12 Ways to Eat Nutritional Yeast

Nutritional yeast is deliciously cheesy and savory – perfect for adding to all kinds of dishes. It is often called ‘nooch’ for short and is a very well-known ingredient amongst vegans and those who eat a plant-based diet.

If you are vegan or dairy-free, this needs to be a staple ingredient in your kitchen to add to your dishes. Just about any meal could benefit from a bit of nooch.

Ways to Eat Nutritional Yeast Everyday

Unlike other cheese options like dairy-based cheeses or vegan cheeses, nutritional yeast is healthy. It not only adds plenty of flavor but also nutritional benefits, such as controlling your blood sugar!

If you do not know how to use nooch, here are 12 types of foods that you can add it to!

1. Cheesy Sauces

The best way to create vegan sauces that taste cheesy is to use nutritional yeast! This adds a huge amount of delicious cheesy flavor, not to mention that orange color that we associate with cheddar.

Nutritional yeast adds a delicious savory element to sauces, giving them a much-needed boost in flavor. 

Here are a few cheesy sauces to try out:

• Creamy Chia Cheddar Sauce
• Green Chili Nacho Cheese Sauce
• Life-Changing Cheese Sauce

2. Pasta

Pasta is a very traditional way to use nooch. This is because cheese and pasta just naturally go together, so nooch and pasta do the same.

You can make a cheesy nooch sauce to go over your pasta, or you can simply sprinkle it on top like parmesan. Either way is delicious and adds that cheesy element that we are looking for.

Here are a few vegan kinds of pasta to put nooch on:

• Fettuccine Alfredo
• Cauliflower Carbonara
• Creamy Roasted Red Pepper and Mushroom Sauce

3. On Top of Pizza

Pizza is another fabulous way to use up some of your nooch supply. Any kind of pizza could benefit from a sprinkling of these orange flakes to up the flavor profile.

This is the perfect solution if you are wanting a dairy-free pizza that still tastes cheesy. Or when you just want to add some more flavor to a takeout veggie pizza.

This is another meal that you could transform with a cheesy sauce if you have some extra time!

Here are a few vegan pizzas to put nooch on:

• Vegan Pepperoni Pan Pizza
• Raw Pizza with Red Pepper Flax Crust
• Veggie Pizza With Sunflower Seed Cheese

4. Cheesy Vegetables

Have trouble getting down your daily servings of vegetables? Why not sprinkle some nooch on those roasted veggies?

This is especially handy for any veggie haters out there or picky children. No one can resist cheesy vegetables, no matter how much they might dislike broccoli. This is one of the best ways to use nutritional yeast every day.

Not only will you be eating your veggies, but you will be getting all of the good stuff from the nooch as well.

Here are some vegetable dishes that use nooch:

• Roasted Broccolini
• Kale Caesar Salad With Oil-Free Croutons
• Raw Lemon Tahini Kale Chips

5. Homemade Garlic Bread

Homemade garlic bread is a carb that most of us can get behind. There is no better side dish for a big bowl of pasta or vegetables!

If you want to make your garlic bread taste even better, why not add in some nooch? This is a great way of adding that cheesy element since garlic bread often doesn’t contain cheese as well.

Garlic bread with some added nooch tastes even better and is more authentic.

Check out these garlic bread recipes:

• Toasted Garlic Bread
• Herbed Whole Wheat Tomato Garlic Bread
• Cheesy 4-Ingredient Garlic Bread

6. Savory Oatmeal

Savory oatmeal is a unique way of getting in more nutritional yeast throughout the day. 

We all know that oatmeal is great for us, but the sweet version can sometimes get old. This is where savory oatmeal comes in handy for a savory and quick breakfast.

Add some nooch, salt, and pepper, and you have a deliciously cheesy breakfast. Or you could get fancy and saute some veggies to go on top. You can get as creative as you like with this dish!

Check out these savory oatmeal recipes:

• Pumpkin and Kale Steel-Cut Oatmeal With Sausage
• Mediterranean Savory Oatmeal with Millet
• Savory Corn and Chive Oatmeal

7. Loaded Baked Potatoes

Loaded potatoes are one of those ultimate comfort foods, and you can make them taste even better by adding a generous serving of nooch.

With nooch, you can still get a cheesy loaded baked potato without any dairy cheese or vegan cheese. It will taste just as good and be much healthier for you!

Check out these vegan baked potatoes:

• Spicy Turmeric Twice-Baked Potatoes
• Hungarian Twice-Baked Potatoes
• Twice-Baked Potato Bites With Coconut Bacon

8. Perogies

Perogies are another delicious dish. You can enjoy cheesy perogies, whether they are frozen or homemade. Either way is delicious when paired with some nooch.

