Store bought vegan cream cheese is sooo expensive and you get a tiny little container that lasts like 3 days. Thats why I’m so happy I discovered this vegan cream cheese recipe using the Instant Pot!
This recipe is very simple and easy, but it takes about 18 hours. You don’t have to do much work though, just pour and press some buttons. To sum it up, you first have to make soy yogurt in the Instant Pot and let it “cook” for at least 12 hours. Next you have to strain the soy yogurt for another 6 hours. When its done straining you are left with thick and creamy soy cream, and with some additional seasonings you have delicious cream cheese! It can be used as a spread on toast, crackers or in recipes that need a thick cream. It is creamy, savory and tangy!
Since the first step is making soy yogurt, lets talk about that process. Making soy yogurt is way easier than it sounds but unfortunately not all Instant Pots have the “yogurt” setting. Any LUX models will not have the yogurt setting. You have to have a DUO model and up. Making soy yogurt is really easy. First you pour your milk into the Instant Pot. Next add a few scoops of pre existing yogurt and gently stir. Next press the yogurt button and thats it!. It basically works by keeping the milk/ yogurt mixture at the perfect temperature to let the good bacteria proliferate. The longer you set the time to, the tangier the yogurt will be! I like to set the time to 12 hours.
Why do I use soy milk? Well, for some reason it is the vegan milk that works best at making yogurt. I have tried oat, coconut and almond and they all have failed me. It has to be a specific type of soy milk though- plain unsweetened, no filler or gums or minerals added. Trader Joe’s plain unsweetened soy milk works best for me. You can also try the brands Eden Soy or Westsoy. It is very important that is has no additives- the ingredients should only be soybeans and water.
I posted a video on my Youtube channel showing the entire cream cheese recipe and process so go check that out if you need some more guidance!
Instant Pot Soy Cream Cheese
Equipment
- Instant Pot Duo
- Nut milk bag
- Sieve
Ingredients
- 1 qt soy milk MUST be plain, unsweetened, only ingredients soy beans and water
- 3 tbsp plain vegan yogurt
- 1 1/2 tsp onion salt- Trader Joes brand or use 1/2 tsp salt, onion flake, garlic powder, chives
- 1/2 tbsp champagne vinegar
Instructions
- 1. Pour 4 cups of plain unsweetened soy milk into the Instant Pot. Stir in the plain yogurt until no lumps appear. Put the lid on. Press "yogurt" and set the timer for 12 hours. I do this step over night so in the morning it will be ready.
- 2. After 12 hours you now have soy yogurt. Place a cheese cloth or nut milk bag into a mesh strainer into a large bowl. Take off the Instant Pot lid. Pour the soy yogurt into the nut milk bag/ strainer. The excess liquid will drain out of the nut milk bag into the bowl. The strainer is to prop it up so its not sitting directly in the bowl. Strain for 4 hours or more depending on how thick you want it. I squeezed the bag every hour to help it go faster.
- 3. After your yogurt is strained it should resemble really thick greek yogurt. Next, pour the yogurt from the strainer into a bowl. Mix in the champagne vinegar and onion salt. If not using onion salt, use 1/2 tsp salt (or more depending on taste), pinch of garlic powder, pinch of onion powder, 1/4 tsp onion flakes, and 1/4 tsp dried chives. Taste and adjust to your preferences. Store in a container for up to 5 days.
