Vegan Cacio e Pepe

Creamy, tangy vegan cheese sauce smothers perfectly cooked al dente spaghetti. The only thing that makes this pairing even better is a pile of skillet-toasted black peppercorns!  

Translating to “cheese and pepper”, the classic Italian dish of cacio e pepe reflects one of the most basic and completely made-for-each-other flavor pairings: creamy, salty cheese and sharply spicy black peppercorn. 

Traditional cacio e pepe is made using cow’s milk based pecorino romano cheese, and many vegan cacio e pepe pasta recipes opt to simply swap in a vegan parmesan in its stead. For my version though, I wanted to try something a bit different and so I set my sights on--brace yourselves--skipping the cheese altogether. That’s right, it’s cacio e pepe, hold the cacio. Hear me out. 

I found that cashew butter creates the most ideal base for this sauce as it behaves like a thickener and even more amazingly, the tiny bits of cashew coating the pasta offer a texture that is wonderfully similar to that of grated parmesan! For the all important funky-tangy flavor, I turned to a combination of white miso and nutritional yeast which together are able to replicate all of those cheesy notes we know and love.

This vegan cacio e pepe dish comes together in just 20 minutes, making it the perfect weeknight dinner and it is without a doubt one of my favorite vegan pasta recipes to pull out when I’m in need of a comfort meal. 

Vegan Cacio e Pepe Ingredients

• Salt - Adding salt to the water you cook pasta brings out the lightly sweet flavor of the pasta itself. I added about a tablespoon to my pasta water, but it will all depend on how much water you’re using. It should taste salty like the sea! 
• Vegan spaghetti - Choose a long cut pasta like spaghetti, linguine, or bucatini for this dish. Not all pasta is vegan pasta (especially fresh pasta which often contains egg) so make sure to check the packaging on yours. 
• Cashew butter - This ingredient is the secret to making your cacio e pepe sauce thick and creamy, plus the tiny bits of cashew add a cheese-like texture. You can use plain store-bought cashew butter or make your own from raw cashews. 
• White miso paste - Made from fermented soybeans and rice, white miso paste has a flavor that is salty, funky, tangy, and savory. In a word: complex! Stick with white miso here, as red miso paste has a more intense flavor that isn’t what we’re going for, plus the darker color of it would change the hue of your sauce. 
• Lemon juice - Use a fresh lemon for this recipe, it will deliver a more vibrant flavor as compared to the bottled stuff. You’ll need 2 Tbsp of juice which is typically the yield of about 1 whole lemon. 
• Nutritional yeast - Nooch is the classic choice for replicating that umami rich, cheesy flavor in vegan recipes. Use your own favorite brand or see a few of my favorite recommendations in our Best Nutritional Yeast taste test and review. 
• Olive oil - The medium in which you will toast your black peppercorns! The oil will also help to create a creamy, unctuous vegan cheese sauce. Regular or extra virgin olive oil is fine. 
• Crushed black peppercorns - Finally, the “pepe” of your vegan cacio e pepe! Use cracked, crushed, or freshly ground black pepper from a pepper mill or grinder. Using pre-ground pepper from a shaker will not produce as good of a flavor. 

How to Make Vegan Cacio e Pepe

1. Cook the pasta. Fill a large pot with water and season it with salt. Add the spaghetti and cook according to package directions for al dente. Drain the pasta, reserving at least ⅓ cup of the starchy pasta water as you do so. 
2. Make the sauce. While you wait for the spaghetti to cook, you can start getting your vegan cacio e pepe sauce ready. In a large mixing bowl, combine cashew butter, white miso paste, lemon juice, and nutritional yeast. Whisk until combined--it will be thick and sticky!--then add your reserved pasta cooking water. Continue whisking until the sauce becomes smooth and cohesive. 
3. Toast the peppercorns. Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the crushed black peppercorns and cook, stirring constantly, until their natural fragrance becomes even stronger. They should gently sizzle as they toast. This will only take a minute or two so keep a close eye to avoid burning.  
4. Finish the sauce. Add your cacio e pepe sauce mixture to the skillet and stir well, incorporating the sauce mixture into the oil and black peppercorn mixture. Cook briefly--just for about a minute--to bring the ingredients together. 
5. Bring it all together. Add your drained spaghetti to the skillet and toss gently, working to coat the cooked pasta evenly with all of the sauce. Keep tossing until the pasta is warmed through. If the sauce becomes too thick again, add a splash more pasta water to thin it out. 
6. Serve! Pile your vegan cacio e pepe into bowls and garnish with an additional shower of cracked black peppercorns, if desired. 

Watch Us Make Vegan Cacio e Pepe

Chef Tips 

Use a heat-proof glass pitcher such as a pyrex measuring cup to (carefully!) scoop your necessary pasta water directly from the pot. I try to do this before draining the pasta, because the number of times I have watched all of that glorious pasta water swirl down the drain before remembering I needed to keep some of it? Too many to count.

To crush black peppercorns without a pepper mill or grinder:

• If you have a mortar and pestle, this is the perfect tool! Place the whole peppercorns in the mortar bowl and use the pestle to smash and swirl the peppercorns until crushed. 
• Place the whole peppercorns in a zip-top bag and lay them flat on your cutting board or countertop. Use a hefty tool--such as a meat mallet, rolling pin, or even a metal ice cream scoop!--to smack the peppercorns through the bag until crushed.
• If you need a less noisy approach, place the peppercorns in the bag as instructed above and get a glass bowl. Using two hands, press the bottom of the glass bowl down on top of the peppercorns, rolling the rounded sides against them until they are crushed to your satisfaction. 

How to Store 

Refrigerating. Leftover cacio e pepe can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to four days.

Freezing. Yes, you can freeze vegan cacio e pepe! Just let it cool completely then transfer it to a freezer-safe container or bag. Freeze it for up to 3 months. 

Thawing. The day before you plan to use your frozen cacio e pepe, move it from the freezer into the refrigerator and let it thaw there overnight. 

Reheating. Heat a drizzle of oil or some vegan butter in a skillet over low-medium heat. Add the leftover cacio e pepe and gently heat it, stirring often, until warmed through. You may find that the sauce thickens up a bit during storage, so you may add a splash of water while reheating to thin it out if needed. 

📋 Recipe