I get a lot of questions about nutritional yeast – what it is, whether it’s actually healthy, what I use it for – so here is my answer.
First of all, nutritional yeast is different from the kind of yeast you bake with. It’s yellow and flaky and has a savory flavor, but doesn’t have any action of making things rise.
For the most part, people who have issues with yeast imbalances shouldn’t have a problem with nutritional yeast because it’s a different thing altogether.
There are certain brands that make nutritional yeast that is fortified with vitamin B12, which is why it’s called ‘nutritional’. I think that’s great as an extra source, but I don’t personally rely on nutritional yeast or other fortified foods for B12.
I take a supplement to get my B12, so I know that I’m getting a concentrated, high-quality and easily absorbed source in the same amount on a regular basis
So the reason I use nutritional yeast is as a seasoning – for that savory flavor it adds to sauces, dips and meals. It really changes the whole character of a dish.
People say it gives a cheesy flavor to things, and it’s often used in vegan cheese sauces. It doesn’t taste exactly like cheese, but it has that salty-savory essence that can help satisfy cheese cravings.
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Nutritional Yeast Recipe Ideas
- Alfredo Sauce – I love making this creamy white bean sauce flavored with seasonings to be like an alfredo sauce.
- Dreena’s Vegveeta Dip – this is the perfect cheesy dip, and the best part is it’s totally healthy!
- Tempeh patties – these look really delicious, I plan to try them next time I get my hands on some tempeh.
- Kale Chips – nutritional yeast is great as part of the seasoning on kale chips.
- Pesto gets a bit of a parmesan-like flavor if you add some nutritional yeast.
- Avocado Pasta – I love adding a sprinkle of nutritional yeast to seasonings with pasta, and it pairs really nicely with avocado.
- Eggs benedict can be made dairy-free and egg-free with this delicious tofu scramble and vegan hollandaise sauce.
- Almond Roasted Cauliflower – a super easy and super delicious way to make cauliflower taste amazing.
- Stuffed Mushrooms – I really love adding that bit of savoriness to stuffed mushrooms, along with some spinach and ground almonds – yum.
- Split Pea Casserole – this is a very simple dish, made extra delicious with savory seasonings.
- Popcorn – drizzle some melted coconut oil, sprinkle some nutritional yeast, sea salt and smoked paprika or dill = yum
- Cheesy Sprinkle – you can make something reminiscent of parmesan by grinding some nuts or seeds (I like sunflower, but anything works) and mixing together some nutritional yeast and sea salt.
- Pizza Topping – make the cheesy sprinkle more like a crumbly feta by adding a squeeze of lemon juice and/or olive oil – this is fantastic as a pizza topping so that it gets baked a little.