This is another amazing way to eat nutritional yeast by thinking outside of the box.

You can either stuff your homemade perogies with a cheesy filling or sprinkle nooch over the top.

Check out these vegan perogies:

• Homemade Cauliflower Perogies

9. Scrambled Tofu

Scrambled tofu, while delicious on its own, is twice as good with nutritional yeast. It adds that eggy yellow color to the tofu and gives it so much more flavor.

Nooch adds another savory component that gives the scramble a flavorful boost. This is perfect for those who don’t like tofu but want to enjoy a scrambled eggs substitute.

Check out these scrambled tofu recipes:

• Cheesy Tofu and Spinach Scramble
• Southwestern Tofu Scramble With Roast Potatoes
• 15-Minute Tofu Scramble

10. Hashbrown Casserole

You can make a realistic hash brown casserole with the addition of plenty of nooch for cheesiness.

This makes a delicious and nutritious breakfast or brunch and could fool anyone into thinking that they were eating cheese.

This is a perfect dish for anyone skeptical about nooch or dairy-free foods.

Check out these hashbrown recipes:

• Hash Brown Frittata
• Oil-Free Breakfast Casserole With Hash Brown Crust
• Baked Hash Browns

11. Mac and Cheese

Mac and cheese is one of the most popular dishes to add nooch to for obvious reasons. What better way to recreate this cheesy comfort food than to add a cheesy component?

This is great if you don’t have access to vegan cheeses since you can still recreate a realistic cheese sauce. And a nooch mac and cheese is very healthy in comparison to traditional mac and cheese!

Check out these vegan mac and cheese recipes:

• Cheesy Mac n Yeast
• Mac and Cheese With Mushrooms, Peppers, and Spinach
• Five Cheese Baked Macaroni and Cheese

12. Mashed Potatoes

Mashed potatoes are delicious on their own, but you can get amazingly cheesy mashed potatoes with nooch!

This is another one of the best ways to eat nutritional yeast. Nooch makes mashed potatoes rich and cheesy and much more flavorful. Perfect as a cheesy side dish or main dish.

Check out these vegan mashed potatoes recipes:

• Caulifower and Red Potato Mash
• Indian Golden Mashed Potatoes With Curried Gravy
• Creamy Cauliflower Mashed Potatoes

Learn How to Cook Plant-Based Meals at Home

Reducing your meat intake and eating more plant-based foods is known to help with chronic inflammation, heart health, mental well-being, fitness goals, nutritional needs, allergies, gut health, and more! Unfortunately, dairy consumption also has been linked to many health problems, including acne, hormonal imbalance, cancer, and prostate cancer, and has many side effects. 

For those interested in eating more plant-based, we highly recommend purchasing one of our many plant-based cookbooks or downloading the Food Monster App which has thousands of delicious recipes making it the largest vegan recipe resource to help reduce your environmental footprint, save animals and get healthy! And, while you are at it, we encourage you to also learn about the environmental and health benefits of a plant-based diet.

Here are some resources to get you started:

• Weekly Vegan Meal Plans
• Plant-Based Health Resources
• Plant-Based Food & Recipes
• The Ultimate Guide to Plant-Based Nutrition
• Plant-Based Nutrition Resources
• Budget-Friendly Plant-Based Recipes
• High Protein Plant-Based Recipes
• Plant-Based Meal Prep

Easy Ways to Help the Planet:

• Eat Less Meat: Download Food Monster, the largest plant-based Recipe app on the App Store, to help reduce your environmental footprint, save animals and get healthy. You can also buy a hard or soft copy of our favorite vegan cookbooks.
• Reduce Your Fast Fashion Footprint: Take initiative by standing up against fast fashion Pollution and supporting sustainable and circular brands like Tiny Rescue that raise awareness around important issues through recycled zero-waste clothing designed to be returned and remade repeatedly.
• Support Independent Media: Being publicly funded gives us a greater chance to continue providing high-quality content. Please consider supporting us by donating!
• Sign a Petition: Your voice matters! Help turn petitions into victories by signing the latest list of must-sign petitions to help people, animals, and the planet.
• Stay Informed: Keep up with the latest news and important stories involving animals, the environment, sustainable living, food, health, and human interest topics by subscribing to our newsletter!
• Do What You Can: Reduce waste, plant trees, eat local, travel responsibly, reuse stuff, say no to single-use plastics, recycle, vote smart, switch to cold water laundry, divest from fossil fuels, save water, shop wisely, Donate if you can, grow your food, volunteer, conserve energy, compost, and don’t forget about the microplastics and microbeads lurking in common household and personal care products!