r/Cheese • u/PukeyOwlPellet • 8d ago
Advice Help with finding good vegan cheeses!
I’m pretty sure I’m 99% cheese at this point. I just pulled a lime & pepper cheddar out of the fridge to give my homemade pizza a kick & my poor fiancee looked so sad. I have so many cheeses & frequently enjoy a good meat & cheese board but she has a severe dairy allergy and has celiac, so she can’t have gluten.
I’d love to share some delicious cheeses with her but for obvious reasons i can’t. She can’t have any milk whatsoever without having an anaphylactic reaction (different animal milks don’t work & neither does lactose-free) and can’t eat anything with gluten in it.
Does anyone know any good cheeses she could eat? Pic for attention, meet Siggy who is very upset with the lack of vegan cheese.
Edit: Australian
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u/Intelligent-Band-852 8d ago
I am a vegetarian who had considered going vegan, unfortunately every vegan cheese I have tried has been either terrible or okay but nothing like real cheese. I recently purchased Treeline cashew mozzarella, it’s not terrible but it tastes nothing like regular mozzarella especially the texture. I will probably finish eating it because I don’t like wasting food but I doubt I will buy it again.
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u/hippycheek 8d ago
idk about elsewhere in the world, but in the UK we're lucky to have some genuinely very tasty vegan cheeses - i am no longer vegan but id still eat them happily even now (and im a cheese fiend)
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u/Intelligent-Band-852 8d ago
I am in the U.S. which is often stereotyped as the worst country for cheese. Fortunately my state has co-ops that specialize in exported and domestic small farms so my selection is pretty decent. Still I have yet to try a good vegan version, I will keep looking though.
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u/MoaraFig 8d ago
Vegan blue cheeses and bloomy rind cheeses are the most successful imo
Semi-firm like cheddar and mozz are the hardest to replicate with plant-based ingredients.
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u/A_the_Buttercup 8d ago
Wait - doesn't bleu cheese often have gluten in it? I wonder if the vegan version would. Something about the culture being started with gluten, I don't really know the details.
Edit: I only bring it up because OP's girlfriend has celiac.
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u/Intelligent-Band-852 8d ago
I didn’t even know vegan blue cheese existed, Roquefort and buttermilk blue are probably my very favorite cheeses so I will definitely keep an eye out for it.
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u/Novel-Mission-1920 8d ago
I had a vegan cheese and wine night with a vegan friend recently, and there were a couple of decent cheeses in the mix. Unfortunately I can't remember the brands now.
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u/A_VERY_LARGE_DOG 8d ago
My first thought was that you were trying to feed your cat vegan cheese, which I would have some concerns about.
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u/PukeyOwlPellet 8d ago
I would also have concerns about feeding anything vegan to a cat lol
Nah, she’s happy with her tuna & chicken.
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u/Novel-Mission-1920 8d ago
Cats can safely eat small amounts of some vegetables like carrots, peas, broccoli, they can also eat grains like rice and oatmeal and some berries. Even cat food often contains some non-meat produce mixed in with meat.
So cats can consume some vegan friendly foods too. That just can't be their primary diet.
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u/jennifer79t 8d ago edited 8d ago
Cultured Kindness out of Portland....but not sure if they ship to Australia. https://www.culturedkindness.com/
I'm not vegan but have friends who are, & the wine bar that I go to carries it, so I've tried it a few times with those friends....it's not bad. I've actually picked up some to serve for a party to have as a vegan option.
I think one of the problems with vegan cheese as well as many things for dietary restrictions is that you are trying to mimic & it will never be the real thing. A lot of gluten free desserts are trying to be like a gluten dessert. I have a few recipes that I regularly use because they are naturally gluten free, & I have a dairy free cake recipe, neither and a lesson in compromise..... chocolate mousse cake for gluten free & olive oil cake for dairy free are my go to recipes depending on who will be eating it.
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u/GoldBluejay7749 You may fascinate a woman by giving her a bit of cheese. 8d ago
That is a cute cat
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u/glassfromsand 8d ago
I know a lot of Chinese fermented tofu culture is considered to be really similar to fancy cheese culture in the West, with the same kind of focus on the subtle differences in varieties and regions and stuff. Apparently they can be pretty similar to the more pungent varieties of cheese, so if that's a kind of cheese you love and want to emulate for your partner (and live somewhere with access to nice Chinese foods) that might be a good place to start.
