Has anyone found any good tasting Vegan cheese or cheese substitute? Thanks! :)?

Question

I'm trying to elminate dairy because of the growth hormones in cows milk.

Answer 1

I buy an organic non hormone raise dairy milk cheddar like cheese and they use wild nettle leaves to sour the milk, not the rennet most others do, it is a good vegetarian cheese, and I have found with the soya cheese as they lack the fat dairy one have to have them melt better, mix the grated or chopped cheese with a small amount of veg oil this helps them melt better and brown slightly.

I am a former chef and now a lacto-ovo vegetarian, and have tried a number of these products in a number of country's.

Answer 2

Have you tried Veggie Slices?  My husband is lactose intolerant, but he likes cheese.  I can eat regular cheese, but need to watch my cholesterol.  The product is ususally found in the produce department of regular grocery stores.  It's a decent product if you like cheese but need to give it up.

Answer 3

It really does depend on the stores in your area.

Many soy cheeses or almond cheeses and stuff like this still contain milk ingredients... such as casein or whey.  Check the ingredients because most of the fake cheeses I have seen are not vegan.

By the way... Tofutti cream cheese is definitely a winner in my book :D mmm mmm

Answer 4

Dairy also has blood, pus, causes acne, arthritis, heart disease, diabetes, osteoporosis, etc. Worst of all it's cruelty towards animals.

I eat Toffutti cream cheese, cheese slices, sour cream. Their products are amazing.

Answer 5

i'm a vegetarian and i agree with you about the hormones! there's also a LOT of other creepy stuff in meat these days too! it's good your trying to find a sub, but i haven't tried soy cheese before! but my FAV organic vegetarain cheese is Cabot! it is soo good! i say try Cabot and soy cheese and decide what you think is best! ; )

Answer 6

Yeah, Cheezly is great actually and there are even a couple of varieties that melt too. You have to order it though. I've never seen it in a health food shop fridge.

Try www.crueltyfreeshop.com.au

www.veganperfection.com.au

www.veganessentials.com

www.veggiestuff.com

Answer 7

Many soy cheeses have a small amount of milk ingredients, so read labels carefully.  My favorite brand is Tofutti, it comes in two flavors - American and Mozzerella, and is totallly vegan.

Answer 8

first if you purchase organic dairy products the hormones are not given - so not in dairy.

2nd - a long time ago when i would get cravings for cheese - i would get this stuff called "Plant cheese" - wasn't much like cheese but for us raw fooders at the time it was great!  do not know if it is still out there.  do not eat cheese anyway - wait, unless i am a guest at some ones house & they make a veggie dish just for me & my family & put cheese - i would eat it.

3rd-maybe go online and check out "Whole Foods" site they are pretty big - if any one had a plant-based cheese  it may be there - Good luck!  :)

Answer 9

Try to find organic "raw" cheeses... you will find them in gourmet specialty stores... most will come from small dairies and some from other countries like France... the idea is that these will NOT be pasteurized/sterilized to the point where the milk cultures are dead and all you would get is a bunch of mucous.

You can still have dairy, but make sure it specifies that it is organic and  "rBST-free" or something along those lines.

If you find you really are sensitive to dairy, consider the various nut cheeses... literally small packs of cheese made from almonds or other nuts. There are various nut milks available on the market too... I like the vanilla almond milk. They are great. You can make your own nut milks, cheeses, sauces and spreads using a high-powered blender and a strainer.

Stay away from soy products, including soy cheeses & milks, because soy is a endocrine disruptor... it will put your thyroid flat on its back, then mess up every other hormone you have while blocking your intake of most vitamins and minerals.

Answer 10

Vegie shreds are awesome. I get them all the time. THey are in the vegetable section of the grocery store by the tofu and stuff, and it tastes just like normal cheese. They are sooo good, and they have no milk in them. You can get shredded cheddar, mozzerella, parmesian, they even have slices that look like American cheese, but they are soy/ veggie. Soo good. Hope you try them. THey are worth it!

Answer 11

It depends what country your in.

If your in Australia or the UK, then I suggest Cheezly. It takes great. The mozzeralla cheese is really good on pizza.

i don't know if they export Cheezly to the USA though...

Answer 12

As a cheese-lover, no.  There is no such thing as a good-tasting vegan cheese.  I can tolerate soy cheese, but I can not say I enjoyed it.  This is why I chose to be lacto-vegetarian.

