Homemade Cashew Butter
Ginny McMeans
Published:
May 2, 2020
Last Modified:
November 26, 2025
Whole cashews are blended into the creamiest homemade nut butter, no additives needed! My homemade cashew butter takes just a few minutes and turns out savory, rich, and delicious.
Homemade Cashew Butter is more of a how-to than a recipe, but I really wanted to share with you how easy it is to make. Being a very versatile spread, you can substitute it for peanut butter in almost any recipe.
Cashews have a naturally rich and buttery taste which makes them perfect for a homemade spread.
My recipe does not have any salt or sugar, so you can use it for baking, to make salad dressings, or for making treats like Cashew Butter Chocolate Truffles. It’s of course perfectly delicious on its own too! Spread it on toast, muffins, or–my favorite–dip crisp apple slices straight into it.
In just 5 minutes you’ll have a homemade cashew butter that is so delicious and naturally vegan. Let’s go!
Ingredient Notes
- Cashews – Use dry roasted cashews, or get raw cashews and roast them yourself. The most important thing is to avoid any flavored cashews or those roasted in oil. I also like to go with unsalted cashews so that I can add salt to my own preference after the nut butter is blended.
- Neutral oil – Cashews are naturally rich in oils, which they will release as they blend. However you may need a bit of extra oil to help smooth out your cashew butter. Have a neutral oil such as safflower seed oil, avocado oil, or sunflower seed oil on hand in case you need a few drops. Avoid things like olive oil and coconut oil here, as they will add too strong of a flavor.
Step-by-Step Instructions
- Add cashews. Place the whole baked or roasted cashews in the bowl of your food processor or high powered blender.
- Process partially. Apply the lid and process for about 10 seconds, until you have a coarse mixture. Stop the motor and stir briefly to make sure everything mixes evenly. Process for another 20 seconds, until the mixture starts clumping together–this means the cashew nut components are releasing their oils! Scrape down the sides to re-incorporate any larger nut pieces and blend for another 20 seconds.
- Process until smooth. Scrape down the sides again before blending for about a minute. Keep going, scraping down the sides as needed if you see larger nut pieces getting stuck, until you see the mixture becoming smooth and creamy. If you are still not seeing as smooth a texture as you want at this point, add a tablespoon of neutral oil and continue blending. If you prefer a slightly crunchy cashew butter, stop the blending sooner!
- Transfer and enjoy. Put into a different container and enjoy.
How To Store
Refrigerating Store in a lidded mason jar or other airtight container for up to 4 weeks in the refrigerator.
Freezing For an even longer shelf life, pack your cashew butter into a freezer-safe container and freeze for up to 3 months. Make sure to label it, as frozen cashew butter can look like any number of other typical freezer items like vegan gravy, vegetable stock, or other homemade nut butter.
Thawing Transfer the frozen nut butter to the fridge and let it thaw overnight, then stir to re-incorporate any oil that may have separated.
Homemade Cashew Butter Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 cups cashews
- 1-2 Tbsp neutral oil, if needed
Instructions
- Place the cashews in the bowl of your food processor or high powered blender.
- Cover and process for about 10 seconds, until you have a coarse mixture. Stop the motor and stir briefly, then process for another 20 seconds, until the mixture starts clumping together. Scrape down the sides to re-incorporate any larger nut pieces and blend for another 20 seconds.
- Keep blending, scraping down the sides as needed if you see larger nut pieces getting stuck, until you see the mixture becoming smooth and creamy. If you are still not seeing as smooth a texture as you want at this point, add a tablespoon of neutral oil and continue blending, or stop it sooner for a more crunchy cashew butter.
- Put into a different container and enjoy.
Nutrition
55 responses to “Homemade Cashew Butter”
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So easy! Thanks for posting the pictures, they really help me see a cooking process. This is on my list to try.
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You are so welcome Becky! I hope you get to try it. It is very important to let your machine run long enough to get the cashews creamy. All machines are a bit different and may need cooling down every once in a while. Not my Ninja though. Ha! You’d think I had stock in them.
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How much cashew butter does 2c of cashew make?
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It makes 1-1/4cups. 🙂
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How long does this last?
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Homemade Cashew Butter lasts up to 2 weeks in the refrigerator.
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Do you soak your cashews first? If so, do you dehydrate them before making the butter?
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No, no soaking necessary. In fact I used ready to bake with cashew pieces. Not raw. Very easy. If you want to use raw I would soak for a few hours first.
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THANKS!
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Im going to buy some cashews to make this weekend! By “ready to bake” do you mean dry roasted cashews? Like the kind you can buy in the store already roasted?
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Yes, that is what I meant. You can make the butter with any kind of cashew. It would be cleaner/healthier with raw cashews but I know they are hard to find sometimes.
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Thank you for sharing! So simple, I will never buy nut butter again.
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I used organic raw cashews and didn’t soak. Came out great!
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How great! One step less.
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Isn’t that the truth Melissa!!!
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Yeah Ninja! Just got one for my birthday from my family. This recipe is definitely on my list. Always have cooked everything from scratch. Love your site.
