Best Vegan Queso (Quick + Easy Recipe) - The Simple Veganista (2024)

FAQs

How do you make queso dip not chunky? ›

For dips, you'll want to use a tablespoon of cornstarch per pound of cheese, then add at least five ounces of evaporated milk. After that, you can use more evaporated milk to thin out your dip as much as you need.

If you're going thick and cheesy, use about 2 cups of cheese with ¼ cup milk alternative or water. For a thinner creamy sauce, use the same amount of cheese but add an extra ¼ cup of liquid (½ cup total).

But, regardless of cheese choice, adding a brick of cream cheese will help stabilize your cheesy mix, binding ingredients and preventing them from separating. Most importantly, cream cheese will also keep your queso smooth.

If the dip is too thick, add more milk; if it's too thin, add more cheese. Eat it with tortilla chips.

So maybe the internet is flooded with non-congealing warm cheese dips now! “The secret ingredient in this is evaporated milk. That's how this stays creamy – warm or cold.” This dip is made with evaporated milk which makes all the difference.

Ingredients for queso without velveeta:

extra sharp cheddar cheese: Buy a block and grate it yourself. Bagged, shredded cheese has a coating on it that impedes melting. Monterey Jack cheese: Same rule applies--buy a block and grate it fresh for best results.

Queso fresco is available at some supermarkets and at Mexican grocers. Feta cheese makes a good substitute. Opt for a mild one if you can, or soak a block of feta in fresh water to tone down its tanginess. A young ricotta salata (firm Italian cheese sold at most supermarkets) will also work.

Making a slurry with cornstarch and cold milk is how you will thicken your queso. A traditional slurry is a 1:1 liquid to cornstarch ratio, but for our queso purposes I used 1 tablespoon of cornstarch and 2 tablespoons of milk.

After making queso blanco on the stovetop, pour it into a slow cooker, and set it to WARM. This will keep it hot, smooth, and creamy through the whole party. Otherwise, just warm it up in the microwave for 30 seconds and stir generously once it starts to get cold. If need be, add some milk to thin as you heat.

If you add the milk too quickly, use cold milk or simply don't whisk fast enough, you could get lumps in your sauce as bits of roux will cook and turn into small balls before they've had a chance to be smoothly blended into the milk.

Why does my queso not melt? ›

Why won't my cheese melt? There are many reasons, but the biggest is the moisture content. The moisture content of the cheese has a great effect on the melting process. Cheese that contains higher amounts of fat will melt better than one that doesn't.

Usually, when cheese melts, the fat and proteins begin to separate, but sodium citrate “binds them together so that when they melt, they do it evenly and hom*ogeneously,” Vaculin explains. Keeping the mixture hom*ogenized ensures that this queso fundido can stand the test of time.

To make a thinner cheese dip, you can add more milk a little bit at a time until you reach the desired consistency.

If you don't want to use American cheese, you can achieve the same creamy, stabilized texture with the addition of cream cheese — which also has stabilizers added. Use whatever cheese you like (cheddar, Monterey Jack or other cheeses) and then add 2 ounces of cream cheese to the mix.

But most likely it's because the cheese was heated too quickly or too much, causing the protein to clump up. Suggestions: Melt with less heat. Use a double boiler (to reduce hot spots within the pan)

The curdles in a cheese sauce come as a result of overheating the proteins in the cheese, which causes them to separate from the fat and water content, per The Washington Post. Protein molecules bind together and form tight, chewy grains throughout the sauce, all while leaving an excess of oil and liquid around it.

Add a splash of the sauce's base liquid – if it's a milk-based sauce, for example, pour in a few teaspoons of cold milk. You may also add a splash of wine, beer or cream. Whisk the sauce vigorously for about 10 seconds; this may be enough to repair a cheese sauce that's just beginning to curdle.