Answer 13

I don't' know if you can get it outside of the US, but a product that goes by the name of VEGAN RELLA is a great substitute for mozzarella cheese.  It is great on crackers, especially if you heat it up.  It seems to taste better after it is heated, in my opinion.  Has a creamy consistancy when heating in the microwave oven.  So, it tends to take care of the "comfort food" craving that many of us have leftover from out childhoods of consuming dairy products.  Soy Yoghurt is also a good replacement for the old standard dairy-based products.

I just stopped eating cheese 45 days ago & have found that this product is a good tasting replacement... if you can find it!

Answer 14

I've never found a good commercial brand- but I have made several dairy free cheeses with recipes from  The Uncheese Cookbook  by Jo Stepaniak. (available at Amazon)

Answer 15

In the usa a store called Krogers/JayC has a brand called "Shred-Mate" I actually accidentally bought it once, before I was vegetarian and didnt even notice a difference in taste. It just doesnt melt as well as real cheese. :-)

Answer 16

I'm really not thrilled with vegan cheeses overall, but it depends on what you're looking for.  I haven't found anything with a good enough texture and taste to slice and put on a cracker, but there are a couple of mozzarellas that will melt in the oven and make a pretty good pizza.  Follow Your Heart Vegan Gourmet is the easiest to find (Whole Foods carries it) and it's alright for that.  Teese is a newer one that, in most areas, is only available by mail order.  It melts really nicely and tastes a bit more like the real thing thant he FYH does.  They are also working on a cheddar (and on getting into more stores.)  But, for the most part, I'm just living without cheese.  It's been 10 months and it was far easier to give up than I ever dreamed.

Answer 17

In Australia, it is called "Soycheese with chives" it is by a company called "Simply Better Foods". It tastes great and has amazing texture. It also has 37% of your calcium needs in one serve.

Answer 18

http://www.buteisland.com/

www.chreese.com

www.morningsidefarm.com

Vegetarian Cheese

The good news is there are vegetarian and vegan cheeses available. These cheeses are usually curdled using plants, fungi, or bacteria. Keep in mind, though, that these are real cheeses. In fact, vegetarian cheese is hard to distinguish from cheese made with animal rennet. It's almost impossible to tell difference just by looking at or even tasting the cheese. The only reliable way is to check for the phrase "vegetarian cheese" on the label. Do to the increase in demand, some grocery stores have started labeling their vegetarian cheeses themselves to make them easier to find.

Answer 19

No I haven't been able to find anything in the market.I do have a certified dairy for raw milk close by and I make yogurt cheese,but when I become a full fledged VEGAN I will be cutting out milk.

Answer 20

The best tasting and most meltable cheese is made from rice. The brand I use is called Galaxy Nutritional Foods Rice Slices. They make American, mozarella, pepperjack, and others and I've used them on veggie burgers and enchiladas.

They make other products as well.

Edit @ Ksler: some people like cheese, but have allergies and so they need to find an alternative. Some people want to avoid some of the ingredients in dairy cheese for health reasons and why not try an alternative rather than giving it up altogether? Cheese can be made with all sorts of things and all of it is real cheese.

http://www.galaxyfoods.com/ourbrands/usa...

Answer 21

If your a vegan why are you trying to eat something that is similar to cheese? Vegans aren't suppose to eat anything from an animal, why pretend? Isn't that called fake? I got it, why don't you just eat what you want! If it is cheese you want then eat cheese! If you want something that tastes like cheese and is not; try eating a piece of lettuce, and then imagine it as a big block of American cheese. Eventually with this method you will be able to make food taste like whatever you want! Good Luck!

Answer 22

Don't eat cheese, or stop the quest.

Having lived in Wisconsin with some of the best cheese in the world, I know why you would want something to replace it.  But there is nothing that would taste good or be nutritious.  Either eat it or don't.

If you are vegan, you don't eat cheese.  Substituting anything "fake" will be a disappointment.

There is enough food for vegans to be satisfied without having to go to the fake c**p.

Answer 23

Because soy, nut, and oils used in cheese substitutes have a light to liquid consistency, most products use potato flakes, potato starch, or cellulose to give the "cheese" a harder consistency and similar texture to true cheese. Many soy cheese products also contain sodium casinate, oils, particularly partially hydrogenated soybean oil, although some manufacturers are gradually phasing these oils out and using ready-made tofu, isolated soy proteins and nondairy lactic acid. Some preservatives and sugars (sugar and maltodextrin) are also present in some brands. So top line – read those ingredient labels carefully.

Varieties:

Imitation Cheese: "Imitation" cheese looks like cheese, has a similar texture, but is usually primarily made from partially hydrogenated oils that may be a detriment if fat consumption is a concern.

