I was delighted when I discovered how easy Vegan cheese sauces are to make. Once I had perfected this version, lasagne, moussaka and pasta bake were all back on the menu, much to my family’s delight! It is creamy, cheesy, savoury and comforting and it works perfectly in this simple vegan potato gratin!
Two of my children are mildly dairy intolerant and they avoided large helpings of anything with a dairy cheese sauce involved in our pre vegan days. Headaches, nausea and feeling generally meh were not a happy eating experience. Dairy free vegan cheese sauces don’t have the same affect and they happily wolf down extra helpings, while those who had (or still have) a bit of a love affair with cheese are very happy that cheesy creamy sauces are still a thing!
How To Make A Creamy Vegan Cheese Sauce
How To Get A Creamy Texture
There are lots of ways to make vegan cheese sauces and I have more recipes to share with you over the coming months. Some use blended white beans, cashew nuts or sunflower seeds to make a creamy vegan sauce while others rely on tofu, carrots, squash or potatoes for that silky smooth saucy texture. Today’s offering, however, sticks to the traditional white sauce base of milk added to a cooked flour and butter roux. My Granny would be proud!
How To Get A ‘Cheesy’ Taste
- Dairy butter is replaced with vegan and cow’s milk with a mixture of plant milk and vegetable stock.
- Garlic, onions, nutritional yeast flakes and the stock along with fresh thyme, salt and pepper provide the flavour.
- If I’m using the base sauce for other dishes I might also add some Dijon mustard or a dash of sriracha, maybe some soy sauce. Rosemary is a good replacement for thyme and smoked garlic gives a lovely depth to the flavour.
- You can add some of your favourite dairy free cheese for a flavour boost but, in this dish, I prefer a subtler savoury taste.
How To Make Vegan Potato Gratin
Oh how I love a quick side dish! This one takes 10 minutes on the hob and then is just bunged into the oven to get on with the job – excellent! Scroll down for detailed instructions and ingredients but it really is as simple as:
- Fry onions and garlic in olive oil.
- Add flour, cook gently then add milk and stock gradually, stirring thoroughly. Bubble until thickened. Add thyme, yeast, salt and pepper to taste.
- Pour a little sauce into the base of a buttered casserole dish, layer in sliced potatoes and pour over the rest of the sauce.
- Cook in a preheated oven for 30 – 40 minutes until potatoes are cooked and sauce is browned and bubbling.
What To Serve With Potato Gratin
This creamy vegan potato gratin is lovely on its own with a crisp green salad and some fresh tomatoes but it also works really well as a side. Serve it with:
- Shop bought vegan sausages or my Vegan Bratwurst.
- Cashew Nut Roast.
- As a hot dish on a buffet with Vegan Sausage Rolls and a selection of salads.
- Carrot fritters or Green Lentil Burgers.
- Easy Vegan Chilli and broccoli.
- A simple Lentil Loaf
It’s also fabulous as a Christmas side dish and, if you are looking for more vegan Christmas recipes ideas, check out all my Vegan Christmas Recipes, collected together in one place!
If you make my recipe I’d love to hear how it turns out for you. Please leave a comment and a star rating below and share your pictures with me on social media. Tag me @thinlyspread and include the hashtag #thinlyspread so I can see them! Follow [me on Pinterest, Facebook,Twitter and Instagram where I share recipe ideas, links to vegan events and articles and where I natter on about my favourite subject – vegan food!
Vegan Potato Gratin
Equipment
- Oven proof casserole or gratin dish with a lid
Ingredients
- 400 g potatoes very thinly sliced
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1/2 tbsp vegan butter for greasing
- 1 red onion very thinly sliced
- 5 large cloves garlic very thinly sliced - feel free to add more garlic if you are a garlic lover or reduce the amount if you're not so keen.
- 1 tbsp chopped fresh thyme
- 3 tbsp plain flour
- 500 ml soya milk use your favourite plant milk if you are avoiding soya.
- 375 ml vegetable stock
- 3 tbsp nutritional yeast
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 180C/350F
- Heat the olive oil in a frying pan. Add the finely sliced onion and fry gently for 5 minutes until soft.
- Add the sliced garlic and fry for a further minute.
- Add the flour and cook gently for a couple of minutes.
- Gradually add the milk, stirring constantly to avoid lumps.
- Add the vegetable stock and bring to a gentle boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, stirring until the sauce thickens.
- Add the thyme, nutritional yeast and salt and black pepper to taste. Remove from heat.
- Use a little vegan butter to lightly grease your casserole dish.
- Pour a little sauce into the base of your dish and spread evenly.
- Layer in your thinly sliced potatoes.
- Pour over the remaining sauce, ensuring all the potatoes are covered.
- Cover and cook for 20 minutes in the preheated oven.
- Remove the lid and cook for a further 20 minutes until the potatoes are fork tender and the sauce is browned and bubbly.
Nutrition
Very good!