinegar (affiliate link), vinegar makes it a little more acidic and the vinegary flavor goes away. You could totally skip it or substitute it with rice vinegar or other mild ones.
- Pinch of salt

How to make cashew sour cream?
It is as easy as putting all the ingredients in the blender and letting it run until you have the perfect texture. I like it thick, but you can adjust it to your taste just by adding a bit more water.
🔥 Whether to soak or not the nuts If you soak the cashews you will have a creamier and smoother consistency. Soaking cashews is a good idea if you don't have a high-speed blender, like a Vitamix (affiliate link) or Blendtec. Another advantage of soaking the nuts is that the vegan sour cream comes together faster and you don't have to adjust the recipe. If you don't soak the nuts it can take a little longer to get the classic smooth and creamy consistency of the sour cream.

How to use the sour cream
This vegan sour cream is very versatile and can be used to finish any dish that calls for a dollop or two of it. Like the three-bean chili or the authentic Mexican tortilla soup. It is also delicious if you use it to finish baked potatoes or loaded sweet potatoes with lentils and salsa verde.
You can use it to cook and to make creamy pasta, for example, creamy vegan vodka sauce or you could add it to a vegetable ragu to make it creamier.
Give this recipe a twist
- Make it sweet. In Mexico, it is very common to finish desserts with a spoonful of sour cream or use it as the base of desserts-like the typical strawberries with cream, Fresas con Crema. If you are going to use it in a sweet dish, just mix the cashew cream with a teaspoon of vanilla and granulated sugar to taste.
- Make it spicy. Blend this cream with a tablespoon of chipotle powder or any other spicy chili powder.
- Make it herby. Blend with parsley, chives or the fresh herbs of your choice.
- Make it tangier. Blend with pickled jalapeños and finish nachos or use it as a dip.
Frequently asked questions
Which is better, coconut cream or cashew cream? Both are very good and each one has a characteristic flavor to the main ingredient. You can use one or the other.
Is cashew cream healthier than regular sour cream? For me, who follow a dairy-free and vegan diet, yes. But like everything in life, it’s a matter of taste.
What do vegans use instead of cream? This recipe for cashew cream is the perfect dairy-free substitute for cream.
Other recipes that you may like:

Vegan cashew sour cream
Equipment
- High-speed blender
Ingredients
- 1 cup cashews, unroasted and unsalted unsalted cashews
- ¾ cup water
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- ½ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Put the nuts in a large bowl and cover with water. Soak from 1 hour to 3 hours.
- Rinse and put in the blender with the rest of the ingredients. Blend until you have the consistency you want.
Notes
You can substitute apple cider vinegar with rice vinegar or another mild vinegar.
Nutrition
information
Nutritional information of this recipe is only an estimate, the accuracy for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
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