Making cashew butter at home is quick and easy. All you need is one ingredient and about 10 minutes of time to make it. No added oil required!
How to Make It
Similar to making homemade almond butter or peanut butter, all you need is one ingredient to make cashew butter– plain cashews! I like to use the ones that say “raw” on the label, but roasted ones will work, too, in this case.
Note: Cashews that are sold in grocery stores are not truly raw; most are steamed or cooked in some way to remove traces of urushiol, which is a toxic resin found in their shells. So, when I say I use “raw” cashews for this recipe, I’m referring to the ones that are sold in a grocery store that are not labeled as “roasted.”
Add the cashews to the bowl of a food processor fitted with an “S” blade, secure the lid, and start processing. After roughly 2 minutes of processing, you’ll have a powdery texture that sticks to the sides of the bowl.
Stop and scrape down the sides, then start processing again.
You shouldn’t have to stop and scrape down the sides again, but you can if you want to.
After another 2 minutes of processing, the sides that build up should start to fall down on their own, until the mixture starts to stick together into one big ball.
Seeing a ball is a good sign, and that should happen within the first 5 minutes of processing.
Keep the food processor running– the ball should break down on its own in about 1 more minute, and will start to resemble more of a cashew butter texture.
Let your food processor continue to run until you hear the cashew butter become noticeably louder as it is processed. It will have a “sloshy” sound to it, signaling that it’s smoother and runnier in texture.
This is how you make a runny, drippy cashew butter like you’re used to buying at the store, and it’s all done in just about 10 minutes of processing.
Transfer the finished cashew butter to a clean jar with a lid, and store it in the fridge.
How Long Does Homemade Cashew Butter Last?
Cashew butter should last for at least a month in the fridge, as long as you keep it free from added moisture, and it may last even longer than that. (We usually use it all within 4 weeks.) For an even longer shelf life, you can freeze anything you won’t use for up to 6 months.
How to Use Cashew Butter
Cashew butter has a mild, neutral flavor that can work in a number of dishes. You can use it just like you would peanut butter or almond butter, so give one of the following recipes a try using your new homemade cashew butter!
- Cashew Butter Cookies (these are amazing frozen!)
- Flourless Banana Muffins
- Flourless Blondies
- Cashew Queso
- Vegan Ranch Dressing
- Vegan Sriracha Mayo
- Freezer Fudge
If you want to a make a blended recipe that calls for whole cashews, keep in mind that 1/2 cup of cashew butter = 1 cup of whole cashews, as a substitute in most cases.
Is Cashew Butter Healthier Than Peanut Butter?
Calorie-wise, cashew butter is pretty similar to peanut butter. Cashews have less fiber and protein than peanuts, but they are a good source of magnesium. One study suggests that a diet rich in cashews may help to lower blood pressure and improve HDL cholesterol levels.
Is it Cheaper to Make Your own Cashew Butter?
Oddly enough, it’s not always cheaper to make your own cashew butter, at least not when comparing prices at my local grocery store. One pound of cashews is $9.99 here, while a 16 oz. jar of cashew butter is $8.99, so it’s $1 more to buy the whole cashews and make it yourself.
The real benefit to making your own cashew butter is that you can make it without any added oil, salt, or other additives you may not want to consume. The cashew butter at my store does contain added oil, so you aren’t getting a full pound of cashews in each jar, as you are when you make this recipe.
How to Make Cashew Butter
Equipment
Ingredients
- 16 ounces cashews (raw or roasted)
Instructions
- In a 12-cup food processor fitted with an "S" blade, add in the cashews and start processing. They will break down into a flour-like, powdery consistency and will start piling up against the sides of the food processor bowl within 2 minutes.
- Stop and scrape down the sides, then start processing again. It will take roughly 5 minutes total for the mixture to form a ball. This is a good sign.
- Continue processing. The cashew butter will start to look thick and grainy when the ball breaks down, and it will continue getting smoother the longer you process it. After roughly 10 minutes total of processing, you should begin to hear a loud "sloshy" sound as the cashew butter becomes runnier in texture. This is when you know it's done.
- Transfer the cashew butter to a clean glass jar with a lid, and store it in the fridge. It should last for at least a month in the fridge, as long as you keep it free from added moisture.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is for roughly 2 tablespoons of cashew butter, and is just an estimate not a guarantee.
If you try this method for making your own cashew butter at home, please leave a comment below and let me know how it works out for you. And if you make any modifications or try flavor additions, I’d love to hear about that, too. We can all benefit from your experience!
–
Reader Feedback: What’s your favorite nut or seed butter?
I love how you include step-by-step photos for the process. I would have given up when I got the ball, thinking I did something wrong, but thanks to you I knew to just keep going. This is the best cashew butter!
Think I can make this in a Vitamix?
I’ve done that before, but you’ll have to use the tamper and might have to stop and scrape down the sides a few times.
Is there any spices or flavours that you could add? Such as cinnamon, etc. Thank you for the recipe, I’ll have to try it out.
This is the easiest and fastest recipe and saved me a TON of time and effort. And I always soak my nuts before eating them, and this recipe still works with that!
Do you roast your raw cashews? I only roast my cashews 5-10 mins., it depends. I stand there and watch them like a hawk. I have burned mine twice so I shall not take any chances.
This sounds great, but should I soak the raw cashews first?
No, wet cashews won’t turn into nut butter. (They’d be more like cashew cream, which spoils much faster.)
Okay, great! I’m excited to try this!