Soy Cheese: Made from soybeans, these veggie cheeses are lighter in texture and difficult to use in dishes that require melting, but make great additions to sandwiches or salads. Soy cheese is available in the style of plain or in cream cheese, cheddar, mozzarella cheeses and other hard cheese flavors.

Almond and Other Nut Milks are used to make some cheeses that are bland and slightly nutty sweet.

When I'm tasting (and judging) a cheese substitute – here's what I look for:

    * Low sodium

    * No or low sugars added

    * Tastes like natural cheese – not over flavored

    * Melts well

    * Not rubbery

BRANDS:

* Tofutti

* Galaxy Nutritional Foods

Answer 24

Cheezly is, as several people have said, an excellent substitute.

It's made by Redwood foods, and you can see from this link how many different kinds there are, including several melting cheeses:

http://www.bazaarbuilder.com/cgi-bin/cb2...

In the UK you can buy them in Holland & Barrett, other health food shops and some supermarkets - Tesco sell some of them, and Waitrose sell some Redwood products. Or of course you can order them online.

There's a link on the Home Page for people in America:

http://www.redwoodfoods.co.uk/index.html

I've never found any other vegan cheese that I liked, except Tofutti cream cheese, which is wonderful

Answer 25

I recently tried VeganGormet at a food show and it ROCKED! I love that it melts so I can finally make a decent pizza. It is only on the web right now but I have asked my local grocer and have my fingers crossed. Here is the link:http://www.followyourheart.com/vegangour...

Good Luck!

Answer 26

Parma is good vegan Parmesan cheeze and Follow Your Heart has good vegan cheddar cheeze.

http://eatintheraw.com

http://www.followyourheart.com/vegangour...

Answer 27

Tofutti makes good slices of cheese. they come in either mozzerella or american flavored. and they're completely dairy/milk free. it melts really well, if you want it in like mexican food or whatever. and it tastes pretty good.

if you're just going to eliminate dairy, but not necessarily go vegan, then there are other kinds of cheese called "veggie slices" but it also comes in shredded too. it has a lot more variety of flavors. but it does have casein, a by-product of milk. so, being vegan, i've never tried that kind.

there's also this stuff called "nutritional yeast". you just mix it with water and boil it until its thick and creamy. it tastes a lot like cheese and is good as a sauce on pasta. or, you can add salsa to it and make it a very healthy and delicious mexican dip.

hope this helps!!

Answer 28

YES! It's called Playfood and is made from cashews, so it's really yummy. I dono if they ship it anywhere, but here in cali it's pretty easy to find.

http://www.godairyfree.org/200802262299/...

Answer 29

how about  some natural roots in the diet

  my favorite are  potato  sweet,,then  if you look in your

market  you will find  all kinds of  yams,

odd Looking in all kinds of shapes *

[You  peel * rinse and  cut in too even  slice

simmer slowly in lite salt,and  some

  dark green veg  spinach or dandelion,,collar green .escarole

  want some color throw carrot,, beets  cabbage,,

simmered *

But  unfortunitly  it takes time to boil [water ]  no spice*

you would have to cook some of them in different

pots *

   I Like  GINGER AND GINSEN  BUT MY FAVORITE

is MAN-ROOT *

TO YOUR HEALTH  [FRIENDS *

oh i forgot  [the COD *

THAT YOU HAVE TO SOAK

maybe change its rinse ]

  over night *

to your health *

you are what you eat in life *

  roots  & weed * and dried salt fish *

EVERY BONE IN MY BODY STRONG 8

MY MIND  [REALLY ITS power *

  i FARM * I DO NOT EAT FROM

TIN CANS * NOR BELONG IN ITS ALLEY *

i have a lamp post *

my bulb  [150*  bright *

PSST  SO DOES THE FRUIT

I PLANTED  [MY PITS *

Answer 30

I'm going to post a link for a macaroni and cheeze recipe that is to die for.  You can use the cheese sauce for all different kinds of things.

You don't want to eat a lot of "fake meats" or "fake cheese".  They are not only full of FAT but full of isolated/concentrated soy protein - something you need to steer clear of.  I put a link to an article you should consider reading.

Good luck and congrats on going dairy free!  It's refreshing to read your post - you've actually done your research.  This "organic" and "raw" cow's milk craze is beyond ridiculous, if you ask me.

Answer 31

Vegan "cheese substitute" would be almost as dumb as tofu that has been "formed,flaked & flavored" to resemble a steak!

If you white & are opposed to racism, would you be looking for someone who only LOOKED black that you could discriminate against so you weren't actually being a racist?

If you are a vegan, don't eat non-vegan foods!

Silly goose!