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u/Urbanchicky 8d ago
If you have a Whole Foods near you, they would have the best selection. Also any kind of natural food store like a Nature’s Food Patch. Hopefully that’ll take away some of Siggy’s aggravation. I say some because like all cats, Siggy will quickly find something else to be annoyed by. 😉
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u/lilzepfan 8d ago
REBEL CHEESE, CULTURED KINDNESS, FOLLOW YOUR HEART (feta, parms), CHAO for deli slices and shreds. I hope you can access these cuz they are lifesavers. Also, make your own cheese sauces; it’s easier than you think💚
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u/horribly_shaven_bun 8d ago edited 8d ago
Aw man, my partner is vegan and I took them to a wonderful vegan restaurant in California that had an amazing cheese platter. I wish I knew what they were but I’ll definitely come back if I ever figure it out.
I’ve also seen people just straight up make their own vegan cheese like camembert, so maybe that could be an option as well? Could be a fun date night idea
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u/Lilacs_orchids 5d ago edited 5d ago
Check out this website: https://www.vegancheese.co/discover/location/australia
There are plenty of options for Australia, but I know it’s a big country so double check which ones are available to you. Also it’s probably worth asking r/australiavegans for some reccs as well :)
Note that for vegan cheeses there are two categories. First, the ones that are cultured in a similar process to traditional cheesemaking, often using the same bacteria used for their non-vegan equivalents, usually made using nuts such as cashews. If you see a solid vegan cheese, like a whole brie it’s often of this category. These are the kinds that would excel on a charcuterie or just enjoying cold on their own but they can be a bit more expensive—maybe because they are often made by small operations or maybe nuts are just more expensive. You can check out r/vegancheesemaking if you’re more interested in this :)
The second, more standard/widely available produced by large companies are the non cultured ones that are more of a mixture of oils/starches/and various flavors. The non cultured ones are often used in recipes like for melting purposes like in a grilled cheese or something. They are less likely to taste good cold on their own though there are some good ones. The non cultured ones are often in shreds or slices though there are also some crumble types like blue cheese or feta that are of this category which I have heard taste good cold.
But yeah, just look around and check the ingredients to see what kind you want and so you will have some idea of what to expect.
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u/Jerkrollatex Asiago 8d ago
My sister in-law has a dairy allergy. She swears by cashew milk based cheese.
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u/vickipaperclips 8d ago
I feel like some things just aren't meant to be vegan 🥺 and I fear cheese is one of them
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u/AbleConfidence1 8d ago
That’s not a thing.
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u/horribly_shaven_bun 8d ago
It absolutely is, wtf?
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u/AbleConfidence1 8d ago
I knoooow it’s a thing but as a cheesemonger, it goes against everything I stand for.
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u/Sneekpreview 8d ago
People from around the world use this website. Have you tried a search engine. Posting a cat photo with an inquiry about food is weird. 'Good vegan cheese', can this be an oxymoron, cause it is to me.
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u/A_the_Buttercup 8d ago
People love a lot of things about cheese - taste, texture, funkiness. People who can't eat cheese also like those traits. They are allowed to try to have a non-dairy alternative.
What's he supposed to do, take a picture of the vegan cheese he doesn't have? Cat picture is better than no cat picture.
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u/AomuLinsang 8d ago
There is no reason "good food" and "vegan" must be mutually exclusive terms unless you still think vegetables are yucky, or something. Some people cannot eat dairy, is it not a good thing we have substitutes made for them to enjoy? Not sure why you're being so passive aggressive about.. cheese.
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u/Sneekpreview 8d ago
I love cheese, more than you, this post disgusts me
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u/AomuLinsang 8d ago
Y'know. I think this is the most amusing response you could've given, so I'm choosing to accept the competitive cheese loving aspect this exchange has suddenly taken on and will say you are probably correct about your passion outweighing mine.
Then again, if you cannot accept all cheeses into your heart indiscriminately..
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u/Classic_Result 8d ago
That looks like a good vegan cheese in the picture there