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Alright! You won’t believe how fast it makes butters. Love the thing. Thanks for your support too!!! 🙂
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Do I have to do anything special to raw cashews before using them? I can’t use regular cashews cause they have peanut oil on them.
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No nothing special. Just soak as usual. I almost always use raw cashews. The longer you process them the creamer they become. If your blender heats up just make sure you let it cool down every minute or so.
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I use a coffee grinder and that makes it super creamy
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I love cashew nuts . I made cashew nuts cream to use as a dairy-free sauce last week. Gorgeous and goes with any food !
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That sounds great Mayca! They do make some really good sauces. 🙂
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Thank you for posting this recipe, all of the others that I have found wanted you to add oil of some sort & sugar or honey. It came out really good!
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You are very welcome. Thank you so much for letting me know you are so happy with the recipe. 🙂
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Thank you much.
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I’m not having much luck with this. I’m using raw cashew pieces (with nothing added). I’ve blended them in a food processor and now they’ve just formed a huge tough lump like clay. I reluctantly added a little olive oil and a little grapeseed oil but it hasn’t helped. I keep flattening it down with a spatula but it just balls up again and the blade spins fruitlessly around… Help!
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Oh, no. I just saw this. I am on the west coast. You are doing right. This is what happens. Scrape the sides, go, stop, scrapes the sides, go, stop, scrape the sides, go, stop. Do not add water. Oil and water don’t mix. Don’t add any oil. Not necessary. It will eventually start releasing it’s own oils. The longer you go the creamier it gets. Give your processor a rest every once in a while. I hope you kept going and you saw how it worked. If you put it in the fridge before it finished – take it out and keep going. You are not working in vain. It will work. So worth it. Let me know.
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Should I try adding a dash of water?
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No, see answer above. 🙂
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What about roasting them first? I saw another recipe that said to use roasted ones. ? Can’t wait to try it. Thank you.
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Yes, you can used roasted cashews. I have done than too.
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What about making hazelnut butter? Same process?
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Yes, same process. It won’t be like nutella but it will be great!
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I make my own cashew butter using raw cashew pieces and a pinch of salt. Nothing else.I do use my food processor, 3 1/2 cups raw pieces. I’ve never soaked my cashews.
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Yes, a pinch of salt with raw cashews would be good. You don’t soak? Very interesting and I will have to try that.
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Sounds great! Do you think it would work with a normal hand blender as well?
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I know this might be redundant but .. All I have are Sea Salted cashews in hand..
Do you think that would make the butter overly salted? Should I go for raw or non-salted cashews?
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They would be great with those cashews too. I have used salted ones and the butter is delicious.
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I wonder if one could use this cashew butter in place of butter to make a butter cream icing for a torte? Do you think it would work if icing sugar and a bit of cocoa were added? I’m curious to know if the cashew butter’s consistency is more buttery or peanut buttery like.
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It is just like peanut butter but I am thinking it would work as a frosting but not as light as a buttercream. Use this cashew butter, add some icing sugar and cocoa and add non dairy milk to the consistency that you want. Sorry I son’t have measurements. Just thinking what I would do.
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Great. Sounds like it would work. Will have to try it next time I prepare my torte. Thanks. : )
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Well, my blender just overheated without finishing the job. Which Ninja do you use? There are several models
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You can still use your model – just turn it off every 30 seconds or so to be safe. My model number is QV1004 000.
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Is it possible to freeze this? Or will it separate? I prefer making things in bulk and putting it in the freezer 🙂
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Yes, it freezes perfectly and up to 4 months.
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This may be a stupid question but why is it only good for two weeks? The nuts themselves would last a lot longer and you didn’t add anything to them.
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Not stupid at all Cheryl. I err on the side of caution. I should say several weeks and leave it to the persons discretion. The oils do cause the butter to go rancid more quickly but it still keeps very well.
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No worries, Cheryl! Homemade nut butters last quite a long time. I typically keep mine in the cabinet and they do fine for a couple months (probably longer but we eat them quickly). I’ve had a cinnamon-cashew butter in the refrigerator since last October and it’s now August of the next year. Enjoy!
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Can’t wait to try. Should I use roasted or unroasted cashew
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You know Tracey – you could use either. I have done it both ways and I have used raw. All have turned out wonderful. It is so easy too.
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Greetings!
Is there an ingredient that I can add to this recipe, that might offer a flavor which is similar to regular butter?
I adore being vegan, but there are just a couple of omni tastes that I miss, and am always seeking wisdom from others, to see if there’s a way to get those lost flavors.
If not, I’ll carry on, and hopefully find something close to it.Thanks for any advice offered :o)
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Hi Annie, nothing would make this recipe be like a butter substitute. That would be a completely different recipe with different ingredients. The ‘butter’ would all start with a cocoa butter base. I will have to put that recipe on here. 🙂 Thanks for the inspiration and I will tag you when I get it on the blog.
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I can’t believe how easy this was to make and it’s so much better than store bought. The photos really helped to understand how the process works. Thanks! -
Can I freeze cashew butter?
Thanks,
Mary-
Yes! Absolutely Mary!
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