A classic creamy white sauce is vegan-ized with this Simple Vegan Bechamel Sauce recipe. The perfect base sauce for any pasta dish.
I feel like there are lots of staples when it comes to cooking.
Staple spices.
Staple ingredients.
And...
Staple recipes.
And one staple recipe that should be in everyone's back pocket is a bechamel sauce.
Now, don't get thrown off by its fancy sounding name.
This buttery, milky sauce is straight up traditional white sauce.
To vegan-ize this classic, we just need to make a couple simple swaps.
The first being vegan butter for traditional butter.
Easy enough.
I personally am a big fan of Earth Balance or Miyoko's. Earth Balance is usually easier to find, but Miyoko's is slowly but surely catching up - I most recently saw it at my local Ralph's.
The next swap we're going to make is non-dairy milk for traditional milk.
Another easy switch to make.
I usually stick with soy milk for this recipe since I think nut milks can come through too sweet, but use what tastes best to you.
And with a just a few other staple ingredients - flour, salt & pepper - your sauce will come together in just 10 minutes.
At this point, you can call it quits. You have officially made a bechamel sauce.
Congrats.
But, if you are looking to add another layer of flavor you still have lots of options.
Add in some pesto for a creamy herb-filled sauce.
Or stir in some pureed chilies for a spicy kick.
Whatever flavor you want your sauce to take on, this creamy white sauce is the perfect base.
Be sure to check back later this week to see how I use this sauce in a tasty baked pasta dish!
Need more sauce inspo? Check out my Spicy Marinara Sauce or Chimichurri Sauce.
Simple Vegan Bechamel Sauce
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoon vegan butter
- 2 tablespoon flour
- 2 cups non-dairy milk warmed
- salt & pepper to taste
- pinch of nutmeg optional
Instructions
- Melt butter in a sauce pan over medium heat. Add flour and whisk until thickened and bubbling, but not browned (approx. 2 minutes).
- Pour warm milk in the pan and continue to whisk until sauce is thickened (approx. 3 minutes).
- Add salt, pepper and nutmeg to the pan and stir to combine.
- Use immediately.*
Notes
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Gwendalina Carrera
I am so glas I found this vegan bechamelle recipe. What is the best milk to use?
Rene
I usually use soy or oat - unsweetened, of course.
Hana T. Shannon
Simple. To the point.
When I used sprouted barley flour as it was the only flour available here,
I added 3 TBSP instead of 2 for better consistency along with the same ingredients in this recipe. Its good!
ashok
My Family Loved it. I am definitely sharing Guys, Thanks For sharing this Great Recipe. this recipe and this website with my friend. Hope they also love it. Thank you again for sharing such a great recipe.
Rene
Thanks so much! And so glad you liked it!
Peter stock
Too many distracting unhelpful, unnecessary photos and annoying pop ups.
Just the text please. (Or a."go to rexipe" link at the top)
This is a recipe for.losing views.
I wont be back.
Monica
Wow. I will be back! Why are people so nasty? The sauce turned out great, thank you!
Cheryl Davis
Great - made this with oat milk and worked a treat. Now saved as my 'go-to' béchamel sauce.
Amy
Great recipe!! It may seem like it won't work at first, but be patient, stick with it and a great vegan béchamel will form
Jennifer Hoover
Soy is good since no flavor but it also gets thicker may require more liquid
Demme Matheos
Can you use another flour?
Coconut flour, almond flour etc.
Rene
I haven't tried it, but it should work. You could also use a cornstarch slurry.
Jules
Is it normal for when the butter is melted and flour added it’s not liquid it just soft clumps?
Rene
Hi Jules - you just want to whisk, whisk, whisk, until there aren't any more clumps.
Katelyn
How long would this stay good in the fridge? I only used a small amount & want to use the rest for something else