This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure and privacy policy.
One of the things I’m known for during football season is my dairy-free Queso dip. All of our friends love it!
However, since that popular dip is cashew-based, I wanted to create a recipe that was nut-free and lower in calories for those who want an even healthier dairy-free alternative. Rather than relying on nuts for creaminess, this queso gets its silky texture from sweet potatoes!
When combined with Rotel-style tomatoes and green chiles, along with the right seasonings, sweet potatoes become surprisingly creamy and create a satisfying dip that is even properly combined when served with baked tortilla chips. Though it’s hard to beat my original queso dip’s flavor, my taste-testers agreed that this allergen-free alternative is a truly satisfying option. I hope you all will agree!
—
Sweet Potato Queso (Dairy-free, Nut-free)
Makes 2 cups
Ingredients:
1 cup mashed white sweet potato
1/2 cup water
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/4 cup nutritional yeast (where to find)
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 14.5 oz. can diced tomatoes with green chiles (where to find)
Directions:
For this particular recipe, I used a white sweet potato, rather than the orange-fleshed variety, because I think they’re slightly less sweet. (Though, I’m guessing either would work if you want to give it a shot. You could also use a Yukon Gold potato, if you prefer.) Cut the sweet potato into chunks, then place them in a small pot fitted with a steam basket, and fill it with an inch of water. Bring the water to a boil, then cover and reduce the heat to low, steaming the potatoes until they are fork-tender. Once they potatoes are very tender, fork-mash them and measure out one cup of mashed potatoes to use for this recipe. (Reserve any extra for a curry sauce or smoothie later.)
In a high-speed blender, combine the cup of mashed sweet potato, water, salt, chili powder, nutritional yeast, and lemon juice and blend until completely smooth. Warm the diced tomatoes in a small saucepan over medium heat, then pour the cheese sauce from the blender into the pan and stir well to combine.
Heat the mixture until your desired serving temperature is reached, then serve warm with your favorite chips or crudites.
Leftover sauce can be stored in a sealed container for up to a week. Reheat over the stove, or in a small crock pot, before serving again.
Ingredients
- 1 cup mashed white sweet potato
- 1/2 cup water
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
- 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
- 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1 14.5 oz . can diced tomatoes with green chiles
Instructions
- For this particular recipe, I used a white sweet potato, rather than the orange-fleshed variety, because I think they're slightly less sweet. (Though, I'm guessing either would work if you want to give it a shot. You could also use a Yukon Gold potato, if you prefer.) Cut the sweet potato into chunks, then place them in a small pot fitted with a steam basket, and fill it with an inch of water. Bring the water to a boil, then cover and reduce the heat to low, steaming the potatoes until they are fork-tender. Once they potatoes are very tender, fork-mash them and measure out one cup of mashed potatoes to use for this recipe. (Reserve any extra for a curry sauce or smoothie later.)
- In a high-speed blender, combine the cup of mashed sweet potato, water, salt, chili powder, nutritional yeast, and lemon juice and blend until completely smooth. Warm the diced tomatoes in a small saucepan over medium heat, then pour the cheese sauce from the blender into the pan and stir well to combine.
- Heat the mixture until your desired serving temperature is reached, then serve warm with your favorite chips or crudites.
- Leftover sauce can be stored in a sealed container for up to a week. Reheat over the stove, or in a small crock pot, before serving again.
Nutrition
Calories per cup of Queso: 117, Fat: 0g, Carbohydrates: 24g, Fiber: 5g, Protein: 5g
Notes:
- If you don’t have sweet potatoes on hand, Yukon Gold potatoes also work very well in this recipe.
- Nutritional yeast provides the “cheesy” flavor to this dip. If you can’t use it, the resulting dip will probably still taste okay without it, but it won’t be as cheese-like.
- If you’d like a slightly more authentic queso, and can tolerate cashews, I recommend making my original recipe instead. All of my taste-testers agreed that this Sweet Potato Queso is good, but the other one is even better.
—
Reader Feedback: What’s your favorite type of dip or appetizer to serve to guests?
I’m thinking maybe you could use steamed cauliflower in place of potato…!! Great recipe thanks can’t wait to try it!!!
Just made this, though I didn’t have canned tomatoes with chiles. I used regular diced tomatoes and a dash of cayenne…. I liked it better before I added the tomatoes and cayenne. Was really convincingly cheesy! Thanks for the recipes. I’ll follow it more precisely next time. One thing- should I drain the juice off the tomatoes and chiles? I didn’t drain this time and I think it watered it down. I was thinking I’d drain next time.
I was wondering what is the flavor difference between a regular sweet potatoe and the white one? I have never tried a white sweet potatoe. Thanks for your yummy recipes.
I LOVE this dip! I especially love the fact that it is low in fat, which my digestion thinks is terrific. I did it with regular potatoes and it worked swell. Also, the leftovers of this dip turned out to be an AMAZING pasta sauce! This dip and some pasta penne and you have a great meal for a high carb vegan. Thank you, again, Megan!
very good dip!
I made this yesterday and it was soooo delicious! Thank you so much. It’s nice to have an alternative to cashews.
What is the nutritional yeast for? Some in the family are avoiding yeast in foods because of “Candida.”
Nutritional yeast is a yeast extract made as a nutritional supplement, food additive and flavoring. It is an excellent source of nutrients, especially protein. Nutritional yeast is quite different from brewer’s yeast, baker’s yeast and pathogenic, or disease causing, yeast. It cannot cause or contribute to Candida yeast infections because it is derived from a different species that has been deactivated.
It is what gives the recipe a “cheesy” flavor.
This was SO. GOOD. My husband is a regular nacho cheese kind of guy and he inhaled it, lol! I only had a regular sweet potato. It would be interesting to try with the white. Thank you for the recipe!
Amazing, amazing!!! I just made it but used a can of plain diced tomatoes because that’s all I had. Still turned out great but I added some spices to compensate for the chilies. I would recommend this to anyone
I just wanted to update this by saying my husband (who does not eat dairy free food) looooved this. He ate most of it, not leaving much for me! Boo!
But I forgot to discuss the sweet potato issue. I only had the orange-coloured sweet potatoes so i added some carrots (thanks to a comment from the purely twins) to cut down on the sweetness but keep the orange colour!!!
Also today with the leftovers I made “cheesy” potatoes!!
Just another update….. I keep making this and I love it. This time instead of the tomatoes, I just added salsa to my taste. No heating but I made it when the sweet potatoes were still hot. Fantastic!!!
This sounds tasty! Thank you! I love sweet potatoes! I got curious when I noticed you said to keep the leftover sweet potatoes for a smoothie! I hadn’t thought of that before, & that sounds like it could be fantastic! I’d love to hear which ingredients you’ve found to compliment the sweet potato, & what your favorite sweet potato smoothie is like?!
As for dip, my current favorite to make is hummus meets avocado dip!